External wall insulation cost in Ireland
External wall insulation costs a median of €24,980 for a detached house in Ireland, €23,247 for a semi-detached or end of terrace, €14,244 for a mid terrace and €17,450for an apartment.After the SEAI grant, a detached house typically pays about €16,980.
External wall insulation fits an insulating layer and a new render to the outside of the house. It suits solid or hollow block walls that have no cavity to fill.
| House type | Median cost | SEAI grant | You pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | €24,980 | −€8,000 | €16,980 |
| Semi-detached or end of terrace | €23,247 | −€6,000 | €17,247 |
| Mid terrace | €14,244 | −€3,500 | €10,744 |
| Apartment | €17,450 | −€3,000 | €14,450 |
SEAI, Better Energy Homes and Solar PV: individual energy upgrades costs and grants.47,067 energy upgrades completed through the Better Energy Homes and Solar PV Scheme, January to December 2025. Checked 2026-08-13.
What the median does not tell you
- This is the most expensive single measure SEAI publishes a median for, and at €24,980 for a detached house it costs more than a heat pump.
- SEAI flags that its apartment figure (€17,450) is based on six applications received for 2025. Six is far too small a sample to plan against, and it is the reason the apartment figure sits above the mid-terrace one.
Treat this as a sense-check, not a quote
A median is the mid-point. Half the homes in SEAI's sample paid less than €24,980and half paid more. What you are quoted depends on the size and condition of your home, and on what the contractor finds when they survey it. Get more than one quote.
The grant that pays towards this
The SEAI External Wall Insulation grant is worth up to €8,000. Available for homes built and occupied before 2011. The grant varies with dwelling type.
The grant is paid after the work is finished, and only when the work is carried out by a contractor on the SEAI register. You pay the contractor in full first.
Full detail on the External Wall Insulation grant →See what your own home qualifies for
Answer a few questions about the house and get the grant total for this upgrade and every other one it is eligible for. We email you the contractor contacts to approach yourself, and we do not share your details with them.
External wall insulation contractors by county
267 SEAI-registered contractorsacross 26 counties do this work, and the grant is only paid when the work is done by one of them. A business covering several counties appears in each of them.
Common questions
How much does external wall insulation cost in Ireland?
The median cost is €24,980 for a detached house, €23,247 for a semi-detached or end of terrace house, €14,244 for a mid terrace and €17,450 for an apartment. These are SEAI's published medians for January to December 2025.
What does external wall insulation cost after the SEAI grant?
A detached house at the median pays €24,980 and can claim €8,000, leaving about €16,980. The grant is paid to you after the work is completed by an SEAI-registered contractor, so you pay the full amount up front.
Is this the price I will be quoted?
No. A median is the mid-point: half of the upgrades in SEAI's sample cost less than €24,980 and half cost more. Your quote depends on the size and condition of your home and on what the contractor finds when they survey it. Use the median to sense-check a quote, not to predict it.
Who can carry out external wall insulation under the grant?
Only a contractor on the SEAI register. Qualified.ie lists 267 registered contractors who do this work, across 26 counties.