Quarter round install cost: per linear foot by material
$1–$3 per linear foot
Most US homeowners report paying inside that band, material and labor combined — the low end for MDF and PVC, the high end for solid wood and door-heavy rooms. A 100 ft DIY run costs about $50–$250 in materials alone. Get 3 local quotes before you hire.
Quarter round — the small quarter-circle molding that covers the expansion gap between your floor and baseboard — is one of the cheapest trim jobs in the house, which is exactly why quotes for it can seem weirdly high. The molding itself is pennies per foot; you are paying for the mitering, the corner fitting, and the carpenter's minimum trip charge. This page breaks the whole thing down per linear foot so a $250 quote for your hallway makes sense.
What drives the cost: labor vs materials vs extras
Materials are small. A standard profile runs $0.30–$1.00 per linear foot for PVC or MDF, $0.60–$1.50 for pine, and $1–$3+ for oak and other hardwoods, sold in 8 ft sticks. Paint and caulk add $20–$40 on a whole-house job. Nobody gets rich on your trim box.
Labor is the decision. Carpenters install quarter round at roughly $0.75–$1.50 per linear foot on open runs, but almost every small job actually bills near the service minimum of $150–$250. That's why one room costs about the same as three.
Corners and doors. Outside corners need paired 45° miters or bought corner blocks; inside corners want a coped (scalloped) cut to look tight. Where quarter round meets a door casing, it stops and gets a return (an angled end that tucks into the casing) or is stair-stepped up and over the casing profile — both are hand-slow work, and rooms with many doors price higher per foot.
Prep and paint. MDF ships primed but needs paint and gap caulking; finished wood and PVC want color-matched caulk. Figure $100–$300 if you're paying someone to paint after install, and note that new white trim next to five-year-old yellowed baseboard will look new.
Cost per linear foot by material
| Material | Material only / ft | Installed (matl + labor) / ft | 100 ft installed |
|---|---|---|---|
| PVC (waterproof, bathrooms/basements) | $0.30–$0.90 | $1.00–$1.75 | $180–$300 |
| MDF, primed (paint-grade standard) | $0.40–$1.00 | $1.00–$2.00 | $200–$350 |
| Pine / softwood | $0.60–$1.50 | $1.50–$2.50 | $280–$450 |
| Oak / hardwood (stain-grade) | $1.00–$3.00 | $2.00–$3.50 | $350–$600 |
| Flexible vinyl (curved walls) | $0.80–$2.00 | $2.00–$4.00 | $380–$650 |
Add $150–$250 on a single-room job: the service minimum, not the per-foot rate, sets that price.
DIY total for a 100 ft run
A 100 ft run is about 13–15 sticks of 8 ft stock; buy 10–15% extra for cuts. All-in DIY material totals most homeowners report:
- PVC or MDF: $60–$140 (molding, caulk, paint for MDF, finish nails).
- Pine: $90–$190. Oak: $150–$300+ before stain.
- Tools if you own nothing: miter saw $100–$250 and finish nailer $60–$120 (compressor rental $30–$50/day), or skip power tools entirely — a hand saw, miter box, hammer, and nail set cost $40–$80 and are genuinely workable on MDF and pine.
- Realistic weekend total for 100 ft of MDF including tools you'd keep: $200–$400. The saving versus a pro is real but smaller than people expect on small rooms.
DIY vs hiring a pro
Genuinely DIY-friendly with caveats: nailing quarter round is forgiving because it covers its own mistakes at the floor gap. The two things that separate a pro job from a first attempt are corner cuts (practice miters on scrap; inside corners should be coped, butted inside corners gap after humidity swings) and nail placement into baseboard, not drywall alone.
Call a pro when: it's a whole floor with dozens of door casings and returns, the trim is stain-grade oak where tear-out is expensive, or your baseboards are wavy enough that every run needs scribing. Typical pro job for a standard 3–5 bedroom floor: $350–$800.
Difficulty rating: low for open runs; medium for coped corners and stair-stepped door casings.
Hiring a pro: what a fair quote includes
A fair quarter round quote states total linear feet measured, the material and profile (or says you supply), whether corners are mitered or blocked, how door casing ends are handled (return vs stair-step), caulk and paint responsibility, and haul-away of packaging. Expect it to look like a day rate, not a per-foot math problem.
Red flags: per-foot pricing on a tiny job that ignores the minimum (you'll get 'bumped' later), refusal to say how corners will be finished, nailing into cabinets or hollow baseboard without locating studs, and quoting over paint you haven't color-matched yet.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to install quarter round per linear foot?
Roughly $1–$1.75/ft installed for MDF or PVC and $1.50–$3+ for real wood. Single rooms bill near the $150–$250 service minimum, so whole-floor runs get the best per-foot price.
How much quarter round do I need for a 100 ft run?
Buy 110–115 linear feet (10–15% waste), about 13–15 eight-foot sticks. DIY materials run roughly $60–$250 depending on material.
What do I do where quarter round meets a door casing?
Stop at the casing and cut a return (angled end tucked in), or stair-step the molding over the casing profile. Returns are standard; stair-stepping is slower work and raises door-heavy room quotes.
Can I install quarter round myself?
Yes — it's one of the most DIY-tolerant trim jobs. Practice miter pairs on scrap before your visible outside corners, and cope (don't butt) inside corners.
Sources & notes
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — the national wage data for install and finish carpentry behind the labor-rate assumptions in the pro-quote ranges above.
- HomeWyse — an independent cost-model reference (no partnership with us) whose per-unit trim-installation calculators are a useful second opinion against these ranges.
Price your run: estimate quarter round cost in 10 seconds. Related trim and flooring numbers: hardwood flooring install cost.