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How to Hang Wallpaper

Home/Resources/Paint & Walls/Hanging Wallpaper
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Written & researched by Priya Anand DIY & Tools Editor
Updated August 2026
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Hanging wallpaper is a patient, methodical DIY job rather than a hard one — a single feature wall is an afternoon, a full room a weekend. No permit or pro needed. Peel-and-stick is the most beginner-friendly; traditional paste-the-wall paper is not much harder once you prime and plumb properly. Materials vary widely with the paper itself, but tools run under $50. Success comes down to priming the wall (which also protects it for removal later), starting the first drop off a plumb line rather than a crooked corner, and butting seams tightly while smoothing bubbles out as you go.

How to Hang Wallpaper — A Practical Guide (Dulux Academy)

Step-by-step: hanging wallpaper

  1. Prep and prime the wall. Fill and sand holes, clean the wall, and prime with a wallpaper primer. Primer lets the paper slide, bonds the paste, and makes future removal painless.
  2. Plan and measure. Measure the wall, note the pattern repeat, and buy enough rolls of the same batch number plus 10 to 15 percent extra.
  3. Strike a plumb line. Mark a true vertical line one roll-width from your starting corner with a level or plumb line. Hang the first drop to this line, not the corner.
  4. Paste (or peel). For paste-the-wall, roll paste onto the wall section. For paste-the-paper, coat the back and book it (fold paste-to-paste) to rest per the instructions. For peel-and-stick, peel the backing.
  5. Hang and smooth. Position the drop to your line, leaving a little excess top and bottom, and smooth from the center outward with a smoothing brush or plastic tool to push out bubbles and paste.
  6. Match and butt the next drop. Align the pattern, butt the seam tightly against the last drop without overlapping, and roll the seam flat. Wipe off squeezed-out paste right away.
  7. Trim the edges. Crease the excess at the ceiling and baseboard with a broad knife and trim with a sharp blade. Handle corners by wrapping slightly and overlapping the next drop into the corner.
Wide view of a person rolling fresh paint onto an interior wall, in soft overcast light

Tools and materials

You need wallpaper primer, paste (unless the paper is pre-pasted or peel-and-stick), a smoothing brush or plastic smoother, a seam roller, a level or plumb line, a sharp utility knife, a broad knife, and a sponge. Priming is non-negotiable, and the finish primer you choose sets up both adhesion and easy future removal — our interior paint and primer picks help you choose a good wall sealer. If you are painting adjacent trim or a ceiling before papering, clean painter's tape keeps those lines sharp, and a roller makes quick work of pasting the wall on paste-the-wall papers.

Golden-hour view of a person rolling fresh paint onto an interior wall

Mistakes that show on the wall

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More from this hub: Paint & Walls · Removing wallpaper · Priming a wall · Painting an accent wall · Best interior paint · How we rank

Straight Answers

Frequently Asked

Do you have to prime a wall before hanging wallpaper?

Yes, in nearly every case. A wallpaper primer (or a good acrylic primer) seals the wall so the paste bonds properly, lets you slide and position the paper, and — crucially — makes future removal far easier by keeping the paste off the bare drywall. Hanging paper directly on unprimed drywall means the paste grips the paper face of the drywall, and removing it later tears the wall apart. Primer also evens out patched or porous spots so they do not show through. Prime, let it dry, then hang. It is the step that protects your wall for years.

How do you keep wallpaper seams from showing or lifting?

Hang each drop plumb, butt the seams tightly without overlapping, and roll them down after smoothing. Start the first drop against a plumb line, not the corner, because corners are rarely straight. Butt each new sheet's edge snugly against the last so they just kiss — never overlap on a flat wall — then run a seam roller lightly along the joint to press it flat once the paste has grabbed. Wipe off squeezed-out paste immediately. Loose seams usually mean too little paste at the edge or the paper dried before it bonded, so work at a steady pace.

What is the difference between paste-the-wall, paste-the-paper, and peel-and-stick wallpaper?

Paste-the-paper is traditional: you apply paste to the back of each strip and let it book (fold and rest) before hanging. Paste-the-wall means you roll paste directly onto the wall and hang the dry paper into it — cleaner and faster, and common with modern non-woven papers. Peel-and-stick has adhesive already on the back; you just peel the backing and press it up, which is the most beginner-friendly and removable but can be trickier to reposition and match on large patterns. Check your paper's label — it tells you which method it is designed for.

How do you match the pattern when hanging wallpaper?

Note the pattern repeat printed on the roll's label, and align each new drop's pattern to the one beside it before pressing it down, allowing extra length so you can slide it up or down to match. Buy enough rolls up front (from the same batch/lot number) to cover the waste that pattern matching creates — a large repeat wastes more. Hang drops in order and always match at eye level where it is most noticed. Peel-and-stick and large repeats are the fussiest to match; a straight small pattern is the most forgiving for a first-timer.

How much wallpaper do you need, and how do you avoid running short?

Measure the wall area, divide by the coverage per roll (on the label, minus waste for pattern repeat), and add roughly 10 to 15 percent extra — more for a large pattern repeat. Critically, buy all your rolls at once and check that they share the same batch or lot number, because color can vary slightly between print runs and a mismatched roll shows on the wall. Running short mid-job and having to buy a different batch is the classic wallpaper regret. Over-buy slightly; leftover matching paper is also handy for future repairs.