Bathrooms are small, but they are slow to paint: cutting in around tile, tubs, vanities, mirrors and fixtures takes more time than open wall, mildew must be cleaned first, and a humidity-rated paint needs 24 hours before showers. Those details, not square footage, drive the cost.
Most of a bathroom's wall area borders something: tile, a tub surround, a vanity, a mirror, a toilet tank, a medicine cabinet. Each edge is cut in by brush. Removing and reinstalling towel bars, mirrors and light fixtures adds time.
A humidity-rated paint such as Benjamin Moore Aura Bath & Spa, which is listed for bathrooms and saunas and is mildew resistant, at 350 to 400 square feet per gallon. A 5 by 8 foot bathroom with 8 foot ceilings has about 208 square feet of wall before subtracting tile and fixtures, so two coats often fit in one gallon.
Yes. Mildew is cleaned and the surface dried before painting, and peeling paint over the shower is scraped and primed. Stains that remain are sealed with a stain-blocking primer. Ventilation problems that caused the peeling should be fixed or the new paint will fail too.
Benjamin Moore lists Aura Bath & Spa at 1 hour to touch and 1 hour to recoat at 77°F and 50% humidity, and says to allow at least 24 hours before returning the room to full service. If it is the only bathroom, that downtime is part of planning.
Bathroom doors and trim take a hard enamel such as Benjamin Moore Advance (16 hours between coats), and ceilings over showers often need the most prep. Including them adds time but avoids a fresh wall next to a dingy door. In pre-1978 homes, sanding old trim and sashes brings EPA lead-safe practices into play above 6 square feet per room.
Indirectly. If peeling paint and mildew came from a missing or weak exhaust fan, repainting without fixing it means the problem returns. Ventilation repair is separate work, but it is worth discussing at the estimate. Benjamin Moore formulated Aura Bath & Spa for high-humidity rooms, but every paint lasts longer when moisture is removed.
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Measure the wall area minus tile, tub surround and large fixtures. A 5 by 8 foot bathroom with 8 foot ceilings has about 208 square feet of wall before subtractions, so two coats of Benjamin Moore Aura Bath & Spa, listed at 350 to 400 square feet per gallon, usually fit in one gallon.
Because labor, not area, drives the price. Bathrooms have constant cutting in around tile, fixtures, mirrors and vanities, often mildew cleanup and peeling paint over the shower, and fixtures to remove and reinstall. A bedroom has more open wall that rolls quickly.
Benjamin Moore says to allow at least 24 hours before returning a room painted with Aura Bath & Spa to full service, even though it is dry to the touch in about an hour. Run the exhaust fan afterward to help the paint cure.
A paint formulated for humidity performs better. Benjamin Moore describes Aura Bath & Spa as made for high-humidity rooms with mildew resistance, in a matte finish. Good ventilation matters as much as the paint for preventing peeling and mildew, so running the exhaust fan during and after showers protects the new finish.
Sources: Benjamin Moore Aura Bath & Spa Matte (532) technical data sheet; Benjamin Moore Fresh Start Undercoater and Primer/Sealer (032) technical data sheet; Benjamin Moore Advance Waterborne Interior Alkyd Semi-Gloss (793) technical data sheet; EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, 40 CFR Part 745 Subpart E. Figures checked October 2026.
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