Property Workshop is proudly reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a small Amazon affiliate commission but this does not affect the price you pay. Learn more here.
Picking the best filler for walls and ceilings may seem like a simple task that requires little research. However, it’s surprising to discover many differences between similar-looking products once you get past the basics.
In this guide, we’ve spent hours reviewing three very different fillers that all claim to be the best filler for walls and ceilings on the UK market.
For sheer value, it’s impossible to look beyond Ronseal’s multi-purpose ready mixed filler, which offers outstanding value. If you’re tackling more than one or two surface cracks, and you don’t already have a whole arsenal of decorator’s tools, it’s the best filler for walls and ceilings.
Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings – The UK’s Top 3 in 2023
Below are my top picks for the best filler for walls and ceilings, each appealing to a different sector of the market…
1. Ronseal Smooth Finish Filler
- Fills up to 20mm
- Two-hour drying time
- Suitable for plaster, stone, concrete and wood
- The high-performance formula provides excellent adhesion
If you’re simply looking to tackle a few hairline cracks, this big 900-gram tub is excessive. Yet by every other benchmark, Ronseal’s contribution to our shortlist is a deserving winner.
For starters, it represents superb value for money – per 100 grams, it’s half the price of Everbuild’s offering and one-sixteenth as much as fischer’s product. There’s also no need for caulk guns or other hardware, as it comes with an applicator.
Drying in around two hours, this product’s acrylic polymer and Dolomite filler composition make it grippy yet sandable. It’s also shrink-resistant, ideal when refurbishing a property with no heating.
Regular users’ only complaint against Ronseal’s product is a propensity to dry quickly, which is worth considering if you’re tackling a large area. On the upside, you can apply it to indoor materials as diverse as timber, plaster, concrete and stone.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Outstanding value | It could be too much for small DIY jobs |
| Works on almost any material | Dries quickly, making sanding difficult |
| It comes with an applicator |
2. Everbuild Flexible Decorators Filler
- 1-hour fast drying time
- Permanently flexible
- Cleans easily with water
- Excellent slump resistance
Where Ronseal’s product is a bargain bucket offering, Everbuild’s contribution to our shortlist is more niche. For starters, it requires an applicator gun – a significant extra expense if you don’t already have one.
This filler is less a product for beginners and more for pros or DIY experts who want neat edges around skirting boards and architraves, stair treads and window frames.
If you can overlook its relative expense compared to Ronseal’s all-you-can-eat buffet, Everbuild’s flexible decorators’ filler has a great deal of merit. It’s easy to apply in straight lines and tight corners and doesn’t dry out quickly when neatening up a finish.
Everbuild markets this filler as offering excellent slump resistance, a feature we could all benefit from having 😀. Crucially, it doesn’t need sanding down before being painted or wallpapered.
With an application temperature range of four to forty degrees centigrade, this fast-drying acrylic-based filler and sealant have many benefits for people in a hurry, not least a degree of inherent flexibility.
One of our few concerns relates to the presence of CIT/MIT in its composition, which may produce an allergic reaction. As such, we’d recommend wearing gloves and a mask while using this product.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Excellent for edges and corners | May cause allergic reactions |
| Compatible with an applicator gun | Requires additional tools |
| It stays flexible even after drying out |
3. fischer Repair Filler
- Ultra-light, ready-made acrylate dispersion-based filler
- Paint compatible
- Odourless, free from solvents, isocyanate and silicone
- Up to 12mm single-layer thickness
- For use indoors and outdoors
- Non-ageing with excellent UV-resistance
Let’s address the elephant in the room straight away – fischer repair filler is over 16 times as expensive as Ronseal’s offering by weight. That’s an insurmountable obstacle to overcome, and it’s the sole reason it finishes last in this test.
Its 22cm tube contains just 70 millilitres of acrylic gypsum filler, weighing less than 40 grams. That’s fine for small jobs but unsuitable for significant repairs.
Having established that its meagre quantity is only suitable for minor repairs, let’s consider this product’s positive attributes:
- Firstly, it comes with everything you need – a spatula is integrated into the tube, ready to apply.
- The elasticity of this filler makes it suitable for various indoor and outdoor uses, making it the only product marketed as ideal for external application.
- This filler offers impressive UV resistance and comes without solvents, silicone or isocyanate.
- Best of all, fischer’s product is versatile. I.e. it’s flexible enough not to shrink or crack yet hardwearing enough to withstand sanding and long-term storage in its tube. It also supports single-layer thicknesses of up to 12mm, across materials as diverse as plasterboard, concrete and timber.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Ideal for surface cracks | Poor value for money |
| It comes with an integral spatula | Insufficient quantity for larger DIY jobs |
| Suitable for outdoor use |
Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings – 2023 Comparison Table
| Model | Weight/Volume | Flexible once dry? | Suitable for outdoor use? | Cost | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ronseal 6886271-HHW Smooth Finish Filler Multi-Purpose Ready Mixed | 900g | No | No | £ | 8 |
| Everbuild FLEX-EBD Flexible Decorators Filler | 290ml | Yes | No | ££ | 7 |
| fischer 551915 No Tools Just Hands-Repair Filler | 70ml | Yes | Yes | £££££ | 6 |
Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings Buying Guide
When buying the best filler for walls and ceilings, consider the following:
All Filler, No Killer
Decorating filler is a product many of us will use sparingly, making the quantity purchased highly significant.
Manufacturers sell some fillers by weight and others by volume. You’ll find that filler typically weighs one gram for every two millilitres of filler.
The products in this review range from 70ml tubes to 900g tubs, with the latter intended for large-scale renovations. Even if you’re not going to use a large amount of filler, you don’t want to overpay for a tiny tube.
As a result, value for money was a critical factor in determining which filler won our award for the Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings.
Pro Tip: A steady hand and a smooth-edged spatula are vital for achieving professional results on any filled surface. Watch the techniques of an expert in this video.
Tools of the Trade
Another factor we considered was the need for additional tools.
Ronseal’s filler comes with an applicator, but you can also apply/smooth it with the back of a flat-edged table knife or filling knife, while fischer’s repair filler has a spatula integrated into its compact tube.
By contrast, Everbuild’s product requires an applicator gun – fine if you have a compatible gun, but an additional expense if you don’t.
Guns are also bulky and take up a disproportionate amount of space in your toolbox, so it’s worth considering if this is something you’re likely to reuse in future. Plus, there’s a degree of expertise required to use one accurately, as this YouTube tutorial demonstrates.
Pro Tip: After achieving a smooth finish, you’ll almost certainly want to decorate over the filler. Our guides to the best emulsion paints might be of value, and don’t forget your paint brushes…
Final Thoughts – Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings
Depending on your requirements, the results of our tests can easily change.
For example, if you’re looking for a one-stop product to address minor settlement cracks or edging around a new piece of integrated furniture, fischer’s Repair Filler ticks all the boxes. Also, if you’re working outside, it’s the only product we tested that can withstand the elements.
Furthermore, if you’re tackling a small DIY job, the small volume of fischer’s filler might be preferable to buying a 900g Ronseal tub.
However, Ronseal’s Smooth Finish Filler deservedly wins the ‘Best Filler for Walls and Ceilings’ award when considering value for money. We like that you can use this filler in a broader array of materials, including stone. Also, its sheer quantity makes it suitable for layering and then sanding.
Everbuild’s offering is a halfway house between Ronseal’s value and fischer’s suitability for fiddly jobs. You’ll have to own a bulky applicator gun, which rules this product out for many users, yet it’s suitable for applying in tiny strips or awkward corners. If you’ve already got a gun, this flexible and robust filler has much to love.