White Exterior Paint Colors
We are gearing up to do a full makeover on the exterior of our coastal home and I am so excited! We started the project with a coastal porch makeover and next up we’re going to paint our home white with taupe trim and whitewash the brick. We also plan to install hurricane shutters and eventually replace the roof with a muted silver metal roof, to complete our classic coastal home. Choosing the best white exterior paint color has been a big decision, as the paint will make up so much of our home’s curbside appeal. Along with receiving many wonderful recommendations from you all on Instagram, I’ve spent a lot of time researching white exterior paint colors and playing around with them to decide which would be best for our home. In this post I’m going to share tips for choosing a paint color for your home and what I believe to be the 12 best white exterior paint colors.
Things to Consider when Painting Your Home
Choosing the exterior paint color of your home is a really big deal. Not only can a paint color add to curb appeal, but it can also help add value to your home if done properly. With the price of paint and the extensive labor that goes into the job, the last thing you want to do is to paint your home only to regret it and want to change the color again within the next few years. One of the reasons I love white exterior paint is because a classic white home will never go out of style. White is also a paint color that will make your home appear larger, which is often a nice bonus. The trick is finding the best shade of white paint for your home, neighborhood, and surroundings. Here are my top tips for choosing the best white exterior paint color.
Tips for Choosing the Best White Exterior Paint Color
- Take surrounding homes into account. Luckily, white is as neutral as a home can get, so in most locations a white home won’t look out of place like other colors can. But it’s still important to take the immediately surrounding homes into consideration. For example, if your neighbor to the left has a dark brown tudor home and your neighbor to the right has a warm brown brick home, these surrounding houses will influence your home to take on a warmer hue.
- Keep your home’s landscaping and background in mind. Similar to neighboring homes, the background and landscaping surrounding your home should be taken into account when choosing a white exterior paint color. Anything that catches the eye when glancing at your home can affect how the paint color appears. It’s best to have a full landscaping plan to go along with your new paint color.
- Consider the direction your home faces. The direction the front of your home faces significantly impacts the amount of sunlight on the house. In return, paints on homes facing the sun will appear brighter, while homes that are in the shade most of the day will appear darker. White exterior paint on a north facing home can look significantly different compared to the same paint on a south facing home.
- Paint samples on different parts of the home. Again, different sides of your home face different directions, so it’s important to paint large samples on different areas of your home. Be sure to pay attention to how these samples appear at different times of the day. This will give you the best idea of what the finished project will look like.
- Any stone or brick that won’t be painted needs to be part of the decision. If you’re painting next to an existing stone or brick, these areas will have a large effect on the resulting paint color. The undertones of the stone or brick will significantly influence the white paint color. The best way to account for this is to learn the undertones of the stone or brick and choose a white exterior paint color with similar undertones. Then, be sure to paint samples directly next to this stone. You can also paint samples on poster board and hold them next to the stone or brick to get the overall appearance if you don’t want to paint directly onto your home.
- Keep in mind that white exterior paint looks much brighter in the sunlight. I don’t recommend choosing a the brightest, true white for exterior paint because these can often appear too blinding outside in the sun. Most people suggest choosing a white exterior paint color that is 2-3 steps down on a paint chart and with an LRV no higher than 85.
Top 11 White Exterior Paint Colors
Obviously, a lot of thought and planning goes into choosing the best white exterior paint color for your home. We are still in the process of testing out different colors and making a decision. If you’re also wanting to paint your home white, I highly recommend checking out these top 12 white exterior paint colors!
- Sherwin-Williams Greek Villa
Greek Villa is a timeless creamy white paint color. It has a touch of warmth to it, which makes it perfect to use as a white exterior paint because it’s not too stark. It has very soft and subtle yellowish-beige undertones.
- Benjamin Moore Simply White
Simply White is a clean, crisp and fresh white paint color with a touch of warmth. It is often a go-to for interior paint, but also looks wonderful on exteriors. It has yellow undertones, but in direct sunlight these disappear.
- Sherwin-Williams Charleston White
Charleston White (DCR100) is part of the Sherwin Williams Historic Collection and is wildly popular here in Charleston, for obvious reasons. This is a bright white color with just a drop of black pigment that makes it not quite as bright. This is a lovely color and a top contender for our home exterior.
- Sherwin-Williams Alabaster
Alabaster is a commonly used white exterior paint color and for good reason, it’s beautiful outdoors! Alabaster has a nice, neutral base to it, which allows it to be a creamy, soft white without looking yellow.
- Benjamin Moore White Dove
Another very popular white exterior paint color is White Dove. This white paint has slight hints of warm gray and a high LRV of 85. For this reason, it’s a popular choice if you’re wanting to give your home a bright, true white appearance. White Dove is especially great if your home gets a lot of shade.
- Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee
Swiss Coffee is a warm, creamy beige white. It has yellow and very slight green undertones. The creamy warmth makes it a great choice for white exterior paint.
- Sherwin-Williams Shoji White
If you’re looking for a white exterior paint that isn’t too stark white or bright, Shoji White is an excellent choice. Shoji White is a warm, creamy white with neutral gray and beige undertones. Depending on the lighting, it can appear white or off-white on a home.
- Sherwin-Williams Pure White
Similar to White Dove, Pure White is a bright white when applied to the exterior of a home. It does have a touch of warmth to it, but not enough to make it appear creamy outdoors.
- Sherwin-William White Duck
White Duck is a wonderful creamy off-white exterior paint color. What I love about this soft white is that it has a blend of greige and cream undertones, not yellow, so it stays neutral in both the sunlight and the shade.
- Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace
Chantilly Lace is one of my favorite white paint colors and we’ve used it in our master bathroom, family room, laundry room, and Ceilia’s bedroom. It is a true white paint color, with neither warm nor cool undertones and it also has a high LRV. These characteristics make Chantilly Lace an ideal white exterior paint color if you’re wanting a true, bright white home.
- Benjamin Moore China White
China White (also known as Sea Pearl) is a very popular off-white exterior paint color. It has light, warm greige tones, which make it an especially great option if you’re pairing white paint with gray or brown stonework or bronze accents.
12. Sherwin Williams Aesthetic White
Aesthetic White is a neutral and very warm white color that looks beautiful when paired with wood tones. This color has warm undertones that appears soft versus bright white colors.
Favorite White Exterior Paint Colors
Thank you to everyone who recommended a favorite white exterior paint color on Instagram. If you have a favorite that wasn’t mentioned in this post, I’d love it if you could share it with us in a comment below. Your recommendation could help someone searching for the perfect white exterior paint color and I can always update this post to include additional colors. If you have painted your home with one of the whites I discussed, I’d love to hear about your experience and see photos of your home! And if you’re looking for more paint color inspiration, be sure to check out my other paint color posts as well:
Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore
Extra White by Sherwin-Williams
