Which is cheaper: paintable wallpaper or ready-made wallpaper?

When planning a renovation, wall finishes are one of the most important issues. In recent years, paintable wallpapers have become increasingly popular. They offer a compromise between painted walls and traditional wallpapers. But are they really better than ready-patterned wallpaper? Let's take a look at the advantages, types and costs.

Advantages of paintable wallpaper.

The main difference of paintable wallpapers is their functionality and longevity. Here are the main pros:
🎨 Freedom of colour choice: You are not limited by the assortment in the shop. You can choose any shade from thousands of variations.
✅ Repaintability: If the paint gets tired or the wall gets smudged, it's easy to repaint. Quality wallpapers can be repainted several times.
🔨 Durability: A layer of paint (especially when using washable paint) forms a protective layer, making the wallpaper more resistant to scratches and moisture.

We compare ready-mixed wallpaper and paintable wallpaper.

Ready-made (normal) wallpaper is a classic. Their main advantage is the speed of the process - apply and ready. They often offer subtle patterns and ornaments that are difficult to achieve with paint. However, if the finished wallpaper is damaged or becomes tired, it must be torn off and new wallpaper applied.
Paintable wallpapers take more time in the initial stage (gluing + drying + painting), but are more practical in the long run. They also create a "warmer" and cosier feeling than a simply painted wall, thanks to the texture.

Which is cheaper: Paintable or ready-mixed wallpaper?

This is the most frequently asked question and the answer depends on your point of view.

Initial cost:
🪙 Cheapest option: The lowest cost will be for a single-colour ready-mixed wallpaper without pattern matching.

💰 Medium/Expensive option: Paintable wallpapers often cost more initially. You need to buy: wallpaper + glue + paint (usually 2 coats to stick). Also, the work of a handyman can be more expensive as the process is two-step (gluing and painting).

Gluing wallpaper ~8 €/m2
Painting wallpaper (x2) ~6m2
Average cost for finished wallpaper: 4 €/m2
Average cost for paintable wallpaper: 2,5 €/m2
Average cost for paintable wallpaper: 2,5 €/m2
For 40 m2 average cost for gluing and painting wallpaper:
Ready wallpaper: 480 € (wallpaper + gluing)
Paintable wallpaper: 760 € (wallpaper + paint + tinting + painting + gluing)

* Note that this does not include the cost of preparing the wall for wallpapering. Here we only consider the differences between the costs incurred in adhesive ready-to-use and paintable wallpapers.

💡Pasting yourown wallpaper will be the most cost-effective. For example, quality German wallpaper costs around € 160 per 40 m2. You will need a few tools which can be bought in any building shop and rolling to make your home even more comfortable.

Long-term costs:

Paintable wallpaper wins here. When it's time for a cosmetic renovation, you'll need to take the wallpaper off, prepare the walls and buy new wallpaper. Paintable wallpaper simply needs to be painted a new shade, which is significantly cheaper and quicker.

Types of wallpaper

The choice is wide and each material has its own characteristics:

Non-Woven wallpapers (vinyl coated):
The most popular type. These have a Non-woven backing (easy to glue, glue only needs to be applied to the wall) and a foamed vinyl topcoat which creates an embossing effect. They hide unevenness well, but vinyl is not a breathable material and is easily scratched before painting.

Eco-friendly paper wallpaper (Raufasser / Chipboard wallpaper):
A very popular, budget-friendly option in Germany. They consist of several layers of paper with wood shavings sandwiched between them to form a structure.

Advantages: cheap, 100% ecological, breathable.

Disadvantages: Not as resistant to moisture and mechanical damage as fibreglass.

Non-Woven wallpapers (Eco-friendly, PVC-free):
This is a "clean" Non-woven wallpaper (often called Malervlies or renovation fleece). They can be completely smooth or embossed by pressing the fibres rather than applying vinyl.

Advantages: Highly durable, breathable, free of harmful substances, ideal for nurseries and bedrooms. The smooth flizeline creates a "painted wall" effect but protects the wall from micro-cracks.

Fibreglass wallpaper:
The most durable option, woven from glass fibre threads.

Advantages: Extremely durable (can be scrubbed with a brush), fireproof, lasts up to 30 years, excellent for reinforcing (strengthening) walls. Often used in offices and hotels.

Disadvantages:

✔️ More expensive, harder to glue and if you want to remove them, it will be very difficult (they practically stick to the wall).

✔️ Very limited choice of textures

Summary

Tapetenshop.lv started by choosing ready-made wallpapers and applying the wallpapers themselves. With Non-woven wallpapers it will be quick and easy. Read the tutorials on how to glue wallpaper (also available on our website) before you glue, find the video-tutorials on YouTube and you will be fine. If you don't even get it right the first time, that's no reason to get over it. This will be your experience. In any case, you will get several times more out of your wallpapering and you won't have to search and wait for a master to become available.

Our team will help you with all the information you need about wallpapering and will be happy to help you choose new wallpapers for your cosy interior.