When it comes to choosing the best bathroom paint colors, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Bathrooms may be smaller spaces, but they can be surprisingly tricky to get right. Lighting, tile, countertops, and fixed finishes all play a major role in how a paint color will look once it’s on the wall.
A color that feels soft and spa-like in one bathroom can look dingy, cold, or oddly bright in another. That’s why the best bathroom paint colors are the ones that work with your specific finishes and create the mood you want, whether that’s fresh and airy, rich and dramatic, or warm and timeless.
In this guide, we’re sharing some of the best bathroom paint colors we’ve used in our clients’ homes (and our own homes!), from crisp whites and soft neutrals to moody greens, blues, and deeper accent shades. All photos in this post are from real-world homes and actual Color Concierge projects.
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Best Paint for Bathrooms 101
Choosing the best bathroom paint colors goes beyond just finding a hue you like. It’s important to get clear on a few key factors before you buy paint.
What colors are good for bathrooms?
The best bathroom paint color is really an individual choice, because the color you choose depends so much on the fixed elements in your space. The right paint color needs to work with hard finishes like tile, countertops, flooring, and metal fixtures.
Soft whites, warm off-whites, gentle greiges, muted greens, and calming blue tones are all popular choices because they tend to create a clean, relaxing feel. But darker and moodier colors can also work beautifully in bathrooms, especially powder rooms or spaces where you want a little more drama.
What sheen should I use for bathrooms?
In most bathrooms, sheen (Article) matters just as much as color. Higher-sheen paints have traditionally been recommended because they are easier to wipe down, but they also reflect more light and can highlight wall imperfections.
In many cases, the best choice comes down to the product you are using and the condition of your walls.
If you want a softer, more elevated look, a matte finish can work beautifully in a bathroom when you use the right paint. If you’re adding board-and-batten or wainscoting in a bathroom, a glossier sheen is typically recommended for those accents.
Today’s paints work better in humid environments, so you don’t have to use a glossy paint anymore.
Do I need a special kind of paint for bathrooms?
Yes! Bathrooms deal with more humidity and moisture than most other rooms in the house, so it helps to use a paint that is designed for that environment.
Benjamin Moore Aura Bath and Spa is an excellent paint formulated for high-humidity spaces. This product is only available in a matte sheen, and it still performs beautifully in a bathroom setting.
Sherwin-Williams Duration Home is another great choice for bathrooms because it is designed to hold up in moist, high-humidity environments and contains anti-microbial agents that help inhibit mold and mildew growth on the paint surface. This paint is wipeable in flat and matte sheens!
22 Best Paint Colors for Bathrooms
We’ve helped hundreds of homeowners find the right bathroom paint colors for their homes. Some of our favorite hues are below.
Best White Bathroom Paint Colors
Sherwin-Williams Alabaster
Sherwin-Williams Alabaster (Article) is a slightly muted, creamy white paint color beloved by homeowners and interior designers alike. The LRV is 82, which makes it a fairly light color but not as bright as some other white paints.
Alabaster is a gorgeous bathroom paint color if you want a bright, spa-like feel but still want the space to feel warm and inviting.
In my client’s primary bathroom below, the walls are painted with Alabaster and complemented by a warm gray vanity and terracotta decor. I absolutely love the way all of these warm hues come together in this space. It creates a bright, spa-like bathroom that doesn’t feel even the least bit stark or cold.
Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee
BM Swiss Coffee (Article) is a warm, creamy off-white paint color perfect for bathrooms! With an LRV of 81.91, it’s similar to Alabaster except it has green undertones instead of yellow.
In my client’s powder room below, we used Swiss Coffee for the vanity and the walls and painted an accent wall behind the vanity with BM Saybrook Sage (one of our favorite sage green paint colors).
When you see Swiss Coffee contrasted against all the earthy finishes, it looks like a perfect white, not overly creamy, yellow, or too cold. That is what picking the perfect white for the space can do for your home.
Sherwin-Williams Greek Villa
SW Greek Villa (Article) is a warm off-white paint color that looks creamy and gorgeous in most lighting.
The LRV of Greek Villa is 84, which makes it lighter than Alabaster and Swiss Coffee, but still with some pigment.
Greek Villa has very subtle yellow undertones. The undertones help this color look warm and velvety on the wall, without looking too yellow. If a room is North-facing with cool light, Greek Villa’s slight yellow undertones will balance out the cold light.
In the North-facing (Article) bathroom of the client’s home below, for example, Greek Villa contrasts beautifully with blue-green tile in the shower and Pure White (Article) ceilings.
Benjamin Moore White Dove
BM White Dove (Article) is a slightly creamy, yet muted white paint that works well in rooms with lots of light but also looks pretty in dimmer areas thanks to its warm yellow undertones. White Dove has an LRV of 85.4, which makes it a soft white.
While it’s warm, grayed out undertones are what make this color so versatile, they do impact the types of hard finishes that pair well with White Dove bathroom walls. This color does not pair well with cool Carrara Marble countertops or tile, for example.
If you want a warm, cozy, spa-like bathroom space, however, White Dove could be the perfect fit. We used it on all the walls, trim and ceilings in my client’s bathroom below and it is absolutely gorgeous.
Benjamin Moore Snowfall White
BM Snowfall White (Article) is a bright, versatile off-white paint. It’s similar to the iconic BM Simply White, but with softer yellow undertones. It has an LRV of 91.8, making it the lightest hue featured in this guide.
We used Snowfall White on our client’s basement bathroom vanity below to brighten up the darker room. It pairs really well with the crisp gray granite on the countertop and soft gray (BM Horizon) walls. This color would also work well on bathroom walls with a gray or darker-colored vanity.
Best Neutral Bathroom Paint Colors
Sherwin-Williams Repose Gray
SW Repose Gray (Article) is a warm, violet gray with an LRV of 58. Grays with violet undertones are the color homeowners most often think of as a true “gray”.
The bathroom below is adjacent to the bedroom and shows a gorgeous combination of painted trim and warm wood ceilings. Most of the upstairs had wood trim, but in some places we had to paint it because of its condition.
I absolutely love the combination of warm wood and Repose Gray walls in this space!
Benjamin Moore Balboa Mist
BM Balboa Mist (Article) is a gorgeous light greige color with just enough warmth to be magical. It is a versatile neutral that looks great in a bright or dark room.
The LRV of Balboa Mist is 67, which makes it very light greige, leaning toward white. Its soft violet undertones keep the color looking warm and cozy, even in dim lighting.
We used Balboa Mist (Article) for the bathroom walls below. The color looks amazing with gray tile with violet undertones. It’s a monochromatic textural look that looks calm and serene.
Benjamin Moore Pale Oak
BM Pale Oak (Article) is one of my favorite neutrals. It has an LRV of 69 and is a very light greige with taupe undertones. It can read like a warm cream paint color, but without yellow undertones.
I love to pair Pale Oak with warm wood finishes or with crisp whites and matching stone or quartz countertops. In the master bathroom below, Pale Oak walls look really beautiful paired with the crisp white tub and tile.
Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray
BM Rockport Gray (Article) is a darker neutral paint color that I love building into whole-house color palettes – especially as a bathroom paint color! With an LRV of 36.6 and soft green undertones, it adds a layer of depth and warmth to a space.
In the bathroom below, we used Rockport Gray for an upper bedroom and continued the color on the ensuite bathroom vanity, which really brings the whole space together.
The bathroom walls were painted with Chantilly Lace (Article). This room is flooded with light all day, so the bright white color worked on the walls and paired really well with the white counter, peach-colored tile, and Rockport Gray vanity.
Benjamin Moore Gray Cashmere
BM Gray Cashmere (Article) is a wonderful bathroom paint color because it’s neutral enough to work in most whole-house color palettes but also colorful enough to add some interest.
This gray paint color has warm, green undertones and in certain light can even look like a soft blue-green hue in place.
The client’s powder room below is painted with Gray Cashmere. it is windowless, but with the door open you can see how lovely the color is. With the warm natural light from the hall area, it looks more green than blue.
Best Green Bathroom Paint Colors
Benjamin Moore Herb Bouquet
BM Herb Bouquet is a gorgeous sage green (Article) that’s perfect for bathrooms. It’s a versatile, muted green with subtle blue undertones and an LRV of 35.37. It’s cooler than a lot of sage green colors on the market, but is still warm enough to look beautiful with warm whites and natural wood tones.
My SEO specialist Danielle Gagnon used this color in her master bathroom for board-and-batten paneling paired with BM White Dove walls, and it looks gorgeous!
Benjamin Moore Pinelands
BM Pinelands is a deep, rich forest green paint color (Article) that adds a touch of elegance to a space. This color leans more toward yellow than blue, but is cool enough that it doesn’t look like an olive green on the wall. With an LRV of 21.25, it’s one of the darker green paint colors we’ve used in a bathroom.
The bathroom below is another space in my SEO consultant’s home. She used Pinelands to color-drench (Article) her main powder room downstairs, paired with accent wallpaper.
Benjamin Moore Rosepine
BM Rosepine is a deep, cool green paint color with an LRV of 20.82. It is fairly muted, so it pairs well with just about any neutral hue, including warmer whites and other neutral paint colors.
In the bathroom below, for example, we used Rosepine as an accent color alongside Benjamin Moore Balboa Mist (Article) walls.
Farrow & Ball Vert de Terre
F&B Vert de Terre (Article) is easily one of the best Farrow & Ball green paint colors. It offers so much depth and richness to a room and is versatile enough to work with both cool and warm finishes.
It is a warm green color with muted blue undertones that add a lot of depth to this already gorgeous color. We used this color in my client’s bathroom below to tie together warm and cooler finishes and it absolutely did its job!
Farrow & Ball Teresa’s Green
F&B Teresa’s Green (Article) was my first experience with Farrow & Ball paint and I fell in love right away. I first encountered this color in the client’s bathroom pictured below – it truly glows on the wall!
Teresa’s Green has a mix of warm and cool tones and is very versatile around the home. It looks lovely with earthy finishes like wood and brick but also pairs well with clean white paint and modern tile.
I consider Teresa’s Green to be an aqua or light teal color, with warm green undertones. I love using it in bathrooms!
Best Blue Bathroom Paint Colors
Benjamin Moore Blue Spruce
Blue Spruce by Benjamin Moore (Article) is a gorgeous, dark blue-green paint color that leans more toward blue. We love to use this color when clients want a dark blue interior paint that won’t look black on the wall.
Blue Spruce has an LRV of 16.81. It’s a very dark color, but still very far from black. A powder room painted with this hue is a great way to add a bold accent to a whole-house color palette.
Our client’s bathroom, pictured below, looks absolutely stunning, painted with Blue Spruce.
Benjamin Moore Bella Blue
BM Bella Blue (Article) is a gorgeous medium blue paint color with strong green undertones that keep the color leaning toward teal. It has plenty of gray in it, so it looks more muted on the wall than you might think.
With an LRV of 17.5, Benjamin Moore Bella Blue is a bold, deep color that still has plenty of pigment and won’t be overwhelming – even in a small space like my powder room.
I used this hue paired with gorgeous House of Hackney wallpaper (Article) in my own powder room – and it’s still the most-loved bathroom in the house!
Best Dark Bathroom Paint Colors
Sherwin-Williams Cyberspace
If you’re in the market for an unexpected bathroom paint color, SW Cyberspace (Article) is a great option. With an LRV of 6, it’s such a dark color that, in some lighting, it can look black. But in reality, it’s a very deep blue color.
Cyberspace works well in a bathroom because bathrooms (like many kitchens) often feature many white and light colors that offer contrast with this deep hue. This is precisely what I did in my master bathroom.
While most of the primary suite is the same Agreeable Gray (Article) as the original color of our whole-house color palette (Article), I painted the primary bathroom walls with SW Cyberspace to add depth and interest to this space. It’s one of the most cost-effective bathroom updates you can make – this color truly makes this room feel elevated and special.
Sherwin-Williams Sea Serpent
SW Sea Serpent (Article) is the ultimate bold bathroom paint color. With warm green undertones and an LRV of THIS, Sea Serpent is a fantastic vanity color or accent wall color.
In our client’s master bathroom below, for example, an SW Sea Serpent vanity brought the whole space together, complementing the beautiful tile and SW Greek Villa walls.
Benjamin Moore Onyx
BM Onyx (Article) is the darkest color featured in this best bathroom paint colors guide, with an LRV of 4.99. It is a dark black with little to no undertones. It’s a really beautiful color that we often use for a front door, cabinet color, or accent wall. In bathrooms, it’s a gorgeous vanity color.
We used Onyx for the bathroom vanity in our former home’s downstairs powder room, where it paired really well with beige BM Stone House walls and the dark granite countertops.
This is a gorgeous color combination that creates a warm and inviting bathroom space.
Benjamin Moore Witching Hour
BM Witching Hour is another dark blue accent color that can add depth to a bathroom. Witching Hour is a deep, charcoal blue that is dark but still muted, with an LRV of 8.71.
We used Witching Hour on a bathroom vanity in the upstairs hall bath of our former home. The color looked really beautiful paired with the Stonington Gray (Article) walls and blue-gray tiles.
Best Pink Bathroom Paint Colors
Benjamin Moore First Light
BM First Light (Article) was the 2020 Color of the Year – and for good reason! It’s a beautiful, luminescent pink that sometimes looks cool and other times warm.
I often use my own house as a paint color lab, testing out different hues in different applications. I tried First Light on the lower half of my powder room walls and it was just as gorgeous as I had expected!
In the photo below, the lower walls are painted with First Light, the upper walls are SW Agreeable Gray, and the trim and doors are painted Extra White (Article).
Sample The Best Bathroom Paint Colors
- Sherwin-Williams Alabaster
- Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee
- Sherwin-Williams Greek Villa
- Benjamin Moore White Dove
- Benjamin Moore Snowfall White
- Sherwin-Williams Repose Gray
- Benjamin Moore Balboa Mist
- Benjamin Moore Pale Oak
- Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray
- Benjamin Moore Gray Cashmere
- Benjamin Moore Herb Bouquet
- Benjamin Moore Pinelands
- Benjamin Moore Rosepine
- Farrow & Ball Vert de Terre
- Farrow & Ball Teresa’s Green
- Benjamin Moore Blue Spruce
- Benjamin Moore Bella Blue
- Sherwin-Williams Cyberspace
- Sherwin-Williams Sea Serpent
- Benjamin Moore Onyx
- Benjamin Moore Witching Hour
- Benjamin Moore First Light
You should always sample and test your paint colors. The easiest way to any paint color is via SAMPLIZE (Sample) . Their peel-and-stick paint samples are easy to use and true to color.
There is no mess, and the cost is less expensive than purchasing a sample and a white poster board. Since you don’t need to dispose of the paint, it’s also environmentally friendly!
With Samplize you can easily see how different shades look on your unique wall.
Easily sample our favorite bathroom paint colors via the link below.
Key Learning Points
Choosing bathroom paint colors is not as simple as finding a hue you like. Instead, it’s important to keep a few things in mind:
- Pick a bathroom paint color that coordinates with your hard finishes, including flooring, tile, countertops and metal hardware.
- Don’t be afraid to go bold, especially with a smaller powder room or accent wall.
- Use a bathroom-specific paint to ensure moisture, mold and mildew aren’t a problem. Try Benjamin Moore Aura Bath and Spa or Sherwin-Williams Duration Home.
Remember: NEVER, EVER use paint matches from a different brand than the one specified. Results are poor and there are no standards for the sheens. Even though your painter may truly believe it can be done, don’t do it. See results from paint matching here.
No matter what, always test your paint colors. It’s a standard best practice. Whenever I test my paint colors, they are perfect, and when I don’t test they turn out wrong. Learn how to test your paint colors here.
Online Color Consulting
Still need help picking the best paint colors? Discover our Online Color Consulting Packages.
Related Posts:
- Farrow & Ball Vert de Terre Review
- Farrow & Ball Teresa’s Green Review
- Sherwin-Williams Cyberspace Review
- Benjamin Moore Pale Oak Review
- 12 Best Green Paint Colors
About the Author
Hi, I’m Michelle Marceny, founder, owner, and Principal Color Designer at The Color Concierge. I believe a fresh coat of paint can completely transform a space. The Color Concierge was born out of my drive to help clients fall back in love with their homes. My clients trust me to help them find the perfect paint color for their home – whether it’s a whole-house paint color scheme or ideas for a single room.
Since The Color Concierge was founded in 2017, we have completed over 3000 color consultations, both online and in-person. I am a Certified Color Expert with 7 years of experience creating interior and exterior color palettes throughout North America.
We love your comments! Please note that the blog is meant as general advice, and it is not possible to give out specific answers to your paint questions. If you want more specific advice, our Online Color Consultations will help you pick your paint colours. Thank you for your understanding.
