We specify exterior paint color palettes for red brick houses almost every day in our online and in-person color consulting practice. One of our most popular blog posts is “The Best Exterior Paint Colors for Red Brick Homes (and what not to do)“. We thought you might enjoy some of our favorite color palettes for red brick homes.
Tips for Paint Color Palettes with Red Brick
- Keep your whites creamy with brick. Consider a warm white such as SW Alabaster or a very light greige such as SW Shoji White. It will look white outside. A clean or crisp white will look harsh.
- Paint colors look 5-10 times lighter and more colorful outside than inside. A gray color may look blue, green or violet depending on its undertones. One of the most common mistakes homeowners make is to pick a paint color that is too light for exteriors.
- Consider painting siding the same color as the grout. Most grout is a green-gray, but sometimes we see taupe grout too.
- Surfaces with rough textures such as stucco make surfaces look darker. If you pick one paint color for siding and stucco on a house the stucco will look darker.
- If you have white vinyl windows, consider using a white trim color. It doesn’t need to match exactly. A white trim color will keep the vinyl windows from looking harsh.
- Buy the best quality paint you can afford to make your paint last longer. Dark colors fade faster than light ones but if you pick a high-quality paint it won’t matter as much. The longer the warrantee the better the paint. Avoid builder grade paint.
- Always test your paint colors!
Here are 6 of our favorite paint color palettes with red brick. All colors are Sherwin-Williams.
Southern Cottage Color Palettes
This palette uses SW Jogging Path, a mid-toned green-gray the same as the grout color. The blue ceiling is a typical treatment for classic southern cottages. The tradition comes from a century ago when homeowners thought that painting their front porch ceiling blue would keep ghosts out of their house because they didn’t travel over water. An urban myth was that the blue would keep wasps away too!
The secret to picking a yellow paint color for your house (especially with red brick) is to choose a beige with yellow undertones. Otherwise the yellow color would look harsh like a caution sign! SW Straw Harvest is one of those colors. If you took it inside it would look like a boring beige. Outside, its vibrant and lovely.
Traditional Red Brick Color Palettes
We love a blue house with red brick. SW Granite Peak is another subdued color that becomes more colorful and lively outside. We like it because it’s not as dark as other navy blue paint colors.
Rushing River by Sherwin Williams is a lovely mid-toned green-gray that contrasts with the red brick and ties in with the green-gray color. Its a classic and timeless look.
We love a green house with red brick! In this case we picked SW Retreat, which is a muted green color that prevents the palette from looking like a Christmas palette.
Modern Farmhouse Color Palette with Red Brick
We often get requests for a modern farmhouse look, and this is a lovely simple version, also timeless. We picked SW Alabaster, a creamy off-white for the house. Whites need to be creamy with brick and for exterior palettes, and we would not pick a white that was brighter than Alabaster. It is as white as we would go. For this palette, paint all the trim, fascia, soffits, siding one color. Not only will it look amazing, but it will save you a fortune on labor. Top it off with a nice colorful front door. White paint colors make your house look bigger!
The Verdict
Since brick is an earthy finish, always pick a muted paint color. Whites should be creamy or muted light grays. Exterior paint colors will look five to ten times brighter and more colorful in the sunshine.
No matter what, don’t forget to 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.
NEVER, EVER use paint matches from a different brand than the one you will use. 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.
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Related Posts:
The Best Exterior Paint Colors for Red Brick Homes (and what not to do)
6 Exterior Paint Color Combos and How to Pick Them
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, please consider purchasing a color consultation. Thank you for your understanding.
Wonderful, sophisticated color palettes! A bit of history on painting porch ceilings blue in the south. It’s a tradition among the Gullah, who came from Africa and settled in the low country in South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. They painted their doorframes and window frames blue because of the spiritual belief that spirits couldn’t travel over water. That watery shade of blue is often called “haint blue“ a localization of “haunt.“ As far as keeping the wasps away, I can personally verify that it does! I live in a very buggy part of the Western North Carolina mountains and have had almost no bugs on my haint blue porch ceiling since I painted it three years ago.
Hi Marsha,
What wonderful insight, and for your kind words! Thank you so much for letting us know!
Michelle
I came here looking for something else and found the answer to the exterior conundrum I’ve been puzzling over for years.
Hi Jennifer,
Thank you so much! I’m glad we were able to help.
Michelle
I am trying to pick the right color for My brick home. The brick is orange with some gray with tan grout. There is cedar plank siding too.
Hi Laurel,
We have some great ideas in the article. Otherwise, please consider a Color Concierge Exterior consultation.
Thanks,
Michelle
I loved your blog and thanks for publishing this about color palettes red brick. I am really happy to come across this exceptionally well written content. Thanks for sharing and look for more in future!! Keep doing this inspirational work and share with us.
Wonderful information on color palettes red brick, thanks a lot for sharing kind of content with us. Your blog gives the best and the most interesting information. I wonder if we can gather such practical information about it, a great post definitely to come across.
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoy it.
Michelle
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoy it.
Question … Have you seen a completed home painted with your suggested colors SW7638 Jogging Path or SW7746 Rushing River? 🤢
After sampling both colors (and having an initial reaction of “????!”), I decided to ‘leave it to the experts’ since I was under a major time deadline* with my painter arriving the very. next. day.
My hubby and I actually chose the mid-color between the two -SW7644 Gateway Gray- because Jogging Path washed out in the sunlight and Rushing River appeared a bit dark in twilight.
The painter is half done … and I hate it. The color can’t decide if it is a sickly gray or a minty-ish silver green. Yucko! I’m heart sick. 😭
*Time deadline not due purely to procrastination! Have been waiting on new windows delayed 6 weeks due to COVID-19 shutdowns at the factory TWICE! Finally realized I’d have to punt on color selection without them. Then encountered 10 days of wildfire smoke making it hard to be outdoors choosing and exterior color.
Hi Rhonda,
I am so sorry you didn’t have a chance to test your paint colors! Its crazy out there right now.
We have seen completed homes painted with Jogging Path and Rushing River. The homes had hard finishes that matched beautifully. In this case, Gateway Gray has more green (and less gray) than the other paint colors.
Michelle
thank you so much for this! i just bought a 60s red brick ranch house with aluminum siding and white vinyl windows. i love the alabaster and quietude example but because the vinyl windows are so white, i’m nervous about using the Alabaster for the trim, wondering if the bright white on the windows will be too noticeable next to the Alabaster.
Hi Dana,
We prefer white or light colored trim to make white bright vinyl windows recede, so that is an excellent choice. Don’t worry about getting a perfect match, because then the white trim might be too bright and harsh for your house. I like to use a white that’s slightly darker. I wouldn’t go any brighter or lighter than Alabaster for your trim. In fact, I used Agreeable Gray for my “white” trim with bright white vinyl windows, and it looks fine. We had to use a darker color for our white because the siding is Gauntlet Gray which is a huge contrast. As long as you pick a white or gray that is relatively light you should be ok.
Thanks,
Michelle
I just moved into a red brick with some light limestone colored bricks and stone as accents. The soffits, trim and siding are painted a matching red. The house looks small and dated.
I love Alabaster for the trim and Sea Salt for the soffits and siding. Is Sea Salt too pale to be used on the siding?
Hi Beth,
Sea Salt is a very light color. Sometimes it depends on where you live. If you live very far north, it might not be too light, but as you go South the UV rays get stronger and you need to use darker colors. Also, UV rays get strong as you go up in altitude. I would use a darker color in Denver, for example than I would in Washington, DC to get the same results. The key is to test your paint colors in a very large swatch next to your brick or stone to see how it looks. Good luck!
Michelle
Hi Michelle,
Thank you for this super helpful post on red brick home colors:)
Do you have any paint colours that match with Hardie Board’s ‘Monterey Taupe’? Would that colour go with red brick?
And in general how close do trim and eavestroughs/ gutter colours need to match?
Also, it seems that most updates of red brick homes are done with black trim lately. It’s not my preference though… will my house look outdated if we choose other colours like taupes for our primary trim, and then black just for front door and shutters?
Thank you again!!
Hi Jessica,
Although we see lots of black trim, fascia and soffits these days, lighter trim is also alive and well. The name Monterey Taupe is actually a misnomer. The color is more of a dark muted green similar to SW Adaptive Shade. The best thing to do is to find the color on the fan deck that is most similar and make a large sample on poster board to compare. Monterey Taupe can be beautiful with red brick, but it’s hard for me to say because I haven’t seen your brick. In most paint schemes, your gutters and fascia should match each other. I always recommend painting the gutters to match the fascia. Downspouts should match the adjacent surface, and when next to brick should be the darkest color in the palette. The purpose is to hide the gutters and downspouts, unless you have copper or bronze another upgraded metal. The rest of the trim can match the roofline, but it really depends on your architecture and windows. I can’t make a recommendation without seeing photos of your house. Finally, test, test, test your paint colors with large poster board and on the actual surface of the house. I hope that helps!
Michelle
Love your ideas! Do you have similar articles for very dark grey/Brown brick houses? Thanks a lot!
Hi Susan,
The same principles apply for Brown brick houses. I don’t have dark grey brick ideas published yet, because we don’t see that much of it.
Thanks!
Michelle
I can’t believe it, I found this article at just the right time! We’re choosing exterior paint colors for our house with large red brick accents on the first floor. We’ve got four blue samples up and working our way through massive self doubt. Been dreaming about a grey-blue house with white trim forever. We were already mostly set on Alabaster trim, and one of the paint samples is Granite Peak! My concern, however, is that I’m picking up a purple undertone. Our house is north-facing. We’re in the Kansas City Metro, and we are not K-State fans, lol! Our other shades are Slate Tile and Grays Harbor. Grays Harbor reads a little purple, too, but Slate Tile looks almost too bright in the sun (on the other sides of the house). Our neighborhood is very white, beige and grey. So we want to add some contrast in a good way. Decision fatigue has me paralyzed. Do you have any insight to get my wheels turning again?
Hi Lisa,
I’m not too worried about Granite Peak looking too purple, unless the house next door is really red (blue+red=purple). If you are looking at samples, make sure that you have large samples that are surrounded by white so that you don’t get tricked by the color that is in place. Check out our “how to test paint colors” blog. We also have a great article on blue colors for exteriors which may also give you insight. Another tip is that Alabaster will likely be too bright a white when you take it outside. Instead, opt for a darker warmer color such as SW Natural Choice, SW Origami White or even Westhighland white. If you are looking for a creamy white, then pick a color like SW Wool Skein.
I hope that helps!
Michelle
Thank you for these! I love all them. For the palette with SW Retreat and the blue door, what color would you do for the shutters? My roof is brown and will not be replaced any time soon, do you think that color palette would look ok with a brown roof? Thanks! 🙂
Hi Teija,
I’m so glad you love the palettes! Its hard for us to recommend colors without seeing your house. Its easier if you can purchase one of our exterior packages, and it helps fund the blog.
Thanks,
Michelle