Smooth vs Textured Walls: Which Finish Is Right for You

Published December 27, 2024 by Mike Sullivan

Key Takeaways

  • Smooth walls require more skill and labor but look more modern
  • Textured walls hide imperfections and are faster to finish
  • Smooth walls are easier to clean and repaint
  • Texture helps with acoustics and can hide older home settling
  • Style preference often matters more than practical considerations

When we finished the basement, the choice was smooth or textured. The rest of the house has orange peel texture, so matching would have meant texture. But we wanted the basement to feel different, more modern, so we went smooth.

The smooth finish took significantly more time. Every seam had to be perfect because there was nothing to hide imperfections. But the result looks cleaner and more contemporary than the textured rooms upstairs.

Neither choice is wrong. They serve different aesthetic goals and have different practical trade-offs.

The Case for Smooth Walls

Smooth walls are the classic finish and the current trend in modern design. A perfectly smooth wall looks clean, crisp, and sophisticated.

Advantages:

Modern aesthetic. Smooth walls photograph well, show off trim work, and fit contemporary styles.

Easy cleaning. Dust and dirt wipe off smooth surfaces. No texture valleys to trap particles.

Easy repainting. Smooth surfaces take paint evenly. No need to work paint into texture.

Better for critical lighting. In rooms with lots of natural light or dramatic lighting, smooth walls show surfaces honestly.

Disadvantages:

Requires skilled finishing. Every flaw shows. Level 4 or 5 finish is needed. More labor intensive.

Shows settling and movement. As houses settle, smooth walls show cracks and imperfections that texture would hide.

Harder to repair invisibly. Patches on smooth walls need careful feathering to blend.

The Case for Textured Walls

Texture has practical benefits that explain its popularity, even if smooth is trendier.

Advantages:

Hides imperfections. Minor mud work flaws, settling cracks, uneven seams all disappear under texture.

Faster finishing. You can stop at Level 3 or 4 finish because texture covers imperfections. Less time sanding and perfecting.

Acoustic benefits. Texture breaks up sound waves, reducing echo. Noticeable in large rooms with hard floors.

Repairs blend easier. Matching texture is easier than achieving invisible smooth repairs.

Disadvantages:

Dated appearance to some eyes. Heavy textures especially can look like they're from another era.

Harder to clean. Dust settles in texture valleys. Heavy textures like popcorn are nearly impossible to clean.

Harder to repaint. Paint has to work into all the texture surfaces. Uses more paint.

Cost Comparison

The cost difference comes down to labor, not materials.

Smooth walls require more finishing coats, more sanding, and more skill. A professional will charge more per square foot for Level 5 smooth than for Level 4 with texture.

DIY, the difference is your time. A smooth basement that took me eight weekends might have taken four with texture.

Material costs are similar or slightly higher for texture because you're applying compound or texture product to the entire surface, not just seams.

Paint costs are higher for texture because more paint is needed to cover the surface area.

Room-by-Room Considerations

Different rooms might warrant different finishes:

Living areas: Your preference. Either works, depends on your style and how much light the room gets.

Bedrooms: Texture helps with acoustics and creates a softer feel. But smooth works fine too.

Bathrooms: Smooth is easier to clean in high-moisture environments. Texture can harbor mold.

Kitchens: Smooth for areas near cooking where grease can accumulate. Texture hides imperfections in large kitchen areas.

Basements: Texture hides the imperfections common in basement finishing. Smooth if you want a modern look and have the patience.

Garages: Texture or nothing. Nobody cares about smooth garage walls.

Converting Textured to Smooth

If you have texture but want smooth, options exist:

Skim coating: Apply thin compound over the entire surface, creating a smooth layer over the texture. Works for light textures, multiple coats needed for heavy.

Scraping: Remove loose texture by scraping (after asbestos testing for popcorn), then skim coat what remains.

New drywall: For heavy texture, sometimes it's easier to hang new 1/4-inch drywall over the existing surface.

All options are significant labor. Converting texture to smooth isn't a weekend project.

Personal Experience

We have both in our house now. Textured orange peel upstairs, smooth in the basement. Living with both, some observations:

The smooth basement feels more formal and modern. The textured upstairs feels more relaxed and forgiving.

Dust is more visible on textured surfaces. Smooth walls actually hide dust better until you're close.

The textured walls have hidden several minor settling cracks over the years. The smooth basement showed a crack within the first year.

Neither is definitively better. They're just different tools for different situations.