Cabinets and woodwork
Staircase and railing refinishing for Atlanta homes
Treads worn pale down the middle? Stairs take more traffic than any floor in the house. We refinish treads, risers, rails and balusters in sections, so there is always a dry way up and down.
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Updated October 2026
Short answer
Staircase refinishing in Atlanta covers sanding and restaining or painting treads, risers, handrails, balusters and newel posts. National data puts a typical stair refinish at about $321 to $1,255, with turned balusters and stripping pushing it higher. A common combination is stained treads with painted risers, done in alternating steps so the stairs stay usable.
Treads are a floor, rails are furniture
A staircase is two finishing jobs in one. Treads take shoe traffic like a hallway floor, so they are sanded to fresh wood and sealed with a floor-grade clear coat. Rails, balusters and newel posts take hands and laundry baskets and are finished more like furniture. Risers and stringers usually get paint.
We sequence the work so the house keeps running: alternating treads first, painted parts once those are dry, the rail last. If carpet is coming up, we look at the bare treads before promising stain.
Choosing between options
Stained, painted or a mix: three ways to finish stairs
There is no single right look. Here is how they compare in daily use.
| Compare | Stained treads, painted risers | Stained throughout | Painted throughout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Look | Wood underfoot, crisp edges | Warm and traditional | Clean and graphic |
| Scuffs | Wipe off painted risers | Show as pale marks | Show fast on painted treads |
| Pine or patched treads | Sometimes, after a test | Only if the wood is even | Yes, paint hides patches |
| Upkeep | Treads recoated as they wear | Treads and risers recoated | Tread paint touched up often |
What drives the price
Why two staircases can be priced so differently
Stair pricing follows detail more than size.
Published range: $321 to $1,255 for a stair refinish, average $788. Source: HomeAdvisor, national figure, June 2026. A planning figure, not our quote.
Steps and landings
Each tread, riser and landing adds sanding and coats.
Baluster count and shape
Turned spindles take far longer than square ones.
Stain, paint or both
Two finishes mean more masking and a careful cut line.
What carpet left behind
Staples, tack strip and pad glue come off before sanding.
The old finish
Layers of paint or failed clear may need stripping.
Painted risers and stained treads
Stain where feet land and enamel where toes scuff is the most practical pairing on a staircase. What shows is the line where each tread nose meets the riser below, so treads are finished first, allowed to dry, then taped so the riser paint cuts cleanly to that edge. Treads that sat under carpet are often pine or a lower grade of wood, full of staple holes and pad glue. Some clean up and stain well; others look better painted or capped with new treads, and we tell you which once the carpet is off.
Banisters and handrails
A handrail soaks up hand oil, so refinishing starts with a solvent wash, not sandpaper; sanding first just drives grime into fresh wood. The profile is then sanded by hand so it keeps its shape. You can match the rail to the treads, go a few shades darker for contrast, or paint it black over white balusters. Whatever the color, the top layer has to resist skin oils, so stained rails get a hard clear finish and painted rails a durable enamel. Loose brackets and wobbly joints are tightened first.
Balusters and newel posts
Balusters are where stair jobs eat time. A run of turned spindles means curves to sand, prime and coat on every side of every piece. Depending on how open the staircase is, we brush them by hand or spray them with the treads, walls and floor masked. Loose balusters are glued tight first so they do not crack the new paint later. Newel posts follow the rail finish, with extra care at the cap and base where stain and paint often meet. Iron balusters take a metal primer under their enamel.
Treads get floor-grade finishes from Bona or Minwax, stains come from General Finishes or Varathane, and painted parts go on in Sherwin-Williams or Benjamin Moore enamel.
- Bona
- Minwax
- General Finishes
- Varathane
- Sherwin-Williams
- Benjamin Moore
- Duraseal
- Zinsser
Around Atlanta
Old staircases in Druid Hills, and the federal lead rule
Druid Hills, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted as one of his last commissions, holds houses from the late 19th and early 20th century, and its historic district joined the National Register in 1979. Staircases that old often carry many layers of paint on balusters and risers. A federal rule covers houses built before 1978: under EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces in them must work for a firm holding EPA lead-safe certification, using trained renovators. Homeowners working on their own homes are exempt.
Living with the stairs while they cure
Treads are coated on alternating steps, so you only ever step on bare or dry wood. Painted parts dry to the touch quickly; floor-grade clear coats need longer before shoes. If the stairs are the only route to the bedrooms, say so, and the slowest coats go on days you can stay off them longest.
How the job runs
The order we refinish a staircase in
Protect and plan
Floors at both ends are covered and the step plan is agreed.
Strip and sand
Treads go to fresh wood; rails and balusters are washed, then hand sanded.
Stain and prime
Treads take stain; risers, balusters and stringers take primer.
Clear and paint
Floor-grade clear on treads, enamel on the painted parts.
Rail last
The handrail is finished last, then we walk the stairs with you.
Questions
Stair & Railing Refinishing questions we hear in Atlanta
Often, not always. We check the bare treads and tell you if paint or new treads will look better.
Yes, in most cases. Alternating steps leaves a dry path.
We stain a hidden spot and compare it to the floor before doing the rest.
Yes. They are cleaned, primed with a metal primer and finished in enamel.
Clear floor finishes can be slick in socks, so we can add an anti-slip additive to the last coat.
Yes, if it is wood, along with the treads.
Same kind of work
More cabinets and woodwork
Kitchen Cabinet Painting
Doors and drawers off, sprayed smooth and rehung.
Cabinet Refinishing & Staining
Restain or recoat wood cabinets and keep the grain.
Interior Wood Staining
Stained trim, doors, beams and built-ins.
Interior House Painting
Walls, ceilings and trim, one room or the whole house.
Ready when you are
Stairs looking worn in the middle?
Tell us how many steps there are, whether carpet needs pulling and the look you want. Our phones are answered day and night, and we will set a time to see the staircase.