Grace Woodwork
What Furniture Refinishing and Repair Cost
National cost guides put a typical furniture refinishing job in the hundreds of dollars, with large or damaged pieces running into the thousands. Here is what they publish, why prices vary so much, and when a repair costs less than people expect.
Published refinishing prices
These figures come from national cost guides that survey contractors and customers across the country, checked October 2026. They are not East Texas prices and not our prices; they show the normal range so you can judge a quote.
Grace Woodwork prices every piece after seeing it, by photo or in person. Two dressers of the same size can be very different jobs if one only needs a new finish and the other has loose joints, lifted veneer and a missing drawer runner.
| Source | Average or typical | Range | Other figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| HomeAdvisor | about $637; typical $341 to $939 | $150 to $1,600 | Labor about 85 percent of cost |
| Fixr | about $800 | $100 to $6,000 | A basic dining chair from about $100 |
| Thumbtack | about $500 per piece | $358 to $582 | Per-piece averages vary by item |
| Bob Vila | about $625 | $335 to $917 | Stripping $100 to $500, staining $150 to $500 per item |
What makes one job cost more than another
Size
A dining table or a tall hutch has far more surface than a side table or a chair.
Detail
Carvings, spindles, turned legs and molding take longer to strip and finish than flat panels.
The old finish
Thick paint or several layers take more stripping than a single coat of varnish.
Repairs
Loose joints, veneer and broken parts are fixed before any finish work.
Color change
Going much lighter means taking old color out of the wood.
Age
Antiques get slower, more careful work to keep original wood and finish.
Repair often costs less than people expect
Many pieces do not need a full refinish at all. A wobbly chair needs its joints reglued; a dull table top may only need cleaning and its finish revived; a water ring often sits in the finish rather than the wood. Published repair prices reflect that: HomeAdvisor's average for furniture repair is around $185.
We look for the smallest job that solves the problem. If cleaning and touching up a finish will do, that is what we will suggest, and it costs less.
If you are weighing refinishing against buying new, compare like with like. A solid wood dresser from the 1950s refinished properly can outlast a new piece bought for the same money.
Getting a price from us
- Send photosThe whole piece, the damage up close, and the underside or back if you can.
- Tell us the goalSame color, a new color, or just make it usable again.
- Get a numberA price before any work starts, and an honest word if the piece is not worth it.
See furniture refinishing and table refinishing for how the work is done.
Common questions
How much does furniture refinishing cost?
HomeAdvisor lists an average of about $637, with jobs ranging from $150 to $1,600. Fixr gives a wider range of $100 to $6,000 with an average of about $800, and Thumbtack reports about $500 per piece. The piece, its condition and the repairs it needs explain the spread.
How much does it cost to refinish a table?
Dining tables are among the more expensive pieces to refinish because of their size, and HomeAdvisor lists dressers and full dining sets among the costliest pieces. A small side table costs far less. We quote a table after a photo or a look in person.
How much does furniture repair cost?
Repairs without a full refinish cost less. HomeAdvisor reports an average of about $185 for furniture repair, with a typical range of roughly $107 to $273.
Why does refinishing an antique cost more?
Careful work on an older piece takes longer: hand stripping around carvings, keeping original parts, matching old color. HomeAdvisor notes an antique table can cost hundreds of dollars more than a similar standard table.
Is it cheaper to refinish furniture or buy new?
For a solid wood piece with good joinery, refinishing usually costs less than buying a new piece of the same quality. For an inexpensive piece of particleboard furniture, it rarely makes sense, and we will say so.
Send a photo and we will tell you what it needs.
A phone picture is plenty. You will hear what the piece needs, what it will cost and roughly how long it will take before anything starts.
- HoursMonday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
- The shopKilgore, Texas, working across East Texas
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