A showdown of off-white paint colors

Are you dreaming of a bright and airy home but stuck in a '90s time warp? We feel you. Our house was built in 1996 and was drowning in dark blues, yellow beiges, and light blue greens, with competing 90s orange wood … everywhere.

So what better way to brighten a home than with an off-white paint color? Sounds simple, right? But don't let off-whites fool you. We quickly discovered a hidden universe of subtle hues and tricky undertones. In choosing an off-white, we wanted to find a color that worked for most of our home.

After looking through all the possible off-whites, we finally narrowed it down to 3 options to test:

• Pearly White SW 7009
• Origami White SW 7636
• Calm BM OC-22 (our winner 🏆)

These swatches nearly look the same; however, you can tell their differences once you test them on a wall. Some have more green, blue, pink, and lavender undertones. I've given a quick overview and my thoughts on each based on how they showed their characteristics in our home.

The following reviews are in order from right to left, as seen in the above photo of sampled paint colors.

‍Pearly White SW 7009

Sherwin-Williams Pearly White is a popular paint color said to be warm and inviting with a light and airy feel that pairs well with other colors, including blues, greens, grays, and yellows.

Color:

• Base: This color is described as a "graige" or "warm white" with subtle green undertones. By preference, I'm not a huge fan of green undertones, which we noticed in our test swatch. Because of the green undertone, we steered away from this color.
• Appearance: However, the green undertones in Pearly White give it a warmer appearance. Despite the warm undertones, Pearly White is still a light and airy color. The green undertones in Pearly White can be more noticeable in north-facing rooms, which tend to have less natural light.

Origami White SW 7636

Origami White has some mixed reviews; however, I was very attracted to the paint color swatch, so I wanted to try it. It's said to have a chameleon-like nature and changes based on its surroundings. With the small swatch we painted, we could not see if that was true. Sometimes, you can only notice these chameleon-like traits once you've painted a larger swatch (or a whole room, for that matter) or placed different furniture, fabrics, trim colors, etc, next to the paint color.

Color:

• Base: It is said to be primarily white with subtle violet undertones. However, we noticed yellow undertones. We decided not to go with Origami White for that reason.
• Appearance: Origami White can read warm and cool depending on light and its surroundings, which makes this paint color tricky. If you're looking for a crisp white, it's not your color. It can appear dull or dingy in rooms with little natural light or cool tones of furniture.

Calm OC-22

Our winner of the three paint samples.

Benjamin Moore Calm is a popular color recognized for its calming, soft, and versatile nature. It's often described as a "warm white" or "soft cool graige," depending on the lighting and surrounding colors. Confusing right? This color is also a chameleon in different lighting, which we realized after painting our entire dining room.

Color:

• Base: Calm is a pale "graige" with the barest hint of lavender undertone. However, the lavender can also look slightly pink in specific lighting. At night, with our dining room light on (which has soft, warm light bulbs), the lavender/pink undertones show more than in natural daylight. Christian says he doesn't notice, but I do.
• Appearance: It's hard to say if this color is warm or cool. If you have a low ceiling and don't have a lot of natural lighting, Calm will lean more on the cool side. This color will lean more warm  in south-facing rooms with lots of natural lighting. It is truly a chameleon. That's why this paint color is super important to test with sample swatches before choosing.

We initially picked Calm by Benjamin Moore for our home because it appeared to be a neutral "graige" without yellow, blue, or green undertones. However, we noticed a significant color shift after painting an entire room and making changes, like painting our trim white, which was initially an orangy brown. Calm looked warmer next to the natural wood trim. The newly painted white trim brought out Calm's pinkish undertone.

My feelings about this color are also chameleon-like. I do love the off-white gray/beige color of Calm in the natural light. But second guess our choice as the color shifts in the evening when we flip on our dining chandelier. Adding decor and accent colors has helped to fade the lavender/pink undertone, but overall, it's unpredictable and challenging to decorate against. While it is a calming color and true to its name in some aspects, the uncertainty makes it hard to recommend.

To learn more about identifying undertones, read my article, Undertones 101: Decoding the Hidden Language of Paint Colors.