On the hunt for a great greige paint color? After surveying thousands of readers, I’m sharing the top ten reader favorites to help you make the perfect choice for your own home!
When I was on a mission to lighten up the look and feel of our living room, I went on the hunt for the perfect greige paint color to freshen up our space. Luckily for me, I have this huge group of home decor lovers (you guys!) who were willing to share your go-to greige paint colors!
I asked for your favorites on Instagram and Instagram Stories and compiled the thousands of responses to come up with the ten best greige paint colors. These are the go-to’s that so many of you have used, love, and would recommend to others. (post includes commissionable links; for more information, see my full disclosure statement {here})
Sampling Greige Paint Colors
Before delving into these ten favorite greige paint colors, I wanted to give a few words of caution – the same paint color in your home won’t necessarily look exactly like it does in someone else’s home. I absolutely recommend getting peel and stick paint samples of your final contenders so you can see how each one looks in the room that you’ll be painting. See my post on how to choose paint colors for more details & tips.
Usually I narrow it down to 3-4 favorite paint colors to sample, but for this post I put nine of the ten favorites up (all but the lightest greige) so I could share them with you! It’s pretty crazy how ten colors that are all greiges are actually so very different from each other (FYI I realize this image looks a little shadowy but I kept it this way because I think it represents the true colors much better than if I brightened it):
I’ll go through each color one by one but so you can reference back to my samples above, here are the details on which color is which:
Top Middle: Worldly Gray
Left Column (from top to bottom): Anew Gray, Alpaca, Repose Gray, Agreeable Gray
Right Column (from top to bottom): Wheat Bread, Silver Drop, Revere Pewter, Balboa Mist
I’m sharing them in order from darkest to lightest, using each paint color’s LRV (Light Reflectance Value) as my guide. The lower the LRV, the darker the paint color will look and feel once up on the wall. My current living room paint color, a tweaked version of Sherwin Williams Keystone Gray, has an LRV of 29 so even the darkest of these ten will really lighten things up!
1. Sherwin Williams Anew Gray (7030) LRV:47
I’m a huge fan of Anew Gray which is a very warm, midtone greige that has the most depth of the greiges on this list. If you’re looking for a greige that’s rich in color without being too dark, this might be the one for you. And in my finicky space where weird undertones tend to come out with a lot of greiges, the Anew Gray sample that I put on the wall threw no surprises.
A gorgeous example of Anew Gray is {this beautiful farmhouse chic bathroom} by Mandy of Country Dog Homes:
You can see more of Mandy’s Nashville fixer upper by following her on Instagram at @country_dog_homes {here}.
Spoiler Alert! After sampling all of the greige paint colors in this post, I went with Anew Gray for my space:
Sources: Loveseat & ottoman (custom order from Lee Industries) | Linen swivel chairs | Wood floor lamp | Framed leaf art print | Woven ottoman tray | White vase | Faux eucalyptus | Bone beads | Black & white striped pillows | Round mirror over fireplace | Vases on mantel – no longer available | Faux flowers in mantel vases
See more pics and get tons of details in my full post on Sherwin Williams Anew Gray.
2. Behr Wheat Bread (720C-3) LRV: 55
Behr Wheat Bread was one of the new-to-me greige paint colors that many of you have used and rave about! It doesn’t surprise me that it has the same LRV as Revere Pewter because these two colors are almost identical in color intensity but Behr Wheat Bread definitely leans a lot more toward the beige side than Revere Pewter. I love it in this beautiful shabby chic home office makeover by Sarah Melito:
You can check out the rest of Sarah Melito’s home and follow her on Instagram {here}
Tip: Save a ton of money by learning how to do your own painting! See my post on how to paint a room for step by step painting tips.
3. Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter (HC-172) LRV: 55.05
Revere Pewter was voted the #1 best greige paint color among readers and is a favorite of mine too. There’s no one paint color that’s a “no fail” color but Revere Pewter is as close as it gets, looking great in almost any space. A few years back when my sister called me in a panic that her painter was there and she didn’t like how things were looking with the paint color she chose for her living room, Revere Pewter is the color I recommended she try since she had to chose something else on the spot. Sure enough, it worked beautifully.
A real-life example of Revere Pewter can be seen in Fridley Homes’ beautifully light and airy foyer:
What a pretty space to walk into! You can see more of this home and follow Fridley Homes on Instagram {here}.
4. Sherwin Williams Alpaca (7022) LRV: 57
Alpaca goes a little more gray than beige and in some spaces can throw purple undertones (which it actually does when sampled in my living room). But it’s worked beautifully for several of my readers and looks like the perfect soothing neutral in Emily from Table and Hearth’s fabulous gender neutral nursery:
Emily used it in conjunction with Sherwin Williams Peppercorn in this space and I just love the result – see for yourself {here}.
5. Sherwin Williams Worldly Gray (7043) LRV: 57
Worldly Gray is a not too warm, not too cold, not too dark, not too light greige paint color that’s high on my list of favorites! I love it so much in this fabulous farmhouse bathroom from Shannon of Fox Hollow Cottage:
See more details of Shannon’s beautiful bathroom makeover {here}.
6. Sherwin Williams Repose Gray (7015) LRV: 58
Repose Gray is a color I’ve seen in person and love and it’s also one of your favorites. It can at times have some pinkish undertones depending upon the type of light it’s getting. I love this image of Repose Gray in Marnie Hansen’s fabulous foyer because it shows how the color can change quite a bit much depending upon how much light is hitting it:
You can follow Marnie Hansen on Instagram and see more images of her beautiful home {here}.
7. Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray (7029) LRV: 60
Agreeable Gray is a color that has come up time and time again as being well-loved and working in a variety of spaces. It’s fairly light but still has enough depth to make it interesting and is a go-to color for several of my decorating friends. It’s just like the name of it says… agreeable in almost all spaces. Linda of The Home I Create used Agreeable Gray in her office guest bedroom and it looks like the perfect choice:
You can check all the details of Linda’s beautiful office guest bedroom reveal {here}.
8. Benjamin Moore Balboa Mist (OC-27) LRV: 65.53
Of the nine paint samples I put up on the wall in our living room, Balboa Mist had the second most purpley undertones of the greige paint colors (the most was Alpaca) but again, my space tends to bring out those undertones more than most. It was listed as a favorite of yours time and time again so obviously in most spaces, it works beautifully. I absolutely love it in Annie of DIY Decor Mom’s living room:
You can hop over to DIY Decor Mom {here} to see more pics of Balboa Mist in this beautiful space!
9. Behr Silver Drop (790C-2) LRV: 69.7
Behr’s Silver Drop is a light gray with just the smallest touch of beige to warm it up. It looks like a true gray in some spaces and more of a greige in others. It’s definitely a stunner in this gorgeous living room by Studio McGee:
10. Benjamin Moore Classic Gray (1548) LRV: 73.67
Classic Gray is the lightest of the bunch and is a beautiful, simple light gray without being cold – its name is actually an excellent description of it! This is the one greige paint color on the list that I didn’t sample on my living room wall, only because I knew that it was going to be too light for what I was looking for. But it was definitely a beautiful choice for the wall color in this great room by Studio McGee:
Runners Up
There were several runners up worth mentioning since they all got quite a few votes including Sherwin Williams Amazing Gray (7044), Sherwin Williams Knitting Needles (7672), Sherwin Williams Perfect Greige (6073), Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray (HC-173) (I’ve used this color with mixed success – one room I painted with it looked amazing and the other had purple undertones that I didn’t care for), Benjamin Moore Gray Owl (OC-52), and Benjamin Moore Pale Oak (OC-20).
So which greige do I go with for our living room? I threw my four final contenders up on the wall above my fireplace (from left to right: Worldly Gray, Anew Gray, Revere Pewter, Agreeable Gray) to help me decide:
I ended up going with Sherwin Williams Anew Gray (second from left) and love it! It’s much lighter than my old color but still with lots of depth – so pretty! Thank you all for all of your great paint color input!
Want some other paint color inspiration? Check out my posts on:
The best white paint colors
Enjoy the rest of your weekend,
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barbara eittreim says
I want the color your living room had before you painted Anew. But just a tad brighter. Your thoughts?
Jo says
What is your paint color before painting with Anew Gray?
Pat says
Your house is beautiful. I love Anew Gray and that is what I have in my family room. We just took a wall down between the FR and the kitchen and I’m not sure it will go with my maple cabinets. I’m thinking of repainting with worldly gray.
Kris Jarrett says
Thank you! It’s always a challenge when two spaces are open to each other to find the right color that works with everything!
Denise says
With chocolate brown furniture, can you suggest a few grays which will make med size living room look larger yet cozy?
Kris Jarrett says
I don’t have a specific color to recommend (the same paint color can look quite different from house to house) but with chocolate brown furniture I would definitely go with something on the lighter end!
rob says
crushed ice definitely should have been in the pile of consideration
Susan says
I love silver drop. I am looking forward to trying a sample of silver drop in my bathroom. I have blue tiles on walls and beige floor tiles.
Thank you.
Caroline says
About to have entire house painted agreeable gray, and I’m so nervous now, I had finally made up my mind and seeing it on your wall and the example photo it looks so light. I have a large family room that opens to the second floor and a two story stone fireplace. I want everything to work together. You can see up to the second floor so if I get it wrong it will be a gargantuan mistake. It looks darker when I painted a few sample spots around my house. Dining room looks really light like your photo. Why is this so hard??
Caroline says
To finish above comment, I like anew gray and revere pewter for your room. They both look great in photo. You are wise to keep them up for a few days and look at during different lighting. I’m doing the same. Still hard though. ?
Kim says
I like Wordly Gray but you did say you didn’t want it too light, but I like that color with the fireplace. Since you want a little darker I really like Anew Gray especially with the fireplace!
Karen says
Hi there,
I loved the look of revere pewter in your posted picture of it, but when I used it in the house I am painting, I was very disappointed as it was heavy and much darker than the picture portrays, even though it is in a room with a large picture window, a patio door and another window nearby.
sharon nash says
Are accent walls dated? To update a room do you paint one color or use a accent wall?
Karen says
I would say accent walks are on their way out. I would stay with a light, airy colour throughout the house.
Shannon Fox says
What a beautiful collection of greige paint colors! So many gorgeous rooms as examples too!
Thanks so much for including our bathroom.
~ Shannon
LH says
What color is your original wall (in the picture where you have the 4 samples painted above the fireplace?
And what is on the fireplace to make that design?
Thank you!
dezyn-diva says
Second from the left was my first choice when I opened your page. Go with your gut. They are all so close, just don’t like the light ones much.
Sarah says
Which would you recommend to go with a wood trim? We have oak and I need a paint color that is light but won’t look white against natural wood.
Anonymous says
Anew gray!
Jane Reed says
I think that Revere Pewter blends better with your fireplace tiles, but you get to choose! My fitness area is painted Agreeable Gray . It’s a very light gray – wouldn’t provide a lot of contrast.