The Best White Paint Colors for a Long, Dark Hallway
By Kylie
September 15, 2024
What’s the best shade of white for a dark hallway or staircase?
If your hallway or staircase has no windows or natural light, there’s nothing better than white to make it look brighter. Wait, I take that back—there is something better.
Lighting.
I know, I’m like a broken record, but without the right lighting, no white paint color will save your dark hallway or staircase. So, what is the right lighting? It depends on your situation, but if you have a home that wasn’t built in the last ten years and has light fixtures that hold one measly light bulb, you’ve got work to do.
Once your lighting is improved, choosing the perfect white paint color will be a lot easier. I’ve narrowed it down to my favorites so you can focus your efforts and waste less time and money.
1. SHERWIN WILLIAMS ALABASTER 7008
Alabaster is a stunner. One reason for its popularity is that it acts like white (in the absence of brighter whites) but doesn’t come across as stark or flat as some of the brighter and cooler shades.
This is because Alabaster is a soft white, which we know thanks to its LRV of 82. Brighter whites are up in the high 80s and into the 90s, whereas these softer whites offer a white look without as much brightness. You might NEED a brighter white, but I encourage you to include Alabaster in your sampling, as it’s a lovely beast.
As with most whites, I prefer to use the same white on my walls, trim, ceilings, and doors.
Why should you use the same white?
Well, one white exposes the undertones in another. If you LIKE this look, that’s cool with me, but if you want your white to ‘act more like white,’ you’ll want to keep it consistent on all surfaces, only changing the sheens as needed.
In this next hallway, Alabaster goes with Sherwin Williams Extra White on the doors, trims, and ceilings. Notice how Extra White enhances the creaminess of Alabaster…
My FULL Paint Color Review of Alabaster / See Extra White HERE
Paint sampling just got a whole lot easier (and more affordable, too!)
Get your Peel & Stick sample of Alabaster HERE!
2. BENJAMIN MOORE WHITE DOVE OC-17
White Dove is one of my all-time favorite shades of white. Its soft warmth offers versatility without the starkness of some of the brighter, cooler white paint colors.
This next hallway has no windows except for the one on the exterior door (which is under a covered patio, so the light is limited). Even with the door open, see how White Dove looks without interior lighting – a bit flat. Sure, it’s better than a non-white, but lighting will make a world of difference.
The Best Paint Color for the INSIDE of Your Front Door
Here’s another hallway with White Dove, although the situation is an exception due to the SHEEN of the walls…
I friggin’ love the moldings in this long, narrow hallway and am fan-girl obsessed with White Dove. However, if this were my home, I might do a satin finish rather than a glossy one. Yes, gloss reflects more light and makes the hallway look brighter, but it’s a bit much for this color cowgirl and takes away from the moldings and paint color.
Thank you to my Online Color Consulting clients and readers (and subscribers) for sending in your photos – I couldn’t do this blog without you!
As for the following colors, because I use 99% of my own images (I don’t ‘borrow’ from other Creators), I don’t always have the exact image I need.
3. BENJAMIN MOORE CHANTILLY LACE OC-65
I love Chantilly Lace. While it has a bad rap for not covering very well (many whites struggle with this – being ‘white’), it’s an awesome color for a dark hallway or staircase.
Whereas the previous shades of white are soft whites, Chantilly Lace is a brighter white—not one of the WHITEST shades, but as far as Benjamin Moore goes, it’s the brightest. I love it because while it’s white, it has a willy wink of softness. This softness stops it from looking icy cold.
My FULL Paint Color Review of Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace
4. BENJAMIN MOORE SIMPLY WHITE OC-117
While Simply White isn’t always my favorite for kitchen cabinets, it can be a cheerful, bright option for a dark hallway. This is because Simply White is a brighter shade of white with an LRV of 89.53. This makes it similar in depth to Chantilly Lace; however, it has a bit more warmth (yellow).
As mentioned, I don’t always have the exact image I need (I rely mostly on my Online Color Consulting clients sending in their ‘after’ photos), but here’s Simply White on a French door leading to an office and on the trim and stair railings…
My FULL Paint Color Review of Benjamin Moore Simply White
It’s important to sample and compare a range of colors, as this is how you see undertones, depth, and temperature changes. I recommend checking out my FAVORITE WHITE PAINT COLOR COLLECTION…
READ MORE
Ideas to Update a Dark, Boring Hallway
The Best NON-WHITE Paint Colors for a Dark Hallway
The Best Creamy White & Off-White Paint Colors
The Best LIGHT Paint Colors for a DARK ROOM
The 10 Best Off-White Paint Colors
The Ultimate Guide to Paint Colors & Undertones
White Trim, Walls, & Cabinets – Do They Need to Match?
LET ME PICK YOUR PAINT COLORS FOR YOU!
Share this!
Meet Kylie
Do you need help, but aren’t quite sure what ‘help’ looks like? Are you drowning in paint samples and decision fatigue?
Does every colour you like at the paint store look terrible in your lighting or pick up a funky undertone? I’d love to help.
Hi, I’m Kylie
For over 24 years I’ve helped 12,000+ homeowners and renters make more confident decisions on paint colours and affordable home updates using real home examples and practical, experience-based advice. My goal is simple: help you love the home you have.
Do-it-yourself, the smart way
Grab one of Kylie’s guides
Affordable, downloadable shortcuts to the colors and combos I’d pick for you. Yours to keep, forever.
Homeowner’s Guide: White Kitchen Cabinets
This isn’t another ’10 Best Cabinet Colors’ list, because there is no SINGLE best white for every home and every kitchen.
The best white cabinet color is the one that goes with your home, your finishes, your lighting, and your style.
Stop second-guessing every paint chip and choose your cabinet color with less guessing, fewer samples, and a whole lot more color confidence.
$34.95Accent Colors
This isn’t about plastering your home in the ‘Color of the Year’ or following the latest trends (unless you really want to).
It’s about finding accent colors that work with YOUR home, YOUR style, and YOUR comfort level.
Because the best accent color isn’t one you love on a paint chip, it’s one that makes everything around it look better.
$34.95
Homeowner’s Guide: Exterior Paint Colors
This isn’t a list of the ‘best exterior paint colors’, as the best color is the one that suits your home. Instead, you’ll learn how to look at YOUR roof, YOUR windows, YOUR brick (or stone) and YOUR home as a whole so you can understand what colors make sense, and confidently throw the others in the burn pile.
Whether you’re repainting an outdated exterior, working around finishes you can’t change, or creating a color palette from scratch, the goal is the same: less guessing, fewer samples, and a lot more confidence before gallons of paint go on your home.
$44.95Exterior Trim Paint Colors
This isn’t a list of ‘the best trim colors’, although you’ll get a ton of links to great shades, you’ll learn how to look at your home and understand whether it needs contrast, repetition, connection, or a little visual peacekeeping to pull it all together.
Because trim might seem like a small detail…
…but spread it around all four sides of your home on multiple surfaces and it suddenly has a pretty big job.
$24.95
Comments
-
Hi Kylie! I am obsessed with your website and refer to it ALL the time. Thank you for all of your great advice! My question is: I chose SW Origami White for my walls, and I am looking for a darker color to paint 2 sets of double french doors on each side of the living room (one set is off the entry, and the other leads to the family room. my color scheme is neutrals (gray, taupe, off white), and some blue. I like Anew Gray, Wordly Gray, Agreeable Gray, but I am not sure if the undertones work with Origami White. Can you suggest some colors? Or do you have a video? (I could not find one). I am also not sure how dark to go. I think I will be getting black hardware for the doors. thank you so much!!
-
Would Alabaster walls look good with Chantilly Lace trim?
-
They can work together, as long as you’re okay with Alabaster looking more yellow-cream in comparison 🙂
-
-
I have a dark east facing foyer with covered porch, its a 2 story stairwell, and northern side room light filtering in , I have read your posts for lighting, and dark hallways, I have winds breath in adjoining rooms, would ballet white look dingy? , i have extra bright white trim which is staying. my flooring is medium chestnut brown. I was thinking about a color to go with the winds breath, pale oak is quite dark and purple looking so that is out. I didnt want a white paint color, ballet white was a thought just not sure , the stairs are carpeted with a light grey taupey color. the walls a currently SW light french gray, not my favorite. you didnt mention ballet white in either blog post, Thank you for amy more insight on ballet white as an idea
Leave a Reply