Getting rid of artex in London costs £8–£15 per square metre to skim a fresh plaster coat over it, or around £100 per square metre to fully remove and replaster, so a typical 20 square metre ceiling runs about £2,000. A small room ceiling skimmed flat costs £150–£250. The critical first step is asbestos: artex applied before 2000 may contain it and must be tested before any work. This guide sets out the methods, costs and safety steps so you can budget with confidence.
How much does artex removal cost in London?
There are two ways to deal with artex, and they cost very differently. Skimming a new plaster finish straight over the artex is the cheaper route at £8–£15 per square metre, giving you a flat modern ceiling without disturbing the existing coating. Fully removing the artex and replastering costs around £100 per square metre, because it is slower, messier and, where asbestos is present, far more involved.
For a small room ceiling, plastering over the artex typically costs £150–£250 all in. A standard 20 square metre ceiling fully removed and replastered runs to roughly £2,000. London adds 25–40% over national rates because of higher plasterer day rates, parking and access constraints, and the cost of waste disposal in the capital.
The table below shows typical costs by method. All figures exclude VAT, which we itemise separately in any written quote.
Method / area
Typical London cost (2026)
Skim over artex
£8 – £15 per sqm
Plaster over a small room ceiling
£150 – £250
Full removal and replaster
~£100 per sqm
20 sqm ceiling removed and replastered
~£2,000
Asbestos-containing artex (licensed)
£20 – £50 per sqm
The asbestos warning you must not ignore
This is the single most important point on this page. Artex and other textured coatings applied before the year 2000 can contain asbestos, usually white asbestos (chrysotile) bound into the coating. Disturbing it by scraping, sanding or steaming can release fibres that are dangerous to breathe.
If your property is pre-2000 and the artex has never been tested, you should assume it could contain asbestos until proven otherwise. The safe and legal approach is to have a sample tested by a UKAS-accredited laboratory before any removal work. A test typically costs £30–£80 per sample and gives you a clear result within a few days.
Do not let anyone dry-sand or aggressively scrape untested artex in your home. It is not worth the risk, and it is exactly the kind of corner-cutting we see on cheap quotes.
How we handle asbestos artex
To be clear about scope: we are not a licensed asbestos removal contractor and we do not remove asbestos-containing materials ourselves. What we do is the responsible thing, we arrange testing first, and where a sample comes back positive we bring in a licensed asbestos contractor to remove or safely treat the coating.
Licensed removal of asbestos-containing artex typically costs £20–£50 per square metre, reflecting the controlled conditions, protective equipment, sealed waste disposal and air clearance certification involved. It is more expensive than ordinary removal precisely because it is done safely and legally.
Once the licensed contractor has cleared the ceiling and you hold the certification, we step back in to replaster, skim and decorate, returning the room to a finished state. You get one coordinated project rather than having to chase separate trades yourself.
Skim over vs full removal: which is right for you?
For most homeowners, skimming over the artex is the sensible choice. A skilled plasterer applies a bonding coat and then a skim of finish plaster over the textured surface, producing a flat, paintable ceiling without disturbing the coating beneath. It is cheaper, faster, far less messy, and, crucially, where the artex may contain asbestos, it avoids disturbing it altogether.
Full removal is the better option when the artex is very heavily textured, in poor condition or already partly failing, or when ceiling height is critical and you cannot afford to lose the few millimetres a skim adds. It produces a like-new ceiling but at roughly seven to ten times the cost per square metre.
We will advise honestly at the survey which route suits your ceiling, your budget and your safety. In a pre-2000 home with sound artex, skimming over after a test is very often the smartest answer.
What affects the price of artex removal
Several factors move the cost within the ranges above. Asbestos content is the biggest, turning a routine job into a licensed operation. Ceiling area and height matter too: large rooms and high or stairwell ceilings need more scaffolding or towers and more labour.
The condition of the surface underneath is the next factor. Once artex is removed, you sometimes find damaged plasterboard or lath-and-plaster behind it that needs reboarding before a skim, which adds cost. Access and protection also count, as bedrooms and bathrooms need clearing and masking, and waste removal in London carries its own charges.
Finally, decoration. A skimmed or replastered ceiling needs a mist coat and topcoats to finish. We price ceilings to a paint-ready or fully decorated standard depending on what you ask for, and we state which in the quote.
Doing a whole house or several ceilings
If you have artex across several rooms, which is common in homes built or refurbished in the 1970s and 1980s, doing them together is more economical than one at a time. Set-up, protection, scaffold towers and a single waste collection are shared across the job, and a plasterer working through a house in sequence is more efficient than returning repeatedly.
Where asbestos is confirmed, doing all the licensed removal in one visit also reduces the per-square-metre cost, because the contractor's set-up, enclosure and air clearance are one-off costs spread across more area.
We are happy to phase the work room by room if you are living in the property, or to clear ceilings throughout in one efficient programme if the house is empty. Either way we give you a single fixed price covering testing, removal where needed, replastering and decoration.
Get a fixed quote with testing built in
Because asbestos is the deciding factor, an honest artex quote starts with a survey and a plan for testing, not a flat per-metre figure quoted blind. We arrange the asbestos test first in any pre-2000 property, then price the right method based on the result.
Your written quote will set out whether we are skimming over or removing, who carries out any licensed asbestos work, the area and finish covered, and VAT shown separately. There are no provisional sums hiding the cost of a test result we should have established upfront.
Book a free survey with London Refurbishments & Leak Repairs and we will assess your ceilings, advise on testing, and give you a clear fixed written quote for getting rid of the artex safely and properly.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to remove artex in London?
Skimming a plaster finish over artex costs £8–£15 per square metre in London, while full removal and replastering runs around £100 per square metre, about £2,000 for a typical 20 square metre ceiling. Asbestos-containing artex requires licensed removal at £20–£50 per square metre. Figures exclude VAT.
Does artex contain asbestos?
Artex and textured coatings applied before 2000 may contain white asbestos. Any untested pre-2000 artex should be assumed to contain it until a UKAS-accredited lab test, costing £30–£80 per sample, proves otherwise. Never dry-sand or scrape untested artex, as this can release dangerous fibres.
Is it cheaper to skim over artex or remove it?
Skimming over is far cheaper, at £8–£15 per square metre versus around £100 per square metre to fully remove and replaster. Skimming is also safer where asbestos may be present, because it avoids disturbing the coating. Full removal is only worth it for heavily textured or failing ceilings.
Do you remove asbestos artex yourselves?
No. We are not a licensed asbestos removal contractor, so we do not remove asbestos-containing materials ourselves. We arrange testing first, bring in a licensed contractor where a sample is positive, and then replaster and decorate once the ceiling is cleared and certified, giving you one coordinated project.
How much does it cost to plaster over an artex ceiling in a small room?
Skimming a new plaster finish over an artex ceiling in a small room typically costs £150–£250 in London, finished to a paint-ready standard. The price depends on ceiling area and access. In a pre-2000 home we recommend an asbestos test before any work, even for a skim-over.
