Trim and Crown Molding Installation in Chicago
You buy the molding, we install it, even on plaster walls and crooked ceilings.
We’re HandyBandi, the carpenters down the block, and our crown molding installation Chicago crew keeps the deal simple. You buy the molding, we put it up. Baseboard, door casing, window casing and chair rail too, in MDF, pine or poplar, with a primed finish or raw. We cut every inside corner as a coped joint, fill the nail holes and run a clean caulk line. Every job starts with a written price based on the linear feet in your room.
Why Choose Us
We’re carpenters, and trim is one branch of our carpentry services in Chicago. Finish carpentry Chicago work lives or dies on the last sixteenth of an inch, and that is where we slow down. If you searched trim installation near me and found only flooring crews who add trim on the side, we fill that gap. A stud finder, a laser level and a coping saw ride on the truck, so trim goes into framing, not loose plaster. We sweep up the sawdust before we leave.
Why Choose Us:
Trim We Install: Crown, Baseboard, Casing, Chair Rail
Most rooms get every piece below in one visit. Wall panels go to our picture frame molding and wainscoting crew.
What's Included with a Service?
Crown Molding
Crown molding goes up in MDF, pine, poplar or polyurethane molding. We cope each inside corner and miter each outside corner, so the joints stay closed through a Chicago winter.
Baseboard and Shoe Molding
Baseboard installation covers new rooms, and baseboard replacement covers split or loose boards. We add shoe molding or quarter round along the floor to hide gaps at a wavy floor.
Door and Window Casing
Door casing installation frames each opening with a mitered head and two legs. Window casing installation in a pre-war home often includes the stool and apron under the sash, which we rebuild to match.
Chair Rail and Picture Rail
Chair rail installation runs level at the height you pick, even when the floor slopes. A picture rail near the ceiling goes up the same way and holds art without new holes in plaster.
Trim and Crown Molding Installation Cost in Chicago
Here is what crown molding installation cost looks like in real numbers. HomeGuide 2026 figures put crown at $7 to $16 per linear foot with material. A 15 by 14 foot living room runs $460 to $1,100, and a whole house runs $2,000 to $4,000. Crown molding installation Chicago prices follow the same math, because every room comes down to footage.
Baseboard installation cost runs $6 to $9 per linear foot, or $400 to $1,500 for an average project. Door and window casing runs $5 to $10 per foot, chair rail $3 to $5 and quarter round $3 to $7. If the molding arrives unpainted, trim painting adds $1 to $4 per foot. These are national averages, so your written quote comes after we measure. Our handyman price list covers the rest. Emergency visits add a $250 fee.
| Type of Work | Cost in Chicago |
|---|---|
| Crown molding installation | From $9 per linear ft |
| Baseboard installation | From $6 per linear ft |
| Door or window casing installation | From $7 per linear ft |
| Chair rail installation | From $5 per linear ft |
| Old trim removal | From $4 per linear ft |
| Old trim removal | From $2 per linear ft |
| Trim painting | From $3 per linear ft |
| Emergency service | +$250 fee |
Crown Molding on Plaster Walls and Uneven Ceilings
Chicago housing is old, and the ceilings show it. 38.8% of homes in the city went up before 1940, and the median year built is 1953. Behind the paint in those houses sit plaster walls on wood lath, corners that are rarely 90 degrees and an out-of-level ceiling. Stock crown set against that leaves visible gaps. Here is how we fit it:
- Find framing with a stud finder and nail through the lath
- Cope each inside corner instead of cutting a miter joint, so it stays closed when walls move
- Scribe the crown to a wavy wall where the gap is too wide for caulk
- Join long runs with a scarf joint, so seams stay shut through the seasons
- Close small gaps with wood filler and a thin caulk line
That fitting is the part of crown molding installation Chicago that most crews rush, and the part guests notice first.
What Size Trim to Buy for Your Ceiling Height
Trim should scale with ceiling height. Oversized crown makes a room feel low. Pick each molding profile from this chart:
- 8 to 9 ft: crown 3 1/4 to 4 1/4 in, baseboard 3 1/4 to 5 1/4 in, casing 2 1/4 to 3 1/4 in
- 9 to 11 ft: crown 4 1/4 to 5 1/4 in, baseboard 5 1/4 to 7 1/4 in, casing 3 1/4 to 3 1/2 in
- 11 to 12 ft: crown 4 5/8 in and up, baseboard 7 1/4 in and up, casing 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 in
For footage, add 10 to 15% to the room perimeter for cuts. A 15 by 14 foot room has a 58 foot perimeter, so buy about 65 feet. Stock sizes follow industry moulding profiles and standards.
Replace the Old Trim or Keep It
Most pre-war Chicago trim is worth keeping. Old oak or pine original casing is hard to buy, and the National Park Service on preserving interior trim treats it as part of a home’s character. Keep it and add pieces when:
- The profile is intact and only a few boards are damaged
- A new room must match the house
Replace it all when:
- Boards are rotted or painted past their detail
- The whole floor is going to paint-grade trim
For matching existing trim, we take a sample to the lumberyard for a profile match. If nobody stocks it, a millwork shop runs a custom knife, or we build it from two stock pieces. Old trim often hides cracked plaster, so our wall repair behind old trim crew fixes it first.
Chicago Neighborhoods We Serve
HandyBandi runs crews across Chicago neighborhoods including Andersonville, Bucktown, Rogers Park, Lincoln Square, Hyde Park, and Logan Square, plus the surrounding suburbs. Many Chicago condo associations require a bonded and insured contractor before work can start in the building, and HandyBandi meets that bar on every job, whether it’s a vintage condo rehab, a bungalow on the Northwest Side, or a greystone walk-up on the South Side.
- Andersonville
- Uptown
- Edgewater
- Lincoln Park
- Rogers Park
- West Ridge
- Albany Park
- North Center
- Bucktown
- Lincoln Square
- Logan Square
- Avondale
- Lakeview
- Irving Park
- West Town
- Austin
- Hyde Park
- Evanston
- Oak Park
- Skokie
Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers from our crew on trim, prices and old walls.
+− How much does crown molding installation cost in Chicago?
Most jobs run $7 to $16 per linear foot with material, or $460 to $1,100 for a 15 by 14 foot room.
+− How much does it cost to install baseboards?
Baseboards run $6 to $9 per linear foot, about $400 to $1,500 per project.
+− Can crown molding be installed on plaster walls?
Yes. We nail into framing through the lath and cope corners to close gaps.
+− What size crown molding fits an 8-foot ceiling?
Crown 3 1/4 to 4 1/4 inches wide fits an 8 to 9 foot ceiling.
+− Do you paint the trim after installing it?
Yes, on request. Painting adds $1 to $4 per linear foot when trim arrives raw.
+− Can you match the trim in an older Chicago home?
Usually. We match the profile at a lumberyard or have a millwork shop cut one.
+− Can you install trim I bought myself?
Yes. Most of our trim jobs start with molding the client already bought.