How to Choose the Best White Paint Colors for Walls

Sarah Robinson
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Many people would say that a room filled with white walls sounds a bit boring. Well, we're here to tell you that white certainly doesn't have to feel bland at all! An all-white space can feel fresh, modern, and even a bit daring. You just have to know how to choose the right shade of white for your space. 

Is painting a room white a good idea?

If you're into minimalism, white is a great choice for your wall color. The beauty of white walls is that they allow you to highlight the furniture and accents in the room, and are perfect for showing off artwork. 

White walls are also great if you're planning to sell or rent your home-the clean look of white walls creates a blank slate and helps people envision how to make the space their own.

White walls also provide a great backdrop for experimenting with colors in other ways. When you keep the walls classic and neutral, you can use bold colors in your furniture and accent pieces in any combination you love. This is a great way to ease into bright colors and it means you can easily change things up if you find it's not right for you.

White paint for west-facing rooms

White Walls with gray undertone

When choosing the right shade of white for your room, you'll want to consider how the light flows through the space during the day. For west-facing rooms, this means you'll likely get the most light during the middle of the day. When selecting your perfect white, think about when you actually spend most of your time in that particular room. Mornings are darker in a west-facing room, so your paint color should have warmer undertones to balance out the grayish light. Think creamier whites, or even a blush-toned white. 

As the day goes on, your west-facing room will get warmer as the sun moves from full brightness around noon, with a warm glow as the sun begins to set. For this time of day, go for something with cool undertones, like a blue, green, or even gray-toned white. 

White paint for north-facing rooms

Creamy White Living Room

North-facing rooms never have the full sunlight during the day, and as a result can tend to have a more grayish-toned light. This means they naturally tend to feel a bit cooler than other rooms. To prevent your room from feeling too cold and flat, choose a version of white with a warm base-think soft creamy white or something with yellow undertones. If you still want more of a true white, aim for something with just a hint of a yellow base to balance out the gray light. 

White paint for east-facing rooms

White Room with Gray Curtains

East-facing rooms get that good early morning light. It's not overly warm, but rather clean and bright, giving your space a soft glow. This type of sunlight tends to flatter both cool and more neutral paint colors. So if you're in the space more during the early part of the day, you can really go with just about any shade of white. 

As the sun moves across the sky, east-facing rooms will still have lots of light, but also tend to have more shadow and gray light. To counterbalance this shadowy effect, a warmer white is best for these rooms during the afternoon and early evening to help warm things up. 

White paint for south-facing rooms

White Living Room with Natural Lighting

South-facing rooms are pretty fun to decorate, mostly because they get that good natural sunlight all day long. You can really use this to your advantage and select your shade of white based on how you want it to feel at any given point during the day. If you don't have a ton of windows and want to make the most of the natural light, a warmer white can help bring some more light into the room. 

If you have lots of windows, that means your space is naturally going to feel warm all day long. In fact, it might sometimes feel a bit too warm. In this case, you'll want to go with a much cooler white, with a blue or gray tone to it. You can really push into the base color here and go for a version that is just on the edge of not being white. 

If you're ready to give your room a fresh new look with white (or any other color!) WOW 1 DAY PAINTING is ready to help! To get started, book your free, no-obligation estimate today

  • Interior Painting