How to Hang Decor on Stucco

Learn how to hang decor on stucco walls. Drilling into stucco is easy with the right supplies.

We recently used this method to hang our vertical herb garden.

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Hanging stuff on stucco walls felt pretty intimidating at first.

We bought a heavy ceramic frog for our patio so we knew that the hanging method needed to be really secure.

ceramic frog hanging on stucco wall on patio

Luckily this method is both secure and pretty easy with the correct tools.

What is Stucco?

Stucco is a layer of concrete-based siding on the exterior of homes.

In Florida, a lot of homes have stucco over cinder block structures. This means that you need to drill through the stucco and the cement cinder blocks.

How to Hang Decor on Stucco

Supplies Needed:

Notes about supplies

Hammer Drill

This drill looks a lot like a normal drill, but it has a special setting for using it as a hammer drill. This setting is denoted with a hammer shape on a Dewalt.

This allows the drill to hammer as it drills, making it more powerful when drilling through cement or other hard surfaces.

If you don’t have a hammer drill, try using a regular drill, but go slowly.

If you’re using a battery-powered drill, make sure that you’re using a fully charged battery. In most cases, corded drills are more powerful, so if you have a drill with a cord, use that.

Masonry Bit

A masonry bit is a must for drilling in a stucco wall. Normal drill bits are made for metal and aren’t strong enough to cut through cement.

Masonry Screws

Masonry screws are necessary for use on stucco walls. They’re much stronger and they’re coated to keep them from rusting.

Buy the length of screws that you will need. If what you’re hanging isn’t that heavy, shorter screws work fine.

For heavy items, pay attention to the size of the screw head. A larger screw head will hold the item better. (Make sure it fits though.)

If you’ve never used star-bit screws, you’re going to love them. The star bit doesn’t slip like a Phillips screw head.

Most directions for drilling into stucco will tell you to use anchors, but if you use the correct screws, you can skip that step.

Directions for Hanging Decor on Stucco Walls

Use a sharpie to mark where you want to hang the item.
Use a hammer drill on the hammer setting to pre-drill the hole. Make sure that you drill it deep enough. If necessary, use tape on the drill bit to indicate how deep to drill.
Use a star bit to screw in the screw.
Hang your decor on the wall.