The Best Blue Gray Paint Colors

Blue has always been one of my very favorite colors to use in my home. In the last few years I’ve trended towards more greens but if I look back at aaaaall of our houses and the spaces I’ve done, blue is by far the most used color! I’ve always leaned towards more saturated or dark blues, but a color I’m really really loving lately is a more subtle blue gray paint color.

I really wanted to do a dusty blue gray on the walls of our powder room when I painted it in December, but due to some negotiating with Corey we ended up with a darker blue. And we both agreed it was all wrong for the space almost immediately! So…I repainted in a beautiful light blueish gray and…well…it’s perfect.

For our powder room, I went with Motor City by Clare. They sent me the paint and some painting tools so I could transform the room, and I’m so grateful! They’re truly one of the best paint brands out there, and I’m finding myself using them more and more lately.

Let’s talk about this beautiful trending color a bit more and how you can use it in your home, shall we?

Blue Gray or Gray Blue…What’s the Difference?

Let’s start here – sometime’s you’ll see “blue gray” and sometimes you’ll see “gray blue”. Are they the same? What’s the difference?

Generally speaking, you should list the dominant color first. So, in the case of our powder room, it’s a gray blue paint color. Meaning, there’s more gray than there is blue.

Warm Grey vs. Cool Grey

One thing to consider when choosing a paint color is if you want it to lean more warm or more cool!

Generally speaking, warm colors have undertones that are yellow, orange, and red. Cool colors have undertones that are green, blue, and purple. That doesn’t necessarily mean all blue gray colors are cool, though! If the gray mixed in with the blue has enough yellow in it, it’ll warm the color right up.

The easiest way to tell a difference is to compare them. If you hold two blue-gray colors up next to each other, you should be able to tell which one leans warmer, and which leans cooler.

It’s important to know that light is a major factor, and can affect how the color feels in your space. Everythng from your light bulbs to whether or not you have a lot of natural light is a factor. If you want to know if a color feels warm or cool in your specific space, I recommend sampling it!

Where can you use them?

Blue gray paint colors genuinely can be used anywhere in your home. There are no rules! Here is some inspiration…

• It’s a great accent color! To add blue gray as accents in your home, try it on an island, an accent wall, or the ceiling!
• The laundry room – it’ll make it way more enjoyable to be in there!
• Blue gray is the perfect soothing color for a bathroom.
• Blue gray can be a gorgeous color for cabinets – especially if your countertops are a shade that will really pop against it!

Blue gray is really one of those chameleon colors that changes depending on the room, the time of day, and the lighting. It can be used in any space and will look good with any home decor.

The 20 Best Blue Gray Paint Colors

Here are a few of my favorite blue grays from the various paint brands. There are tons of options out there, but if you ask me, these are the best blue grey paint colors.

Benjamin Moore

Behr

Clare Paint

Some Painting Tips & Tricks

Before you paint, I always recommend sampling your paint colors on the wall! It’s the best way to ensure you don’t end up with a color that doesn’t work in your space. You can have peel and stick paint samples from almost all paint brands from places like Samplize shipped right to your doorstep if you like, but personally I like to pop in the store and grab a few samples myself!

Once you have a sample, you can paint a swatch on these peel and stick papers, on foam boards, or paint some color swatches right on the wall itself!

My Favorite Painting Tools