Calm coastal paint colors can turn your home into a relaxing retreat from the pressures of every day life.
During a recent trip to the beach, I visited the local Sherwin Williams to talk to the experts about their top selling paint colors.
The answer was unanimous.
Most beach home owners choose shades that are light blue or light green hues.
Blues and greens are seen as calming, relaxing and reminiscent of the ocean and sky.
The colors that are chosen for the interior of your beach home are meant to reflect the same colors you see when you are soaking up the sun.
They are classically beachy feeling, and impart a sense of peacefulness.
Coastal paint colors for the home are always in style.
They play on the hues of the ocean, the sky, the sun and the sand.
Paired with coastal decor, they give your home a perfectly casual and nautical feeling.
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Here are my picks for the top ten coastal paint colors from Sherwin Williams.
Hopefully this list will have something for everyone.
Whether you like neutrals, soft pastels, pops of color or deep navy shades, you can find a paint color on this list to bring just the right look and feel to your beach inspired home.
Tradewind
Tradewind is a designer favorite, and it is easy to see why.
Named by Coast Living Magazine as one of the best paint colors for a beach house bedroom, it has notes of blue and gray in it, with a touch of green.
This color tends toward the cool side, and is light enough to paint in any room.
As with all colors, it will look like a darker color in a small, windowless room, or may look almost like a neutral in a larger, well lit room.
It is a serene, beautiful shade that is reminiscent of the blue expanse of the ocean or of the clear sky.
Popular with both the average beach home owner and with designers, Tradewind is the number one choice to anchor your coastal design.
Click here for all the details on Sherwin Williams Tradewind.
Cottage Cream
Cottage Cream is a great addition to a coastal color scheme.
What would a beach house be without a soft yellow?
This warm color is reminiscent of sunsets over the ocean and the sand beneath your feet.
This calming paint shade is subdued enough to be considered a beige, but has enough yellow in it to look like a color when it is on the wall.
Cottage Cream brings a bit of sunny brightness to this beach house color scheme without being too prominent.
Meander Blue
Meander Blue is a slightly brighter blue-green paint color that feels almost tropical.
While this cool beachy teal compliments the other shades in this coastal color scheme from Sherwin Williams, it would be best used in a stand alone room such as a small bathroom, or a sunny guest room.
It begs for some crisp white beadboard or white wicker furniture to accent it on the walls.
Meander Blue will give your home a sea glass inspired feel.
Passive
Passive is a classic gray.
It could be placed next to any color in this beach paint scheme, and blend in the home seamlessly.
It is another top pick for beach home owners, according to the local Sherwin Williams experts, because it can go with any style, and in any room. It is the color of the sky on a stormy day at the beach.
Click on this post for more information on Sherwin Williams Passive.
Waterscape
When I think of Waterscape, I think of tranquility.
As the name implies, Waterscape will remind you of the water.
It is a similar depth to Tradewind, but where Tradewind leans towards blue, Waterscape leans towards green.
Waterscape is another great choice for the main living areas of your home, for the bedrooms, or for any room where you want to hear the call of the ocean.
Naval
Some people like a more nautical look in their beach-inspired home.
To get this sort of look, Naval is a great choice.
Sherwin Williams Naval is a dark blue paint color.
This navy shade will give your space a deep, nautical feel.
Naval can be used in a whole room for a bold look, painted in thick stripes for an accent color, or on the top of white wainscoting.
One consideration when painting a room with a dark color like this is to make sure that you have enough natural and artificial light to support this shade.
Creamy
Creamy is a soft, neutral Sherwin Williams paint color.
It has a fair amount of yellow in it, which gives it a creamy sort of look. But, it doesn’t have nearly as much yellow as Cottage Cream.
This makes it a safer choice for a cream colored paint.
Creamy is light and airy, and looks like a neutral paint color on your walls, instead of like a color.
Click here for all the details on Sherwin Williams Creamy.
Romance
No beach house is complete without a pop of pink.
Pink can go with blue green accent colors, yellow accent colors, navy accent colors, and more.
Sherwin Williams Romance is a pink paint color that has a bit of a coral hue to it.
It is bright and fun, without being too bubblegum pink.
Romance can be sophisticated or whimsical on your walls, and is a great shade for a bedroom or bathroom.
Click here for more details on Sherwin Williams Romance.
Aesthetic White
If you like a neutral paint color, but want something that has more gray in it, look no further than Aesthetic White.
Aesthetic White is a very light greige paint color.
It is also a light and airy color that serves as a neutral backdrop to whatever you put with it.
Aesthetic White can go with beach-inspired accent colors like blue greens, yellows, navys and more, so it is a perfect wall color for a coastal-inspired home.
Click here for more information about Aesthetic White.
But Sherwin Williams’ most popular calm coastal paint color…
…is Sea Salt.
Sea Salt is a soft blue green paint color that has a lot of gray in it.
While Sea Salt is a blue green paint color, it is frequently referred to as a neutral.
It has some color in it, but doesn’t look bright.
The gray in it calms it down, making it a bit understated.
For a long time, it was the number one color on the coast, in the plains and anywhere in the nation for years.
I use it in my whole house color scheme, perfect for any home.
Learn everything you need to know about Sea Salt here.
This beach house color scheme will make your home feel like it is steps from the ocean, even if it isn’t.
All of the colors are calming, relaxing, and beautiful shades that Sherwin Williams heralds as their most popular coastal colors.
Now, if you’re looking for paint colors for the new design trend Coastal Grandmother, be sure to check to this ultimate guide to Coastal Grandmother!
Let me know what your favorite coastal paint colors from Sherwin Williams are!
Oh, and finally, complete the look by picking up some great beach decor finds!
Top Beach House Paint Colors from Sherwin Williams
Leslie
Wednesday 22nd of March 2023
Hi Lauren - love your thoughts on this... We are shingling an old dutch colonial that has a dark red/wine colored roof. It's white now but would love some ideas on something else. It's a cool older beach home from the late 1800's so white does look nice, just not that into white or gray - they are way too overdone here. Thinking a light warmer color like an antique white or something that has a bit of beige in it, since the trim will be white and we really dont want to do a white on white wash out. Would like a bit of contrast but not be too dark either. Could you list some specific paint colors to check out?
thanks!!!!
Michelle
Tuesday 5th of July 2022
Hello Lauren- We are planning on repainting the exterior of our beach home from Koi to white. We are trying to grasp the LRV component, as the home is in direct exposure to the sun. We want it to appear white and not be blinding. We are unsure if aesthetic white will have that affect. Can you give some suggestions as well as complimentary white trim colour too? Thanks for the help.
Lauren
Friday 15th of July 2022
Hi Michelle! Outside, a white paint color is going to appear much brighter and lighter. Any paint color tends to do this because of the amount of light there is outside. So, if you want a color that will appear white but not be blinding, Aesthetic White might be a good one to try. It has enough colorant in it that it shouldn't be too stark. But, the best thing you can do is paint large poster boards to see white shade looks good. The colors around your house and the various light (morning, afternoon, evening) can change the way the color looks, so this is a decision that is best approached slowly to make sure you get the right color. Colors along the lines (LRV) of Aesthetic White that you should consider are Alabaster, White Heron, and Oxford White. For your trim, I would go with a shade like Pure White or Chantilly Lace, because these white trims shades will go with anything. They are light and bright. Pure White has a but of gray in it, so if you want the trim to look a bit softer, this will be the better choice. Good luck!
Jenny
Thursday 3rd of March 2022
Hi Lauren, a friend of mine forwarded this link to me. I love it, especially your analysis and all! We are building a home by the ocean with a red colored roof (Meta-roof, Hawaii Red), would love to get your suggestions as to what colors we should go with exterior as well as interior walls. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Lauren
Monday 7th of March 2022
Hi Jenny! Thank you! I'm not sure what colors you typically like. With a red roof, I think of more blues, whites, blacks, and grays on the exterior. Without more info about what sort of look you're going for, I can't really recommend colors though. So sorry!! Feel free to hop on the Facebook page and we can have more of a discussion :)
Jennifer
Friday 18th of February 2022
Hi Lauren, I would love to have your help picking out two complimentary colors that remind you of sea glass for use in my large bedroom that has 3 large windows and gets sun in the afternoon. I don't like colors that are too bright, dark or light, haha! I would love a muted aqua and a complimentary light sea glass green... I wonder which color should be the primary one to use on the walls?The other of the 2 colors would be used to paint my large prominent wooden slat closet doors. I don't know which should be the primary color and lastly should the wooden baseboards then be a white? I would truly appreciate any pair color combo suggestions for my sea glass color inspired bedroom! Thanks ever so much! Jenn in NH
Lauren
Monday 7th of March 2022
Hi Jennifer! I love Healing Aloe with Beach Glass, and Palladian Blue with Catalina Blue. I always think of sea glass green as very similar to a muted aqua though, so I'm not sure this is what you are thinking! If you do find a pairing you like, I would probably do the lighter color on the walls and darker on the closet. For the baseboards, I like Pure White. Good luck!
Kristine
Thursday 13th of January 2022
Hi Lauren, I love this article and your analysis and suggestions. I am really considering agreeable gray for my entry, hallways and kitchen that will have White Dove painted cabinets. I am trying to land on a sunken living room color that has a fireplace/installed bookcase off the kitchen - would like to have an accent color on the fireplace/bookcase wall and color on the main walls of the room. Any suggestions. I also need advice on the living room off of the entrance, do I keep with agreeable gray? I am going to do Sea Salt and Healing Aloe for the guest and master bath.
On another topic, I was thinking of having the bookcase/fireplace a color that the same color could be used for the kitchen island --- If kitchen is agreeable gray with white dove cabinets, what color could work with the island that could be an accent on the fireplace wall and then what color could I have in the sunken room.
Thanks!
Lauren
Wednesday 26th of January 2022
Hi Kristine! Thank you! Take a look at my article on Agreeable Gray for ideas on accent colors. Mega Greige comes to mind, but there are lots of colors on there. Hale Navy or Naval also come to mind. For the living room, it is whatever you like :) Going with Agreeable Gray throughout will make the space feel more cohesive and perhaps bigger (like its all one room instead of defining the rooms by different colors. There are color schemes examples on the post that can help you figure out the whole scheme for you home!