Painter Job Description and Template

When Arizona Painting increased its leads by 60 percent with ServiceTitan, it had to grow its team by almost 60 percent. If you’re in the same boat, you’ll need to stand out with a job description that spells out exactly what you’re looking for—and what your company can offer.

Here, we’ll review some of the common responsibilities and requirements you might need to look for and provide you with a customizable job description template.

What Does a Painter Do?

Painters transform commercial and residential spaces with a fresh look. They’re skilled at preparing surfaces for a new coat of paint and applying paint with the right tools. As experts in their field, they can also advise on the best coatings, too.

Painting starts with cleaning, sanding, and minor repairs. Set up involves ladders, scaffolding, drop cloths, and safety equipment to ensure the job goes smoothly. 

During the job, painters may track project details like time to completion, painting materials, and customer requests.

Arizona Painting owner Joe Campbell notes that ServiceTitan helps the team manage those project details with less hassle: “I think ServiceTitan's helped [the team] a lot because they used to have to come into the office to get their job files.”

“That required extra time, extra gas, all that. And now they're able just to get their details the morning of their job, go straight to it, and know exactly what's going on.”

Common Painter Responsibilities

Some key painter responsibilities are listed below:

• Gathering job details: Discussing the project's scope with customers and advising on proper coatings.

• Job estimates: Providing quotes based on the time and materials needed to complete the job.

• Jobsite prep: Ensuring that floors and fixtures are covered with drop cloths and scaffolding is set up safely.

• Preparing surfaces: Sanding, cleaning, and filling gaps in walls and drywall to ensure a smooth coat.

• Internal and external painting: Applying basecoats, topcoats, and varnish as necessary using tools like airbrushes, rollers, and paintbrushes.

• Managing projects: Using painting contractor software to deliver quotes and ensure work is done according to client specifications and related duties.

Common Painter Requirements and Skills

Some common painting job requirements and skills are:

• Apprenticeship and minimum of two years of painting experience on residential or commercial projects.

• High school diploma or GED.

• Valid driver’s license with a clean driving record.

• Knowledge of appropriate coatings for a variety of residential, commercial, and industrial environments.

• Ability to read blueprints and schematics.

• Careful attention to detailed customer requests.

• Understanding of painting tools and techniques, including brushes, sprayers, rollers, painter’s tape, and other painting equipment.

• Physical strength to work from ladders, scaffolding, and in harnesses for long periods.

• Communication skills to advise, inform, and collaborate with customers.

Your new hire should also have the organizational and tech skills to access pricing, provide quotes, and track materials. For example, Arizona Painting uses ServiceTitan’s Field Service App to help their team manage projects more easily.

When the company bids on a job, its team attaches pictures of any wall damage that they must factor into estimates. They can also use their integrated pricebook to let techs give more accurate estimates on-site.

Arizona Painting owner Joe Campell says, “Once [customers] accept the proposal, it goes to our scheduling department, and they talk to [customers] about the schedule. They talk to them about their paint colors, where they want those colors painted.”

The Field Service App then ensures that techs have all the information they need on the job.

“We get all those details and put them into their project file, and then it's seamless. When we assign that job to the painter, they have all that information right then and there. It's word for word, exactly what the customer said, and the painters can see it and the customers really appreciate that.”

Rather than traveling to and from the job site, the app empowers techs to make more sales and arrive fully informed, boosting their skills and helping Arizona Painters increase their profit margin by five percent.

Campbell notes that it makes the painters happy, too: “I think [ServiceTitan] helped their happiness; they didn't have to come into the office every morning […] [and] they were able to better take care of the customer because they had all the details of what the estimator told them.”

Painter Job Description Template

Growing your painting business requires great workers. This painter job description template can help you start with a working description of what your ideal hire looks like. The template is for educational purposes only, and is not to be copied as is.

Rather, consider what you want from job seekers—and include what you can offer them as an employer. As Jody Underhill, senior partner at Rapid Hire says, “People are coming to work for their dreams, not yours.”

Once you’re finished, think beyond job boards like Indeed and post job postings on social platforms like Facebook for more reach. Reaching more qualified candidates makes your hiring process much easier.

Painter – Full time

We’re looking for a skilled painter with experience working on residential and commercial contracts. Our ideal candidate has a wide range of experience managing interior and exterior painting projects from start to finish, using painting tools, and collaborating with clients to ensure projects are completed according to their specifications.

Primary responsibilities:

• Work on interior and exterior painting projects for both commercial and residential clients.

• Travel to and from the job site using the company vehicle.

• Record and advise on any issues that will affect the project’s scope and completion time.

• Advise on appropriate coatings and primers to protect interior and exterior walls from moisture, weather conditions, and industrial damage.

• Provide accurate quotes based on time and materials needed to complete the job.

• Ensure floors and fixtures are appropriately protected from spillage.

• Set up scaffolding, ladders, and harnesses according to safety requirements.

• Prepare surfaces for painting, including sanding, cleaning, and minor repairs.

• Use solvents and tools to remove old paint.

• Use Spackle and putty to repair holes in drywall.

• Mix paint to match the customer’s desired color and texture.

• Apply paint with the appropriate tool, including brushes, sprayers, rollers, and sponges.

• Apply wallpaper, sealers, caulking, and wood finishes.

• Properly apply epoxy, zinc, and polyurethane coatings in industrial settings.

• Complete touch-ups as necessary.

• Use software to track time and materials, communicate with customers, and deliver quotes.

Required knowledge, skills, and abilities:

• Experience working with sprayers, rollers, paintbrushes, sponges, and painter’s tape.

• Understanding of a variety of coatings, including basecoats, topcoats, and varnish, and the ability to make appropriate recommendations for each.

• Ability to maintain relationships and communicate well with residential and commercial clients throughout the project.

• Understanding of safety protocols for working with noxious fumes, scaffolding, ladders, and other relevant tools and materials.

• Time management skills to complete painting work on time and on budget.

Educational/certification requirements:

• High school diploma or GED.

• State certification, AMPP certification, or equivalent preferred.

• 2 years of experience on residential and commercial projects.

• EPA certification.

Environmental conditions:

• Proper PPE will be provided for workers who will be exposed to noxious fumes from varnish, epoxy, and other coatings.

• Work involves exposure to weather conditions, including high temperatures.

• Must be comfortable working on scaffolding and in harnesses.

• Field service environment requiring local travel.

• Full-time day and evening shifts with projects that occasionally require overtime hours.

Physical requirements:

• Physically demanding work requiring standing, bending, and crouching for several hours at a time.

• Ability to lift up to 30 pounds.

• Manual dexterity and a steady hand to work with painting tools.

• Natural or corrected vision to focus on detailed work.

ServiceTitan is an all-in-one app that helps painting businesses optimize their entire operation from office processes to field services. Streamline operations, create perfect bids, track crews on live jobs, maximize profitability, and wow your customers with ServiceTitan.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Still have questions about hiring your next painter? Here are some of the common questions new businesses have about hiring.

What is the average salary of a painter?

A painter’s average salary is around $71k per year, but this can range from $50k for inexperienced painters to $100k for more seasoned pros. Competitive salaries can vary quite a bit depending on your area. Check out our labor rate calculator to see how your painter’s salary will affect your bottom line.

What makes a good painter?

A good painter should be reliable, hard-working, and friendly. They should also have extensive knowledge about coatings and techniques to advise customers on the best options. Most importantly, they should be safety-conscious, wear proper PPE, and set up sites safely.

What are the key skills of a painter?

Painters should pay attention to detail to ensure projects are completed according to customer preferences. They should have the technical skills to avoid uneven coverage, drips and runs, and bubbling in finished jobs. Ideally, they should also be able to assess new jobs for accurate estimates.