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Wall filler buying guide: depth first

Updated: October 2026

You have a picture hook to fill before the room is painted, or a hairline beside a door, and the tubs on amazon.co.uk all look like the same white paste. This wall filler buying guide starts from that hole. Depth comes first, then indoors or outside, then the surface, then the pack. The eight ready-mixed listings on the [surface filler comparison](/hub/fillers-adhesives-and-sprays/surface-filler) are the set, with shelf prices from 15 October 2026, not a live re-check. Named buy-this-if lines are on [best fine surface filler](/hub/fillers-adhesives-and-sprays/surface-filler/sub/surface-filler-best). Listed prices there run from about £1.25 to about £21.00. The Products Compared editorial team did not run a lab test.

You have a picture hook to fill before the room is painted, or a hairline beside a door, and the tubs on amazon.co.uk all look like the same white paste. This wall filler buying guide starts from that hole.

Our top picks

Polycell Polycell Multi-Purpose Polyfilla 330 g

Best overall

Polycell Polycell Multi-Purpose Polyfilla 330 g
8.9/10about £3.49
View offer
Palace Palace Fine Surface Filler 600 g

Best value

Palace Palace Fine Surface Filler 600 g
8.1/10about £1.25
View offer
Palace Palace Langlow Ready Mixed Filler 1 kg

Alternative

Palace Palace Langlow Ready Mixed Filler 1 kg
8.7/10about £6.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Start with the depth of the hole
  2. 2.Interior, exterior, and gaps that move
  3. 3.Match the paste to the surface
  4. 4.Pack size and what the reviews actually show
  5. 5.When not to buy filler

Start with the depth of the hole

Measure the nick before you read a brand. Palace Fine Surface Filler, model 68-4, states layers of no more than 3 mm for deeper repairs. A nick closer to a centimetre has left that band. Polycell’s multi-purpose page describes about 10 mm in one go, then further layers after drying. Palace 68-1 states layers no thicker than 10 mm. The Polycell 330 g card does not print a depth, so that 10 mm figure is the manufacturer page. Zawan states no depth. A hole you can see through needs a patch, because ready-mixed paste shrinks as the water leaves it.

Interior, exterior, and gaps that move

A tub marked interior is not a spare outdoor filler for a garden wall. Palace fine filler is interior only. The Palace 1 kg listing excludes exposed exteriors and continuous water immersion, and a waterproof feature line does not cancel that. Polycell’s multi-purpose page allows plaster and masonry indoors or outdoors. The Decex kit states both on the card. Sinto’s listing does not say which. A skirting gap that opens and closes is often flexible sealant, because hard filler cracks again.
Polycell Polycell Multi-Purpose Polyfilla 330 g

Testsieger

Polycell Polycell Multi-Purpose Polyfilla 330 g
8.9/10about £3.49
View offer

Match the paste to the surface

The kept pastes claim interior plaster in some form. Palace fine also names masonry, timber, beams, and skirting. Palace 1 kg names render, skirting, architraves, and frames. Polycell’s page names plaster, masonry, concrete, and brickwork. FOME FLEX Finish is the listing aimed at plasterboard joints and screw holes. A hairline on solid plaster and a screw dimple in board are different purchases. Gloss, dust, and damp bond poorly, so do not fill over a damp stain. Polycell says spot nail heads with oil-based paint first, or rust can bleed through the emulsion. Sinto’s specification says silicone, while the bullets sell a hole and crack filler. Buy the bullets. If there is no board behind the hole, patch it.

Pack size and what the reviews actually show

A few picture holes want a small tub. Palace fine is 600 g at about £1.25, with 4.6 from 2,247 reviews. The two-pack is the same 68-4 at about £2.50 and the same review file, so do not count it twice. Polycell’s 330 g tube is about £3.49, with 4.6 from 14,595 reviews. A room of cracks wants more than 330 g. Palace 1 kg is about £6.99, and split tubs come up often. A rule of thumb: fine filler here is about £1 to £4.

When not to buy filler

NHBC treats a crack of 2 mm or less as cosmetic, and says get advice above 5 mm, or if a crack keeps growing. A diagonal crack near an opening, or one into the brick, needs a builder or a structural engineer first. If the ceiling sags, doors stick, or damp sits with the crack, filler only hides it. Do not fill a live electrical opening or a back box. A lid that arrives open, or paste already hard, fails satisfactory quality under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9. Check it before you store the tub. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Common questions

How do I choose wall filler if I only know the hole?
Measure the depth and name the surface. A hairline on interior plaster sits with fine filler in layers of about 3 mm. A nick up to about 10 mm sits with a multi-purpose paste that states that cap. A hole you can see through needs a patch. Outdoor walls and moving skirting gaps knock out several white tubs before pack size matters at all.
Can I use the same tub indoors and outdoors?
Only where that product says so. Polycell’s multi-purpose page allows indoor and outdoor use. The Decex kit states both on its card. Palace fine is interior. The Palace 1 kg listing excludes exposed exteriors and continuous water immersion, even though a feature line says waterproof. Sinto does not state either way.
Is a 330 g tube enough for a room of cracks?
It covers a few picture holes, which is how reviewers use the Polycell tube at about £3.49. A badly marked wall empties it. Palace 1 kg at about £6.99 suits a room of nicks up to about 10 mm. If the cracks are still hairlines, the fine two-pack at about £2.50 is the matching pack. A 5 kg pail is too much paste to lose to an open lid.
When is a moving skirting gap a sealant, not filler?
When the gap opens and closes with the floor or the season, hard filler cracks on the same line. Flexible sealant is the usual product. Multi-purpose paste can fill a static nick in skirting, which both Palace cards name, but it will not stay in a joint that keeps working.
Does a high star rating on six reviews mean it is the better tub?
No. FOME FLEX shows 4.7 from six reviews marked as reviewed in Germany. That is not 4.6 from 14,595 on the Polycell tube, or 4.6 from 2,247 on Palace fine. Read the count and whether the card states a depth before you let the stars decide.

Related pages

How to fill holes in a wall

Fine or multi-purpose filler

Filler for plasterboard joints

Surface filler

Best fine surface filler for hairlines and small nicks

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices are from amazon.co.uk on 15 October 2026.

  1. Polycell — Multi Purpose Polyfilla Ready Mixed (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  2. Palace Chemicals — Ready Mixed Filler TDS (28 October 2024) (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  3. Toupret UK — powder versus ready-to-use (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  4. HSE — sanding taped plasterboard joints (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  5. NHBC — Cracking in your home (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  6. BBC — cracks in walls (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  7. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  8. Checkatrade — how to fill holes in a wall (retrieved 15 October 2026)