TV wall mounting cost: what changes the price

Screen size and weight

A bigger screen is heavier, harder to lift and easier to damage while it goes up. It also puts more load on the fixings. The weight is in the TV's manual or on its spec sheet, and the bracket must be rated above it.

The wall matters as much as the bracket rating. A bracket can carry the TV and still pull out of a wall that cannot hold it.

What the wall is made of

Solid brick and block are the straightforward case: plugs and screws, sized to the weight. Plasterboard cannot carry a heavy load by itself, so the weight has to go into a stud or onto a fixing that spreads it across the board. Older plaster walls need extra care.

Finding the studs, checking what is behind the surface and choosing the fixing all take time. Cables usually run straight up, down or sideways from sockets and switches, and along the top and corners of a wall, so those lines need checking before anyone drills.

The bracket

A flat bracket holds the TV close to the wall. A tilting one angles the screen down, which helps when the TV sits high. An arm lets you pull the screen out and swing it, and it pulls on the wall harder than a flat bracket does, so the fixings matter more.

The bracket has to match the TV's fixing pattern (often called VESA) and weight. You can buy it yourself and we will fit it, or ask us before you buy. Send the TV's model and we will say what suits.

Hiding the cables

Cables can change how much work the job is. Surface trunking is a plastic channel fixed to the wall and painted to match. Running cables inside the wall is neater, and often possible, but it depends on what is behind the wall and where your sockets are. Tell us the look you want and we will say what the wall allows.

The TV's mains lead should not be buried in the wall. A socket behind the screen is the neat way to hide it, and a new socket is electrical work for a registered electrician. We plan the wall around it.

Where the TV goes

It is easy to hang a TV too high, and a tilting bracket only partly fixes that. Start with the centre of the screen at eye level when you are seated. Sit where you normally sit and have someone hold a piece of cardboard cut to the screen size against the wall.

Above a fireplace needs thought. Heat from a working fire is bad for a TV, and the screen ends up high. Tell us if the fire is in use, and send a photo.

What to send for a price

Send these on WhatsApp and we will price the job:

• The TV size, and the make and model if you have it.
• A photo of the wall, including nearby sockets and any fireplace.
• Whether you have a bracket, or want advice before buying one.
• Whether you want the cables hidden, and how.
• Your postcode.

After the TV is up

Small holes from an old bracket can be filled and touched up, and if the wall needs a repaint, see painting and decorating. Our TV and wall mounting page lists everything else we hang, from mirrors and shelves to curtain poles.