How much does a carpenter cost in Adelaide?
Carpenters in Adelaide charge $51–$120 an hour in our table, around $78 on a typical job, and a whole booked day on site comes to $370–$830. That is what a carpentry business bills, covering tools, a vehicle, insurance and its licence, so it sits above the wage a carpenter is paid, which explains the gap people notice when they look up pay rates. Small jobs such as a door rehang ($92–$275) or new shelving ($185–$645) are often quoted as a set price. Three-bedroom homes make up 51.3% of Greater Adelaide dwellings, against 39% nationally (ABS 2021 Census), so doors, trim and built-ins for a mid-sized family house are everyday work.
Comparing cities, or after the Australia-wide picture? See the national guide: Carpenter cost in Australia.
Detailed Pricing — Carpenter Cost in Adelaide 2026
| Service | Low | Typical | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carpentry (hourly rate) | $51/hr | $78 | $120 |
| Door installation (supply & fit) | $230per door | $370 | $600 |
| Door repair / rehang | $92per job | $165 | $275 |
| Skirting boards (per linear metre) | $18/lm | $28 | $51 |
| Architraves (per linear metre) | $9/lm | $17 | $41 |
| Built-in wardrobe (supply & install) | $1,100total | $2,300 | $4,600 |
| Timber shelving installation | $185per job | $370 | $645 |
| Minor staircase repairs (squeaky or loose treads, single tread or baluster) | $275per job | $550 | $1,100 |
| Pergola / carport framing (labour) | $1,375total | $2,750 | $5,500 |
| Timber window repair | $140per job | $260 | $460 |
| Deck build labour (per sqm) | $74/sqm | $120 | $175 |
| Full-day carpentry | $370per day | $570 | $830 |
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Prices include GST. Based on Adelaide metro area, October 2026. Outer suburbs may vary.
Adelaide carpenters: a day on the tools, first and second fix, and doors
An Adelaide carpenter for a day
A full day of carpentry is $370–$830 in our Adelaide table. Eight hours at the typical hourly rate ($78) come to $624.
First and second fix carpentry in Adelaide
Our Adelaide table has no first-fix or second-fix rows, so we don't publish prices by stage. It prices the pieces instead: skirting boards at $18–$51 a metre, architraves at $9–$41 a metre and a door supplied and fitted at $230–$600.
Rehang or replace a door in Adelaide
Repairing or rehanging a door is $92–$275 in our Adelaide table and a new door, supplied and fitted, $230–$600; at the typical prices the repair is $205 less.
These answers use the prices in the table on this page.
What Affects Carpenter Costs in Adelaide
By the hour, by the day or fixed
A full day is typically $570, which undercuts eight hours billed one by one ($624 at the usual rate), so a list of small jobs is cheaper grouped into one booked day. Projects with a clear scope, a new deck or a built-in robe ($1,100–$4,600), tend to get one agreed price after a measure-up.
Licensed in South Australia
South Australia requires a building work contractor's licence of any business that carries out or arranges building work for clients, and that reaches subcontractors too; there is no dollar value below which the rule stops applying. The state's licensing body, Consumer and Business Services, keeps a public register where you can check a carpenter's licence is current before work begins.
Jobs under $20,000
SA classes domestic building work valued under $20,000 as minor work: the law does not require a written contract or building indemnity insurance, although the statutory warranties still apply. Every job in our carpentry table sits under that line, so ask for the scope and price in writing anyway. On work up to $20,000, the deposit a builder may take is limited to $1,000.
Pergolas, carports and approvals
Framing labour for a pergola or carport is $1,375–$5,500, with timber and roofing on top. In SA a pergola without a solid roof is on the list of simple building work that must be granted building consent when it meets the conditions, while one Adelaide council's guidance is that most carports and verandahs need development approval. Ask who will lodge the paperwork.
Decks and the dry summer
Deck framing and boarding labour is $74–$175 a square metre. January and February are the driest months at West Terrace, about 20 mm of rain each, and January averages 28.7 °C by day (BOM averages), so summer suits deck work. Boards laid in that dry heat need the right gap between them, because they take up moisture and swell once the winter rain arrives.
Doors and windows in winter
June is the wettest month at West Terrace (72.1 mm, BOM averages), and damp months are when timber doors swell and start to stick. A rehang or plane-down costs $92–$275, while supplying and fitting a replacement door is $230–$600. Timber sash or casement windows that have rotted at the sill can often be saved with a repair at $140–$460.
Trim, stairs and townhouses
Trim is priced by the metre: skirting boards $18–$51 and architraves $9–$41, with the timber species and profile moving the figure. Semi-detached homes and townhouses make up 16.3% of Adelaide dwellings, above 12.6% nationally (ABS 2021 Census), and townhouses often have a staircase; fixing a squeaky or loose tread or a baluster is $275–$1,100.
How to Save Money on Carpenter Cost in Adelaide
Carpenter Cost in Adelaide by Job Size
Say a hallway and two bedrooms in Adelaide have 26 metres of skirting. At $18–$51 a metre that is $468–$1,326 for the length, and the matching architraves are a separate line at $9–$41 a metre. The 26 metres is the example's own assumption; measure each room and get the length written on the quote.
What moves a job of that size in Adelaide is the timber species and profile, which move the metre figure, and an older frame or a heritage profile to match, where extra fitting hours sit at $51–$120 an hour. Ask for those hours as their own line.
Carpenter Cost in Adelaide: What the Quote Should Include
In Adelaide damp months swell timber doors and summer suits deck work, so a carpentry quote for a home in Norwood or Unley is worth reading line by line. Each line below is something to see in writing and to read against the rows on this page.
- Skirting and architraves as separate lines in linear metres, at $18–$51 a metre and $9–$41 a metre, with the timber species and profile named.
- A door named as a rehang or a replacement: the plane-down and rehang at $92–$275, a new door supplied and fitted at $230–$600 a door.
- For an older frame or a heritage profile, any matching, shaping or extra fitting time listed as its own line rather than folded into the hourly rate.
- Timber sash or casement repairs at $140–$460 a job, with each window named and a note of whether a rotted sill is repaired or replaced.
- For a townhouse stair, each loose tread or baluster counted, against the staircase row of $275–$1,100.
- Deck boards with the gap between them stated, as boards laid in dry summer heat swell when winter rain comes; deck labour is $74–$175 a square metre.
- A full day at $370–$830 a day set against hourly time at $51–$120 an hour, so a list of small jobs can be priced either way.
- Materials named: timber species, grade and finish, with hardware and fixings shown as at cost or marked up, and any painting in or out.
- Start and finish dates, payment stages, the workmanship warranty and GST in writing; ask for their licence number and insurance.
Frequently Asked Questions — Carpenter Cost in Adelaide
Our Methodology
These are independent estimates from public cost guides, marketplaces and industry rate data, and no tradesperson can influence them, so always get a few quotes. Last reviewed October 2026. Read our full methodology →
Five deep-dives on Adelaide carpenter cost
