How quickly should graffiti be removed?

As soon as you can. Fresh paint hasn’t fully bonded with the surface, so it usually comes off more completely and in less time. Send photos as soon as you see it.

Will it leave a mark?

On metal, glass and sealed surfaces, usually not. On porous stone, brick and render, old paint can leave a faint shadow. Providers say what’s realistic from your photos, and you can agree a second treatment or a repaint in the quote.

Can graffiti be removed from a painted wall or render?

Often the remover lifts the wall’s own paint too. The neat answer is usually to clean what can be cleaned and repaint the patch, colour-matched where possible. Agree it in the quote, with any paint listed as materials.

Can you remove etched graffiti from glass?

No. Etching is scratched or burned into the glass, so it isn’t a cleaning job. Paint and marker on glass, though, usually come off cleanly.

Whose job is it to remove graffiti from my building?

On private property it is normally the owner’s. In a tenement or block, common parts such as the stair, the back court and the gable are shared, so the owners decide together, often through the factor or managing agent. Graffiti on public property is reported to the council rather than booked.

Do I need permission to remove graffiti from a listed building in Edinburgh?

Check first. Cleaning the stonework of a listed building can need listed building consent, and conservation areas have their own rules, so ask the City of Edinburgh Council before booking. Tell providers the building is listed so they quote the gentlest method.

Can my business be invoiced?

On a paid business plan, each job is invoiced after completion on 30-day terms. On the free Marketplace account you pay per job at checkout, like a private customer.

What if I’m not happy with the result?

Tell us within 48 hours of the job, with photos or a short video of what isn’t right. Your provider gets 48 working hours to come back and put it right at no cost to you, and we hold their payment until it’s settled. If they can’t or won’t, you choose: the value of the unfinished items back as a refund or Cleanifiq credit, or a new, smaller job for just those items with another provider (you see the price before confirming anything).

You choose at checkout: pay a deposit (20% of the job, or the provider’s minimum call-out fee if that’s higher) or pay in full. If you pay a deposit, the balance is due by 7:30am on the day of the job. Your money goes to Cleanifiq, not the provider, and release to the provider starts the day after the job, once they’ve completed it on the platform.

Graffiti removal in Edinburgh

Paint on old stone, a painted shopfront or a stair door: send a photo, name the surface, and providers who cover Edinburgh quote the gentlest method that will work. You choose, and your payment is held until the job’s done.

Call 0141 488 0088

Free to request. Fresh paint comes off more easily, so send photos early.

Method matched to the surface
Quoted from your photos
Payment held until done
Vetted providers

Edinburgh: graffiti removal from walls, shutters and shopfronts

4.9 / 5
Google rating from 113 reviews
5 min
median time to a first quote on Edinburgh requests

Why speed matters

The sooner it comes off, the less it leaves behind.

Graffiti paint doesn’t just sit on a wall. On brick, sandstone, concrete and render it soaks into the pores, and as it cures over the following days and weeks it bonds deeper and gets harder to shift. Fresh paint often lifts with a remover and a rinse; old paint on porous stone can leave a faint shadow however carefully it’s treated.

There’s a second reason to move quickly. Tags that stay up often attract more, and a shutter or gable that stays covered starts to look neglected. Clearing it promptly is usually the smaller job, and it shows that someone looks after the place.

That’s why graffiti jobs on Cleanifiq are quoted from photos of the actual mark on the actual surface. The provider picks a method that takes the paint off without taking the surface with it, and puts it in the quote.

Priced from the mark itself
Providers see the paint, its size and the surface before they name a price.
Method written down
Remover, hot water or gentle pressure: what goes on your surface is agreed in the quote.
Held until it’s gone
Your payment stays with Cleanifiq until the job is completed on the platform.
Reviews from real jobs
Every review on a provider’s profile comes from a booked, paid job.

Agree these in the messages before work starts

a test patch on stone, render or painted surfaces before the whole area is treated
what happens if a shadow remains: a second treatment, or a colour-matched paint-over where the surface was painted
whether an anti-graffiti coating is offered, and what it is, if you want one
access to water and power, and where the run-off and the removed paint will go

Honest limit: etching scratched or burned into glass is damage to the glass, not paint on it, and no cleaning removes it. Old paint on porous stone may leave a faint ghost; your provider will tell you what’s realistic from the photos.

Free to request. You only book if a quote suits you.

Every surface takes a different method.

The material under the paint decides how it comes off. Tell providers what it is; if you aren’t sure, a sharp close-up photo usually answers the question.

Brick
Porous, with mortar joints that hold paint. Usually a remover worked into the surface, then a low-pressure hot rinse. Soft or old brick and lime mortar need a gentle touch, or the face and the joints wash out with the paint.
Sandstone and natural stone
The most absorbent surface and the easiest to damage. Expect a gel or poultice remover and patience rather than a strong jet. Paint that has been on stone for a long time can leave a shadow.
Render and pebbledash
Painted render may lose its own paint along with the graffiti, so the honest answer is sometimes a careful clean followed by a patch repaint. Pebbledash traps paint in the gaps between the stones.
Metal shutters, doors and signs
Non-porous, so paint usually comes off well, but the wrong solvent can strip a powder-coated or painted finish. Say whether the metal is bare, galvanised or painted.
Glass
Spray paint and marker come off glass with a solvent and a blade. Etched or scratched tags don’t: they are in the glass, and the options are polishing, a film or a new pane.
Wood and painted surfaces
Timber gates, fences and painted doors absorb solvent and can lose their finish. Often the cleanest result is to remove what’s safe and repaint the rest.

What it was done with matters as much as where.

If you can tell what made the mark, say so in your request. It changes the remover, the time and sometimes the price.

Spray paint
The most common kind. Removable from most surfaces; the older it is and the more layers there are, the longer it takes.
Marker and paint pens
Thin lines, but the ink is made to last. On porous surfaces it can sink in further than spray paint does.
Stickers and fly-posters
Mostly scraping and adhesive removal, with care on painted and glass surfaces. Say if there are several layers.
Etching and scratching
Damage to glass or polished surfaces rather than a coating. Cleaning won’t remove it; ask about glass options separately.
Old paint-overs
If someone has already painted over earlier graffiti, the cover paint and the tag beneath can come off together. Mention any previous paint-overs.

What to send

Send these three things for an accurate graffiti quote.

Graffiti jobs are priced from what you send, so the clearer the photos, the closer the quote is to the real job.

1
The surface and its finish
Brick, stone, render, metal, glass or wood, and whether it is painted, coated or bare.
2
The size of the mark
Roughly how wide and how high, and whether it’s one tag or a whole wall. Say if any of it is above head height.
3
Photos, wide and close
One photo of the whole area and one close-up of the paint on the surface. Add how long it has been there.

Want someone to look at it first? For jobs that need seeing first, some providers offer an in-person visit. Your first visit for a job is free (one free visit per postcode every 7 days); a second provider’s visit fee is shown before you book it and refunded if they cancel. A quote given after a visit is valid for up to 3 months.

What graffiti providers usually quote for.

Providers price the marks in your request. These are the common graffiti jobs.

Homes
- Garden and gable walls
- Front doors, gates and fences
- Bin stores and garages
Shops and businesses
- Roller shutters and doors
- Shopfront glass and signs
- Side walls and yards
Shared property
- Back courts, closes and stairs, booked by the owners or factor
- Car park walls and entrances
Follow-up work
- A second treatment for a shadow
- Patch repainting on painted surfaces
- An anti-graffiti coating, where offered

Not included unless quoted

Repainting or colour-matching
Anti-graffiti coatings
Polishing or replacing etched glass
Work above safe ladder height
Graffiti on public or council property

What you accept is what gets done; anything beyond it is priced and agreed in the platform before it starts.

Graffiti removal or pressure washing?

Paint needs removing, not just washing.

Pressure washing clears dirt, moss and grime from hard surfaces. Graffiti is paint made to stay put: a jet on its own can drive it further into porous stone, and washing only the tag can leave a clean patch that stands out against the rest of the wall. That’s why graffiti has its own request type.

Book graffiti removal when

there’s paint, marker or stickers on a wall, shutter, door or glass
the surface is painted, coated or soft stone and needs a remover rather than force
you want the mark gone and the surface left as it was

Book pressure washing instead when

the job is general dirt, moss or algae on a driveway, patio, path or wall
the graffiti has gone, but the wall around it needs an even clean so no patch shows

Pressure washing in Edinburgh

From a photo to a clean wall.

01
Photograph the mark
A wide shot and a close-up, with the surface and how long it has been there.
02
Providers quote
Providers covering your part of Edinburgh price it, ask a question in the messages or offer to visit.
03
Agree the method
Remover, test patch, shadow treatment and any repaint, settled before you accept.
04
Gone, then paid
Cleanifiq holds the payment and releases it once the job is completed.

How much does graffiti removal cost in Edinburgh?

There’s no price list: each provider quotes for your mark on your surface, and there aren’t enough graffiti jobs on Cleanifiq yet to publish a fair average.

A small, fresh tag on smooth metal or glass is quick work; a large, old piece on sandstone or painted render can take several treatments. Each provider also sets a minimum call-out, so one small tag can cost the same as two or three done in the same visit.

What affects the price

The surface: porous stone and painted render take longer than metal or glass
The size, and how many separate marks there are
How old the paint is, and how many layers
Height and access, and water and power on site
A repaint, a second treatment or a protective coating, if you want them

Why quotes differ

Some providers carry a range of removers and a hot-water unit; others work mainly with gels and hand tools. One may price a single visit, another a clean plus a return for any shadow. Compare the method and what each promises about shadows, not only the total.

Protected from request to sign-off.

Your payment is held
You choose at checkout: pay a deposit (20% of the job, or the provider’s minimum call-out fee if that’s higher) or pay in full. If you pay a deposit, the balance is due by 7:30am on the day of the job. Your money goes to Cleanifiq, not the provider, and release to the provider starts the day after the job, once they’ve completed it on the platform.
Not right? Tell us within 48 hours
Tell us within 48 hours of the job, with photos or a short video of what isn’t right. Your provider gets 48 working hours to come back and put it right at no cost to you, and we hold their payment until it’s settled. If they can’t or won’t, you choose: the value of the unfinished items back as a refund or Cleanifiq credit, or a new, smaller job for just those items with another provider (you see the price before confirming anything).
Checked before they quote
Before a provider can take bookings we check photo ID, proof of address and public liability insurance, plus a criminal record check (Basic Disclosure Scotland or equivalent) and right to work where it applies. For companies we check a director’s ID, the business address, public liability insurance and Companies House status. Documents with expiry dates are re-checked when they expire. Every review on a provider’s profile comes from a booked, paid job. Cleanifiq’s insurance covers a new provider’s first three jobs while their own cover is being verified.
Keep it on the platform
Always pay through Cleanifiq, including for anything added on the day. Work paid for privately falls outside our guarantee, our insurance and our dispute resolution.

Graffiti removal in Edinburgh

Old stone, listed buildings and careful methods.

There are no completed graffiti jobs on Cleanifiq in Edinburgh yet, so quotes may be few. If your building is old stone, these are the points that matter most.

Listed buildings and conservation areas
Much of central Edinburgh is listed or sits in a conservation area, and cleaning the stonework of a listed building can need listed building consent. Check with the City of Edinburgh Council before booking anything more than a small, gentle clean of a listed façade.
Closes and common stairs
Old Town closes and tenement stairs are shared property, and access for equipment can be tight. Say how a provider reaches the mark, whether there are steps, and where the nearest water is.
Painted timber shopfronts
Traditional shopfronts are often painted timber, where removing a tag usually takes some of the paint with it. Mention the colour if you want a patch repaint quoted alongside the removal.

Where Cleanifiq works around Edinburgh

EH3
EH7
EH11
EH6
EH9
EH8
EH1
EH54
EH10
EH12
EH4
EH48
EH49
EH47
EH5
EH14

Postcode districts where Cleanifiq jobs of every kind were accepted in the last 12 months, busiest first, Livingston, Bathgate and Linlithgow included.

FAQ