Sherwin Williams Pure White is a near perfect white paint color. It’s right up there with the truest, most predictable whites of all time.

It’s soft without being too creamy, and it doesn’t have any crazy undertones.
But don’t take my word for it! Here you can see Pure White in real homes, get a feel for its undertones, and compare it to a few other popular white paint colors.
If you are here looking for dupes, I recently moved them to a separate post: Revealing the Benjamin Moore Version of Pure White (Plus Dupes from Other Brands!)
What Color is Pure White (SW 7005)
Pure White reads like a pure white, but it’s actually a little warm and a little gray.
You can see that clearly here, when compared with a really light and bright white like Benjamin Moore Simply White:

So…
Is Pure White Too White?
Pure White is not a stark or wildly bright white. It does have the effect of a true white, so if you are after something overtly creamy, Pure White is not the one.
(You might like Shoji White!)
For most people looking for a straight-to-the-point white paint color, they will not find Pure White to be too white.

Doesn’t it look gorgeous in the home of Ashley and Matt? (@homesweetiepiehome) You can see that it’s not a hospital white at all.
Pure White Color Profile
Let’s take a look at the LRV and undertones of Pure White:
LRV of Sherwin Williams Pure White
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.
The LRV of Pure White is 84. So while it is definitely a white and not off-white, it also isn’t as light as possible.
For the cleanest, lightest white, I really like Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace.

What Are the Undertones of Pure White?
Pure White does not typically have any obvious undertones. Compared to the whitest white, or the white of a sheet of paper, it will look a little creamier and a little grayer, but in real life it is white and only white.

The only time that you will find Pure White to look like anything other than white, is if you place it beside a brighter cooler white. Here is an example with bright blue-white tile:

You may also find that it looks a little warm outside.
Is Pure White Warm or Cool?
While Pure White does not have any clear undertone, it is a warm or neutral white, and not cool at all.
Pure White Color Strip
Pure White does not have a traditional color strip that runs from light to dark. Sherwin Williams has instead grouped Pure White into a collection of neutral whites and off-whites:

If Pure White was to be included on a regular color strip, it would be a series of greiges.
For a darker alternative to Pure White, you might like Sherwin Williams Oyster White.
Pure White Color Palette
A white like Pure White will really go with anything, so I created a palette to show you how it would look with many popular Sherwin Williams colors:

Complementary and Coordinating Colors
Pure White and Urbane Bronze
I have a whole post for Urbane Bronze that you might like to look at if you are still deciding on a dark color.

Pure White gives Urbane Bronze max contrast while also complementing the brown tones with it’s subtle creaminess.
Iron Ore with Pure White
Iron Ore is an old Sherwin Williams favorite! This color can take on many forms, but most often it looks like a deep charcoal gray.

(You know I have a post for Iron Ore too!)
Pure White is a great choice with Iron Ore if you want Iron Ore to look as dark as possible. The crisp contrast will still have a bit of warmth.
Pure White and Agreeable Gray
Agreeable Gray is the OG of versatile use-anywhere grays. It’s actually got a heavy dose of beige, so it stays super neutral.

Pure White looks great with Agreeable Gray, but then again, both colors work with just about anything.
Tricorn Black and Pure White
Tricorn Black is the blackest black that Sherwin Williams offers. It’s an ideal choice to pair with Pure White if you are looking for a true black and white color scheme.

Pure White and Tricorn Black would probably be the most popular Modern Farmhouse color scheme if it weren’t for SW Alabaster.
Tricorn Black, Agreeable Gray, Iron Ore, and Pure White are all so versatile.
Pure White with Peppercorn
Simply put, Peppercorn is very much like a lighter version of Iron Ore. It can be a real chameleon, but it always looks good. Pure White is a great white for a color that has many faces.

SW Pure White Trim Considerations
The house of Jake and Candi (@bridlewoodacres) is the perfect home to illustrate Pure White on both the walls and trim!

I will show you lots more of the beautiful home at Bridlewood Acres when we look through Pure White interiors below.
Pure White is such a true white that you will probably want to use it for your trim – even when it’s on the wall.
You can always choose a different sheen to give you some contrast, but to choose a contrasting white without looking funky will be difficult.
Check out this post if you want to get your white-on-white color scheme right:
Pure White might actually be Sherwin Williams most popular choice for trim! It really is a foolproof color for trim and doors, or even for ceilings and cabinets!

You can use Pure White with any wall color (except for maybe with certain other whites), and you will see it in many examples across my site.

Pure White in Your Whole Home
Now for the fun part: Seeing Pure White in all different homes, rooms, and lighting!
I don’t often have too many photos to share, but for Pure White I did! I tried to whittle it down a little, and serve you the best ones.
Sherwin Williams Pure White Living Room Walls and Trim
For lots of Pure White inspiration, check out the IG of Texas House Flipper Marissa, of @in_vest_homes.
Pure White is a favorite use-anywhere color of hers, and she has used it in a few of her flips.

The shiplap back wall in this stylish living room, is Sherwin Williams Cyberspace.

Marissa used Pure White on the walls, trim, and ceiling, in this gorgeous space.
In another flip, the brick fireplace got the Pure White treatment, as well as the walls.

We will see more from Marissa in just a moment, but for the sake of staying organized, I’m taking you room by room!
This living room is back in Bridlewood Acres:

Jake and Candi recently took the plunge and painted the stone fireplace wall in Sherwin Williams Greenblack.
Doesn’t it look amazing? The sharp angle of the black stone against the vaulted Pure White ceiling is serving allll of the drama.
Had anyone asked whether it was a good idea, I probably would have said “Erm…no.” …And I would have been dead wrong!
Here’s a before:

Finally, here is the living room at the Bertrand Residence (@bertrand_residence):

I just love the eclectic aesthetic that this home has! The fireplace wall and cabinets are SW Iron Ore.
Laundry Rooms in SW Pure White
I hope you wanted to see Pure White in a laundry room, because I actually have a few!
This first one is also at the Bertrand Residence:

For the luscious dark green on the laundry room cabinets, the homeowners chose Sherwin Williams Jasper.

I’m a big fan of metallics with Pure White. The brass light fixtures are such a nice touch in this space.

Above this cool white tile, you can see Pure White’s undertone a little more.
This stylish little laundry room is in the home of Tara, from @thejoyfilledfarmhouse:

Tara used another Sherwin Williams favorite, Sea Salt, on her laundry room cabinets.

The laundry room in Tara’s place is also a mud room, so this is a 2-for-1 Pure White special!

Isn’t that brick floor fabulous?
It’s the perfect third color to go with Pure White and Sea Salt.
Pure White for Dining Room Walls
Hopping back to the Bertrands’ real quick, we can take a look at their Pure White and Jasper dining room:

Here is another shot of the open plan once it had furniture:

Now revisiting one of Marissa’s flips, we can see her version of a Pure White open plan kitchen and dining room:

This is the same home with the Cyberspace shiplap in the living room, so Pure White is on the walls, trim, ceilings, and even on the upper cabinets.

Next we have beautiful Pure White woodwork in a dining room by Wood Visions (@wood_visions) :

Tasteful and timeless.
Pure White in the Bedroom for Walls and Trim
Back in Marissa’s flip, she carried the Pure White theme into the bedroom, and also brought in the charcoal shiplap element from the living room.

I love the combination of Pure White with Cyberspace and natural wood tones.

Bathrooms in Pure White
Still in Marissa’s flip house, let’s take a look at the bathroom!

If you still doubted how white Pure White is, you can see that it isn’t noticeably warmer than the white in the marble.

You can see how Marissa’s IG is one of my very favorites!
Sherwin Williams Pure White in a Bright Basement
I don’t often get good examples of colors in a basement, but today we’re lucky!
Tara (@smalltowngatehouse) used Pure White for the walls, ceiling, and trim in her basement.

In the artificial lighting it looks ever so slightly warmer, but still a very true white.
Here is the rec room in the rest of the basement area:

I love the fun cottage feel of Tara’s eccentric gallery wall:

Pure White just looks like such a pretty white here!
Pure White on Kitchen Walls and/or Cabinets
The moment you may have been waiting for: Pure White in kitchens!
White is such a confusing color to get right on cabinets. If you didn’t go stock white, are you totally out of luck?
Nay, nay! Pure White is the answer!
(Okay, so it’s one of a few possible answers for a nice true white.)

This first kitchen is by designer Piper Stromatt (@piper_thebuildingblonde).
Piper chose to accent Pure White perimeter cabinets with gold hardware, and add a pop of bold color in the form of Sherwin Williams Naval on the island.
Heading back to Bridlewood Acres, Jake and Candi used Pure White on their kitchen walls, trim, and upper cabinets:

For the lowers they chose the same color as on their fireplace: SW Greenblack.

I love that they went for copper hardware and fixtures in their kitchen. It looks amazing with Pure White!

Here’s a view into the kitchen from afar:

The stone on their waterfall island has to be one of the nicest I’ve ever seen!

Beautiful!
Next let’s take a closer look at the kitchen we peeked in earlier by Marissa:

The upper cabinets in here are Pure White, and the lowers are a custom taupe stain that they came up with.
I can’t remember the exact color of the stain, but I talked about it in my Two Tone Kitchen Cabinets post, so hop over there if you are crazy curious!
One more from this design:

The picket tile in the kitchen is doing the most, and I love it!
Finally we have a two-tone Pure White and green kitchen by Kelli of @walnutandpinedesign:

For the lower cabinets, Kelli chose Sherwin Williams Basil, which is just the funnest green, without being too polarizing.

The walls in the kitchen are also SW Pure White.

That breakfast nook is the perfect place for a cheery morning coffee!
Sherwin Williams Pure White as an Exterior Paint Color
Finally, let’s get to Pure White on exteriors! I have quite a few, so I will try to narrow it down to the best examples.
First up is the home of Bailey from @clarkansaslove. Her two storey farmhouse exterior is purely Pure White:

Out back, Bailey had a roll up garage door installed to create an indoor/outdoor living space:

Here is the pass through before the door was installed:

So fun! Pure White looks amazing on this siding. Like a really rich white.
Back at the Bertrand Residence, Pure White and Iron Ore was their color scheme of choice when it came to the exterior of their new build.

You can see that even in the snow, Pure White looks pure white!
Here is the exterior all finished:

Well Pure White is all well and good on a brand new home, but what about your home with original horizontal siding?
Have no fear, Headwaters Painting (@headwaters_painting_llc) is here! They repainted this older home with SW Pure White:

Pure White looks fresh and clean, but still soft.

How Does Pure White Look on Painted Brick?
Pure White is a great choice for exterior brick too!
It’s perfect for outside because it is still a true white, but it won’t look as washed out as a super bright, or blue-white, could.

You might have seen Angela’s (@ang_forthewin) house around here in other posts, because she loves using the trendy neutrals!
(That was also her home showing off Pure White with Urbane Bronze, and with Tricorn Black.)

Pure White looks ever so subtly soft and warm on this white brick home.

If you’re in the midst of choosing the perfect white for your brick house, definitely check out this post:
Is Pure White Good for Stucco Exteriors?
Finally, if you are looking to repaint stucco, Pure White is a solid choice here too!
This is a freshly done paint job by Prodigious Painting (@prodigious_painting) on a new build:

I will say that Pure White looks ever so slightly gray here, but that is quite out of character, so I would guess it’s from reflections of some kind.

SW Pure White for Exterior Trim
If you are just here to see Pure White on Trim, it’s not a hard color to find there either!

It looks dark in that picture, but the exterior siding is Benjamin Moore Hale Navy.
Here is another Headwaters Painting exterior, this time in Iron Ore and SW Dovetail with Pure White trim:

Finally here is a traditional red brick exterior with Pure White trim, this time by the team at S&L Painting (@slpaintingsf):

The front door looks black, but it is actually SW Naval.
Sherwin Williams Pure White Dupes
Have a preferred brand?
Here are some great dupes for Pure White from the other big paint manufacturers.

You can see these in more detail, and how they compare to Pure White, in my post: Revealing the Benjamin Moore Version of Pure White (Plus Dupes from Other Brands!)
Comparing Pure White to Other White Paint Colors
Pure White is very popular, so naturally there are a lot of comparisons to be made!
This post was going to be waaaay too long if I included them all, so check out my other post: Pure White vs Other White Paint Colors (Extra White, Alabaster, & More!)
Here are the top 5:
Pure White Final Moody Musings
Well this post was long overdue, but it’s here now!
I doubt you can have any questions left about Pure White, but let’s summarize!
- Pure White is a beautiful true white that works great indoors and outdoors.
- Pure White is not the verrry lightest or brightest white. If you want as light as humanly possible, look elsewhere!
- Pure White goes with everything, so you don’t need to overthink it.
Not the one for you? You’re in the right place! Check out these other white paint colors: