Here are foolproof tips for choosing the perfect house paint colors for the exterior of your home.

Luckily, you could learn how to choose exteriorhouse paint colorsand find the perfect hues for your house.

Maria Killam is a color expert, design blogger, author, decorator, and stylist.

blue house exterior with shakers and turquoise door

Credit: Kim Cornelison

Top Tips for Choosing House Paint Colors

1.

“I love the symmetrical look of a Colonial with shutters,” she says.

Your neighborhood may also offer revelations concerning possible paint colors.

muted blue house with bright red door

Credit: KIM CORNELISON

Do you live in an area of historic homes or a newer suburb with some dominant themes?

Keep this in mind when choosing your house paint colors.

If something seems out of place, there’s a reason for it.

“One of the biggest mistakes I see every day is withvinyl windows,” Killam says.

“The standard colors are generally bright white and beige.

“And coordinate your trim color to go with it.

A house with earthy stone combined with bright white vinyl windows will always look wrong.”

Those should serve as a base on which to build.

One of my clients painted stucco gray with her gold/yellow stone, and she contacted me for a consultation.

In addition, a home’s size influences the way colors look.

Landscape also plays a part.

A morenaturalistic landscapemay inspire recessive colors like sea foam green, pastels, or soft neutrals.

When in doubt, rely on tried and trueguidelines from the color wheel.

Hues in the same familyvarying shades of gray, for examplework well and are called monochromatic.

Those hues next to each other (analogous) work well together, as do opposites, calledcomplementary colors.

Whatever You Choose: Test, Test, Test!

View them at different times of the day, in sun and in shadow.

Frequently Asked Questions

Bold colors are typically the hardest to sell.

It depends on the number of stories and the square footage of your home.

It typically costs $1-$4 dollars per square foot to paint a house.

For a 2,000 square-foot house with only one story, this would come out to about $5,200.

Latex or acrylic exterior-grade paint should be used to paint the outside of a house.

These types of paint are low-maintenance, affordable, and durable.