How much does house cladding cost in the UK?
House cladding costs £60 on average in the UK. Most jobs fall between £40 and £90 per m². Cladding material: uPVC £40 to £55, Timber £50 to £70, Fibre cement £60 to £80. Prices reviewed July 2026.
External cladding is priced by the square metre of wall, supplied and fitted. uPVC is the cheapest option, with timber, composite and fibre cement costing more.
House cladding cost calculator
Use the calculator to price your house cladding in 2026. Adjust the options and area for a UK cost range. Nothing is sent anywhere.
House cladding cost breakdown
Typical house cladding costs, by the unit:
| What | Typical UK cost |
|---|---|
| Per m², supplied and fitted | £40 to £90 per m² |
| + Insulation behind the cladding | add £15 to £40 per m² |
| + Scaffolding for upper floors | add £8 to £20 per m² |
| 30 m² | £1,200 to £2,700 |
| 60 m² (typical) | £2,400 to £5,400 |
| 120 m² | £4,800 to £10,800 |
House cladding cost by cladding material
Material is the biggest single choice on a cladding quote. uPVC is the cheapest to buy and the least convincing close up. Fibre cement and composite cost more and then ask almost nothing of you for decades.
| Cladding material | Cost per m² installed | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| uPVC | £40 to £55 | Cheapest, and only needs washing. Reads as plastic at close range |
| Timber, softwood | £50 to £70 | Warmest looking. Needs re-treating every few years or it greys |
| Fibre cement | £60 to £80 | Looks like painted timber, will not rot or burn, 40 years plus |
| Composite | £70 to £90 | Timber look without the upkeep. Dearest to buy, cheapest to own |
Supplied and fitted, per m² installed. UK guide prices reviewed July 2026, not quotes.
House cladding cost by wall area
Cladding is quoted on wall area, and most houses are only clad on some elevations. That is why the same house gets quoted two very different figures: one for a gable end, another for the whole thing.
| What you are cladding | Wall area | Typical total |
|---|---|---|
| One gable end one elevation | 30 m² | £1,200 to £2,700 |
| Front of a semi one elevation | 45 m² | £1,800 to £4,100 |
| 3-bed semi, front and back two elevations | 90 m² | £3,600 to £8,100 |
| 4-bed detached, whole house all four elevations | 140 m² | £5,600 to £12,500 |
Totals are the guide rate of £40 to £90 per m² applied to each size. Indicative, not quotes.
What's included in the price?
Typical house cladding prices include:
- Cladding boards and fixings, supplied and fitted
- Battens and a breather membrane behind
- Labour to fit and finish
- Trims and edge details
What changes the price?
The things that move house cladding prices most:
Wall area in square metres
Material: uPVC, timber, composite, fibre cement or metal
Whether insulation is added behind the cladding
Access, and scaffolding for upper floors
These are why two quotes for the same job can differ, and the only way to know your price is to get prices from local firms (through Bark; we may earn a fee, at no extra cost to you).
Does where you live change the cost?
In London, house cladding typically costs around £70 per m², about 20% above the UK average of £60. In the North, Scotland and Wales the guide figure is nearer £60.
| Region | From | Typical | Up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midlands / East (UK average) | £40 | £60 | £90 |
| London | £50 | £70 | £110 |
| South East / South West | £40 | £65 | £95 |
| North / Scotland / Wales | £40 | £60 | £85 |
Guide prices per m², scaled with the same regional multipliers as the calculator. Not quotes.
House cladding cost in major UK cities
| City | From | Typical | Up to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast | £40 | £55 | £85 |
| Birmingham | £40 | £60 | £90 |
| Bristol | £40 | £65 | £95 |
| Cardiff | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Edinburgh | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Glasgow | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Leeds | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Liverpool | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| London | £50 | £70 | £110 |
| Manchester | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Newcastle | £40 | £60 | £85 |
| Sheffield | £40 | £60 | £85 |
City guide estimates, scaled by local labour costs. Indicative averages for house cladding, not quotes.
In London and the South East, figures run above the national figures, mainly on labour and access.
Compare this with a real quote
The figures above are guide prices. Two or three quotes for your house cladding tell you what it costs where you live.
Free and no obligation. You answer a few questions on Bark, local pros get in touch, and you decide who, if anyone, to hire. We may earn a fee, at no extra cost to you.Common questions
How much does it cost to clad a house?
House cladding costs roughly £40 to £90 per m² supplied and fitted in the UK, typically around £60. So cladding a 60 square metre elevation is about £2,400 to £5,400. uPVC sits at the lower end, with timber, composite and fibre cement costing more. Adding insulation behind the cladding, and scaffolding for upper floors, push the figure up.
Is it cheaper to clad or render a house?
They are in a similar range, so it comes down to the finish you want. Rendering runs about £40 to £65 per m² and gives a smooth painted surface; cladding runs £40 to £90 per m² and gives a timber or board look that is fitted dry, often faster and less weather-dependent. Render is usually the cheaper choice for a plain finish, while cladding buys a particular look and can add insulation. See our house rendering cost guide for the comparison.
What is the cheapest way to clad a house?
uPVC cladding is the cheapest at the lower end of the £40 to £90 per m² range. It is light, low-maintenance and quick to fit, though it looks less premium than timber or composite and can fade over many years. If budget is the priority, uPVC does the weatherproofing job; if appearance matters more, timber or composite justify their higher cost.
Does cladding add value to a house?
Fresh cladding lifts kerb appeal, can cover tired or damaged brickwork, and when paired with insulation improves warmth, all of which help a sale. As with most exterior work, though, a value uplift is never guaranteed, so treat cladding as protection and appearance rather than an investment. A tidy, well-fitted finish in a material that suits the house does the most for a buyer.
Do I need planning permission to clad my house?
For a normal house, re-cladding in a similar appearance is often permitted development, but there are real exceptions: conservation areas, listed buildings, flats and maisonettes, and some material choices need consent. Building regulations may also require you to upgrade the wall insulation if you clad a large area. Check with your local planning office before committing, especially on anything prominent or protected.
What cladding materials can I choose from?
The common options, cheapest first, are uPVC (low cost, low maintenance), timber (natural look, needs periodic treating), composite (timber look with far less upkeep, mid to high price), and fibre cement or metal for a modern finish. The price per m² rises with the material, so the £40 to £90 range mostly reflects which board you pick, plus the labour and any insulation behind it.
Can I clad my house myself?
You can, and on labour you would save a fair share of the £40 to £90 per m2 rate, but it is harder than it looks. Getting battens level, keeping courses straight and detailing around windows and eaves is where DIY jobs go wrong, and poor flashing lets water track behind the boards. Ground floor timber or PVC is doable for a confident DIYer. Anything at height needs scaffold and is safer left to a fitter.
Cite this data
These figures are free to use in articles, reports and research under a CC BY 4.0 licence. All we ask is a credit to Costwise, and online a link. Where your style allows, please make "Costwise" the linked word so readers can check the figure for their own region.
Costwise (2026): House cladding typically costs £60 in the UK, ranging from £40 to £90 per m². Reviewed July 2026. costwiseuk.co.ukSource: Costwise (costwiseuk.co.uk)Costwise (2026). House cladding cost. Costwise UK cost data, version 2026-10-05. https://costwiseuk.co.uk/house-cladding-cost/2026-10-05 (158 jobs)Dataset DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21159943 · also on Kaggle, Hugging Face and Figshare. Method: how we price. Downloadable CSV.
These are independent guide prices based on typical UK jobs in 2026. Your actual cost depends on your property, spec, access and where you live. Always get at least three written quotes before committing.