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Greek Villa vs Alabaster (Sherwin Williams Favorite White Paints!)

    Is there anything more nuanced than white paint? We’ve all seen the joke where the husband repaints with a new color his wife picked out, only for it to look the exact same (to him)!

    For the picky, the perfect white definitely makes all the difference! Here we will take a look at two super popular soft whites by Sherwin Williams: Greek Villa and Alabaster.

    Greek Villa swatch over a photo of Greek Villa in a living room, and a swatch of alabaster over a living room
    Photo Credit: @houseof.shaw @webbstead

    We will see each of them in real homes, and talk about the technical differences. Let’s go!

    Technical Differences Between Greek Villa and Alabaster

    The major difference between Greek Villa and Alabaster, is that Greek Villa tends to have a slightly stronger beige undertone, where Alabaster may look slightly more gray or a touch more yellow in comparison.

    Both are creamy whites in the same general color family, and both read pretty neutral. Greek Villa is a hair lighter, and Alabaster is a little bit less saturated (more gray).

    Here you can see both on the color wheel:

    Swatches of Greek Villa and Alabaster plotted on a color wheel

    You can see that they are very very similar in the grand scheme of things.

    Here they are painted next to each other in real life:

    Sherwin Williams Alabaster and Greek Villa painted on a brick wall together for comparison.

    As you can see, this photo by @figandelmhome was taken outdoors in bright natural light. Greek Villa does have a more beige undertone, where Alabaster is reading more white.

    Despite not always looking it, Greek Villa does have a higher LRV than Alabaster – 84 vs 82.

    Greek Villa vs Alabaster both plotted on an LRV chart at 84 and 82 respectively.

    The LRV of a color indicates on a scale of 0 – 100 how much light a color reflects (or doesn’t reflect). True black has an LRV of 0 and pure white has an LRV of 100.

    In the paint world, we are working in a range of about 3 – 93 because no paint color is purely black or completely white.

    How Greek Villa and Alabaster Compare Inside Real Homes

    Now that we know how to spot the difference, let’s practice!

    Greek Villa vs Alabaster in the Bathroom

    Greek Villa on a bathroom wall above a bathroom painted in Alabaster.

    This first bathroom is Greek Villa, with Sherwin Williams Jasper on the lower part of the wall:

    Sherwin Williams Greek Villa on bathroom walls above SW Jasper wainscoting, with a watercolor print hung on the wall.
    Photo Credit: @livingthatlakelife

    This bathroom is Alabaster:

    All Alabaster bathroom with white subway towel tub/shower and a black framed mirror above the white sink
    Photo Credit: @in_vest_homes

    In these examples you get a good look at Greek Villa’s undertone, but Alabaster is looking pretty plain white. This is mostly due to the fact that it is the trim white as well.

    Here is another bathroom in Alabaster, but where the trim is painted in the crisp plain white of Extra White:

    SW Alabaster Walls with Extra White trim in a bathroom
    Photo Credit: @slpaintingsf

    In that photo you can really see the creamy undertone. The difference is almost unbelievable!

    Just to be fair, here is a similar idea where Greek Villa looks creamy on the walls when paired with a cool white trim:

    Greek Villa on bathroom walls
    Photo Credit: @e.sage.therapy

    The contrast here is slightly less, because Greek Villa is lighter than Alabaster. Comparing these last two photos, you can see that Greek Villa leans more beige and Alabaster is a touch more yellow.

    I would not say that Alabaster has an especially yellow undertone, but more so than Greek Villa, which leans more orange-beige

    Comparing Alabaster and Greek Villa on Cabinets

    Alabaster on cabinets above a photo of Greek Villa on cabinets.

    Next lets see both on kitchen cabinets! I have truly seen Alabaster on hundreds of cabinets at this point, but I have just one Greek Villa kitchen to compare it to. In the graphic above, I did adjust the lighting slightly to try and mimic similar conditions.

    Here is Alabaster looking its most typical on kitchen cabinets:

    Alabaster on kitchen cabinets with a wood hood fan.
    Photo Credit: @humblehilltn

    Here is Greek Villa:

    Greek Villa on kitchen cabinets below a tricorn black wall above a bank of windows.
    Photo Credit: @houseof.shaw

    Again you can see that both look very creamy, but Greek Villa is slightly more beige.

    Greek Villa vs Alabaster in the Living Room

    Greek Villa vs Alabaster both in beautiful vaulted living rooms with lots of windows.

    Lucky for us, I can show you Greek Villa and Alabaster in very similar living rooms! In both of these homes it is the same white for walls, trim, and ceilings, so this is their pure and unadulterated form!

    Here is all-Greek-Villa-everything:

    Greek Villa in a light and airy living room with lots of windows
    Photo Credit: @verygoodpaintingllc

    …and the same for Alabaster:

    SW Alabaster in a new living room with no furniture yet, vaulted ceilings, wood beams, and a wall full of windows.
    Photo Credit: @webbstead

    Both of these spaces look very neutral!

    Is Alabaster or Greek Villa Better

    Where Alabaster and Greek Villa look the most similar, is outside!

    This first photo is a compilation of two similar houses in similar lighting:

    Greek Villa and Alabaster compiled into one exterior photo for comparison
    Photo credits – Top: @zebuhill Bottom: @in_vest_homes

    The top half of the house is Greek Villa, and the lower half is Alabaster. Here they look almost the same.

    Here is another comparison on very similar porches:

    Two outside porches. One painted in Greek Villa and one in Alabaster.
    Photo credits – Top: @zebuhill Bottom: @houseintheboro

    In both of the examples so far, both colors look neutral and creamy white.

    Here are examples that show more undertones:

    Greek Villa looking warm and creamy.
    Greek Villa – Photo Credit: @zebuhill

    On this overcast day, Greek Villa looks much more creamy and beige.

    Here Alabaster looks slightly more yellow, but to be honest, pretty similar:

    Alabaster on siding and garage doors of a modern farmhouse
    Alabaster – Photo Credit: @humblehilltn

    All of this being said, most exteriors see both Alabaster and Greek Villa looking pretty white:

    An epic drone shot of Alabaster siding on a white farmhouse at sunrise in front of rolling hills.
    Alabaster – Photo Credit: @humblehilltn
    Tricorn black trim and fascia on a greek villa white brick house
    Greek Villa – Photo credit: @thehouse_on2060

    That’s all for this one! I hope it helps you decide which color is the perfect white for you, and if not: Here’s more!

    A snowy mountain scene above a photo of white marble arches. Graphic reads Snowbound vs Alabaster
    Alabaster and Natural choice on a wooden background with flour and natural colored yarn.
    Snowbound swatched over a snowbound living room vs pure white swatched over a living room