Test before you scrape
Texture applied before the early 1980s may contain asbestos, and some products stayed in circulation later. It stays harmless while intact, and turns hazardous once you make dust of it. A lab sample costs very little. That result decides whether this is a straightforward job, or one for a licensed abatement contractor. We test rather than assume, and we will not scrape an untested ceiling of that era.
What popcorn ceiling removal costs, and why it varies
Almost entirely the condition of what sits underneath. The scraping goes quickly. The skim coat that follows does not. Nobody expected anyone to see those tape joints, so they often need two or three passes. An asbestos test costs a small fixed amount, and the EPA recommends one for any texture of that era. That single test decides whether this is a normal job or a licensed abatement.
The work itself
We mask and seal everything, then damp the texture and scrape it. After that the ceiling gets skim-coated, sanded and painted. Expect the skim coat to take most of the labour. Nobody meant the surface underneath to be seen, so old texture often hides rough tape joints.
Then choose a finish: knockdown or smooth.