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How much does 1200 sq ft of drywall cost in Newark, NJ?

Hanging, taping and finishing drywall in Newark, NJ
$3,323
1,200 ft² of board · typical range $2,215 – $5,192
Typical total$2.77 per ft² of board$3,323
Range you should see in bidsthree bids on the same scope normally land inside this$2,215 – $5,192
Labor portion65% of the job — this is the part that moves by city$2,160
Material portion35% — bought at national prices$1,163
Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers pay near Newarkabout $38/hr · New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro$78,640/yr
U.S. mean for the same tradeSOC 47-2081$63,600/yr
Versus the national pricetrade pay here runs +23.6% against the U.S. mean+$443

Notes

  • Where the number comes from. The national price for hanging, taping and finishing drywall is $2.40 per ft² of board — drywall installation pricing published for 2026, $1.60–$3.75 per ft² including materials. Labor is about 65% of that. Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers near Newark, NJ average $78,640 a year against a U.S. mean of $63,600 — a factor of 1.236 — so the labor half is scaled by that and the material half is not. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 for the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area, SOC 47-2081.
  • Why the city matters, not just the state. Trade pay moves inside a state as much as it does between states. Crews do not commute across a state to bid a job, and materials ship at national prices either way — so a metro wage is the honest input here and a state average quietly rounds four different cities into one number.
  • What is in the price: board, screws, tape, three coats of compound to a level 4 finish, sanding, and labor.
  • What is not: primer and paint, texture, level 5 finish, and hauling the old board away. These are the lines that turn a $3,323 quote into a $4,153 invoice, so ask about each one before signing.
  • Use this as a bid check, not a quote. It prices an average job in average condition. Difficult access, the state of what is being replaced, the season, and a crew booked out three months all move the real number, and none of them are in a per-unit average.

hanging, taping and finishing drywall in Newark, NJ

$3,323 is the typical number, and three bids on the same scope normally land between $2,215 and $5,192.

That is $443 more than the same job priced at the national average.

Why the city changes the number

About 65% of this job is labor — $2,160 of the $3,323 above. Labor is the only part that moves locally; a bundle of material costs what it costs wherever it is nailed down.

Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers near Newark average $78,640 a year, against a U.S. mean of $63,600. That is a factor of 1.236, so the labor half is scaled by it and the material half is not.

Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 for the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area, SOC 47-2081.

What the quote should include

The lines that turn a quote into an invoice

Ask about each of them before you sign. On a job this size they are the difference between $3,323 and something a quarter higher.

Use it as a bid check, not a quote

This prices an average job in average condition. Access, the state of what is being replaced, the season, and a crew booked out three months all move the real number, and none of them are in a national average.

If a bid lands outside $2,215 – $5,192, that is not automatically wrong — but it is the question worth asking out loud.

Nearby sizes

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