Have you heard that Swiss Coffee is the best white ever, only to find out that there is more than one?? Which Swiss Coffee was it? Are they all the same?
Let’s take a look at all the popular (and not-so-popular) Swiss Coffee paint colors I could scrounge up!
Who Makes a Paint Color Called Swiss Coffee?
The most popular versions of Swiss Coffee are by Benjamin Moore and Behr, but this might be the most commonly replicated color out there!
(In name anyways.)
There is a version of Swiss Coffee paint by:
- Behr
- Benjamin Moore
- Dulux
- Dunn Edwards
- Glidden
- Kelly Moore
- Pratt & Lambert
- Valspar
- Walmart (KILZ)
- Asian Paints
I’m sorry what?? You read right! There are at least 10 “Swiss Coffee” paint colors out there.
What Color Paint is Swiss Coffee?
Almost across the board Swiss Coffee is a creamy white paint color.
If you’ve heard people mention Swiss Coffee when it comes to their home, only one thing is for certain: They are definitely talking soft white.
Are all Swiss Coffee Paint Colors the Same?
Swiss Coffee from one brand to the next is not interchangeable. Behr Swiss Coffee is not the same as Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee, etc.
That being said, you can see that they are all pretty similar.
(With the exception of the Asian Paints version, which is closer to a true coffee color.)
Is Swiss Coffee White or Off-White?
None of the Swiss Coffee paint colors are a true clean white, but technically whether they are white or off-white is decided by LRV.
What does that mean?
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.
Off-White paint colors tend to have LRVs in the 74 to 84 range (approximately), so some Swiss Coffee colors will be considered white, and some off-white.
You can see that most are right on the white/off-white line.
All are definitely warm and creamy, regardless of how light and bright they are.
Why is Swiss Coffee White Anyway?
What an excellent question!
(Also maybe not one you asked, but I was bothered by it.)
Swiss Coffee is known in Switzerland as kaffee-crรจme. It’s an espresso based beverage with a sweet creamy froth on top.
I assume that the color is named after the froth.
Does Swiss Coffee look Pink?
Whether or not Swiss Coffee ever looks pink, yellow, etc., depends mainly on which version we are talking about.
Here I used one Swiss Coffee color as the background, so that you can really see the difference in all of them:
I chose the Dunn Edwards version of Swiss Coffee for this graphic because it was one of the lightest and most neutral, but it’s nearly identical to the Valspar version as well.
Glidden and Kilz are the most pink in comparison to the other Swiss Coffees. Steer clear of those ones if you are very sensitive to pink!
Does Swiss Coffee Look Green or Yellow?
I don’t think that any of these colors would ever look green. I’ve looked at enough real-life photos that I think I would have bumped into it by now. If you hate cream that goes green, you are safe with Swiss Coffee.
Yellow is a totally different story. These are creamy paint colors, and most lean yellow if anything. If you HATE yellow, don’t choose a Swiss Coffee. Period.
If you want cream and not yellow, you could still use Swiss Coffee! The important thing is to use it as your only white (or with similar creamy shades), so on everything from ceilings, to doors and trim.
Any pure white against Swiss Coffee will highlight its off-white qualities.
In this house by Word of Mouth Painting (@word_of_mouth_painting), the Swiss Coffee walls are definitely creamy and a touch yellow in comparison with the Benjamin Moore Simply White trim…and Simply White is still a warm white!
Is Swiss Coffee Greige?
Nope! There is nothing gray, or even particularly neutral, about Swiss Coffee. If you are interested in a greigey soft white, you might like Behr Diamonds Therapy.
Why is Swiss Coffee Paint So Popular?
We could blame TV, because the likes of Joanna Gaines and Studio McGee have really exploded the popularity of the “modern farmhouse” (and therefore creamy white paint colors).
The truth is that Swiss Coffee has been a popular color for more than 10 years, so it may just be the holy grail cozy white!
This is good news for anyone looking to use Swiss Coffee today! I don’t think it will go out of style, perhaps ever!
What Colors Go Well With Swiss Coffee?
Swiss Coffee works beautifully with:
- Black. Think modern farmhouse black-and-white
- Deep Victorian colors like navy, emerald, or charcoal
- Earthy “Southwest” vibes. Sage greens, terracotta, natural tones
I ended up using a lot of Sherwin Williams colors for my Swiss Coffee color palette, but these are just some ideas:
Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray is a perfect partner for Swiss Coffee if you want another versatile neutral but don’t want to go overly warm with your color scheme. (It’s a greige.)
Sherwin Williams Homburg Gray is a deep charcoal that is actually pretty green! I like it because it’s deep, moody, neutral, and not too popular.
Benjamin Moore Hale Navy is the beige of navies. The denim of paint. The cheese to the Swiss of Swiss Coffee… (Okay I lost the plot on that last one!) It goes with everything! That’s all I’m trying to say.
I love me some SW Urbane Bronze, and that’s saying something because I’m just not a “brown” lover. This is another almost fail-safe color, so why not pair it with Swiss Coffee?
Sherwin Williams Cavern Clay is a little more “out there” in terms of loving it or hating it. I happen to think cream and terracotta look amazing together!
(For more terracotta options, check out: The Best Terracotta Colors to Paint Your Walls)
SW Tricorn Black is usually touted as the best and blackest black. Need I say more?
Here it is with Behr Swiss Coffee in Lara’s (@nest_on_nightingale) dining room:
Does Swiss Coffee Go With Revere Pewter?
You can definitely use Swiss Coffee with Revere Pewter. That’s down to the versatility of Revere Pewter as much as Swiss Coffee’s!
Swiss Coffee with bring out more of the warm tones in Revere Pewter.
Swiss Coffee Paint Colors with Pure White Trim
I mentioned a little earlier that Swiss Coffee is best used as your only white. If you want it to look white, which most of us do, then using a bright white trim has the opposite effect.
For contrast, use Swiss Coffee in a different finish on your trim. Most designers choosing a single white, go with flat on the ceiling, eggshell on the walls, and semi-gloss for trim and doors.
You will be amazed with how much difference a sheen can make!
Every Popular Swiss Coffee Paint Color
Okay, now that we’ve talked Swiss Coffee basics, let’s take a closer look at each color.
I would like to start off by saying that each brand may measure LRV differently. LRV is super helpful when you’re trying to figure out generally how light or dark a color is, but when we have 8 colors from 8 different brands within four points of each other, let your eyes be the deciding factor.
Dunn Edwards Swiss Coffee
The color code for Dunn Edwards Swiss Coffee is the same as the code for California Paints Swiss Coffee, which I hadn’t heard of. (But if you are here for that version, hi! Take a look at Dunn Edwards!)
LRV of Dunn Edwards Swiss Coffee
Dunn Edwards says that the LRV of Swiss Coffee is 83. I think 86 would be more accurate, because it is one of the lightest of the bunch!
Dunn Edwards Version Swiss Coffee Undertones
Bless you if you want to use this color, because it is a hard one to find examples of!
Leanne from Ziegler Designs (@leanne.zieglerdesign) has a good one thankfully. She used Swiss Coffee in this dining room:
Leanne chose to use a brighter white on the trim and wainscoting to emphasize the color in Swiss Coffee.
The undertones on display here are interesting. I feel like on the back wall it is pulling a little peachy, but above the window it looks more yellow.
Compared to blinding true white, I guess I can see a bit of peachy-cream:
You can tell that this is a very saturated white. It doesn’t have any toned down neutral gray in it, so although it is light, it may appear more “colorful” than even darker Swiss Coffees.
Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee
The Benjamin Moore version of Swiss Coffee is by far the most popular! The only one that comes close is the Behr version, and she doesn’t even come that close.
This color really needs its own post, so I won’t spend too much time on it here, but I will cover the basics and show you a few pictures.
Is the Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee and Behr Swiss Coffee the Same?
Speaking of Behr, people often confuse these two colors. So are they the same?
Nope!
The Behr version of Swiss Coffee is similar, but it is brighter and more saturated then the Benjamin Moore one. Basically, Behr’s Swiss Coffee will look more creamy.
Interesting to note, Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee actually has the same color code as Behr Snowfall White.
Benjamin Moore Version of Swiss Coffee LRV
Benjamin Moore measures the LRV of their Swiss Coffee at 81.91. (I rounded up to 82 for the graphic earlier.)
I think that’s about right. It is a touch darker than a lot of the other Swiss Coffees, so that makes sense.
Swiss Coffee by Benjamin Moore Undertones
This take on Swiss Coffee is the most greigey of the bunch, but I would not ever say it’s greige. It is perhaps a bit more neutral than the really saturated creams.
I will say that Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee has grown on me. Originally not a fan because I didn’t care much for cream period.
I would say that about half the time it looks like a warm white, and the other half it looks very creamy, which to me, looks yellow.
Whether you see yellow or peach may be a difference of eyes, lighting, or opinion!
Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee at 75%
Studio McGee is a big fan of Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee, and used it extensively at 75% strength.
As luck would have it, Laura (@la_chaffin) did the same, so I can actually show it to you!
Isn’t her dining room a soft white dream? Laura used the same color on the trim.
When it came to cabinets, she decided to go full strength with Swiss Coffee:
Her hood fan I believe is Iron Ore. (Although it looks more like Urbane Bronze here!)
Difference between White Dove and Swiss Coffee?
Benjamin Moore White Dove is really similar to Swiss Coffee. It is just barely lighter (LRV of 83.16), and both a touch cooler and more gray.
Here Chrissy (@simplyslade) used White Dove for the trim and Swiss Coffee for the walls:
The difference is super subtle.
Check out my post: White Walls with White Trim? to see more photos of this combination, and get more white-on-white ideas!
Behr Swiss Coffee (Home Depot)
Behr’s version of Swiss Coffee has been their best selling color for years and years! Not sure if that’s still the case, but since creamy whites are more popular than ever, I’m going to guess it is.
Like all of these colors, Behr’s Swiss Coffee is a warm, creamy white.
Is Behr Swiss Coffee Too White?
I can’t imagine that too many people who use the Behr version of Swiss Coffee find it to be too white, so it’s a pretty safe bet if you want a creamy not-too-bright white.
If you are finding it too white, you will have the same problem with all of these Swiss Coffees. Try instead Sherwin Williams Shoji White or Valspar Cream in my Coffee.
Behr Version of Swiss Coffee: LRV
The LRV of this particular Swiss Coffee is 84. That was also the most common LRV across all of the options.
Swiss Coffee by Behr Undertones
I do find Behr Swiss Coffee to be more overtly creamy than the Benjamin Moore one.
Like the Benjamin Moore version, it can look fairly white, but about half the time it is quite creamy.
As promised, here is more of Lara’s house! She used Accessible Beige for her trim color:
Now that I have a more trained eye, I would say that Behr Swiss Coffee has a peachy undertone. For most people though, creamy = yellow.
Here with the darker color Nightclub (also Behr) and the same Accessible Beige trim, it looks pretty white:
Valspar Swiss Coffee (Lowe’s)
Next up, Valspar!
Valspar ties with Dunn Edwards as the lightest and brightest of the Swiss Coffee paint colors, and it might be my favorite!
Valspar Swiss Coffee LRV
Valspar says the LRV of Swiss Coffee is 86.152. The LRVs of their dark colors are notoriously off, but I think this is about right.
Undertones of Valspar Swiss Coffee
Although it looks quite similar to the Dunn Edwards color, Valspar’s take on Swiss Coffee is more neutral thanks to a bit more gray.
To be honest, I don’t think this one has a lot of undertone. It’s a warm white to be sure, but it doesn’t pull yellow or peach from what I’ve seen.
This not-so-modern farmhouse belongs to Amber and Mike (@cottageonthecove). They are restoring this 1890’s farmhouse in Virginia, and documenting their journey on Instagram :
In the bright outdoor light, Valspar Swiss Coffee looks pretty white.
The shaded porch gives you a different idea of the color, but it is reflecting a lot of the sun and grass:
I think the reality is something in between.
It’s a squinter, but this shot of the porch might be a bit more accurate:
I really like this one, but I’m partial to a true white with just a whiff of warmth. Valspar’s Swiss Coffee is the most neutral Swiss Coffee paint color.
You can see more here: See Valspar Swiss Coffee Inside (and Outside!) Real Homes
Dulux Swiss Coffee
Dulux definitely has a color named Swiss Coffee – at least in South Africa they do!
I was only able to pull it up on the SA version of the Dulux website, and there was no other color information on there.
Searching for the hex code for Dulux Swiss Coffee brings up the Behr version, and looking at the swatches side by side, I would say that they are very VERY similar.
Unfortunately that’s really all I can say about the Dulux take on Swiss Coffee. If you like the Behr version you will like this one.
Because I can’t find color codes (other than the Behr one), I can’t make swatches for you. Whomp whomp.
LRV of Dulux Swiss Coffee
Approx 84
Walmart Kilz Swiss Coffee
According to Kilz, “Swiss Coffee is a creamy white with subtle taupe undertones.”
Their website does a terrible job with example photos, and the last picture is actually gray. Thanks AI.
So what’s a girl gotta do to see Walmart Swiss Coffee in action?
She just has to find an appropriate example, and in this case, it’s Sherwin Williams Greek Villa:
More on Greek Villa in just a minute when we talk about Sherwin Williams, but this photo is a near perfect example of what Kilz Swiss Coffee will look like.
According to the color matching tools, the Kilz version of Swiss Coffee is a little more saturated than Greek Villa. In the photo above, Greek Villa looks a little more saturated than normal.
Perfecto!
LRV of Kilz (Walmart) Swiss Coffee
Approx 84/85. Kilz doesn’t provide any color information on their website.
Undertones of Kilz Swiss Coffee
Well Kilz very boldly said taupe when they were describing the undertones of this color, but I would probably say beige.
If we are sticking to the Greek Villa example, that color is a warm white with creamy beige undertones.
Glidden Swiss Coffee
I’m a bit sad that I have to keep putting myself out here like this. Can you find an example of Glidden Swiss Coffee in a sea of Benjamin Moore and Behr?
Me neither.
But you know me, always doing my best! The hex code for Glidden’s version of Swiss Coffee is almost identical to Kilz…which means it’s similar to Greek Villa too!
The Glidden version of Swiss Coffee has an LRV of approx 84. I’ll show you a comparison with Greek Villa when we get to Sherwin Williams.
Pratt & Lambert Swiss Coffee
First of all, how good does this Swiss Coffee look over the background of Sherwin Williams Naval?
Pratt & Lambert’s Swiss Coffee is kind of in the middle of all of them. It’s not super duper yellow or peach.
LRV of Pratt & Lambert Version of Swiss Coffee
I couldn’t find an official source for the LRV of this Swiss Coffee, but I would guess it’s 84, because it looks on par with other 84s.
Pratt & Lambert Swiss Coffee Undertones
I haven’t seen enough pictures to say for sure how this one will look, but it’s very similar to Sherwin Williams Alabaster:
Alabaster is a creamy white with subtle beige undertones. As long as it’s the only white, Pratt & Lambert’s Swiss Coffee should look like a warm white, and not any other color.
Kelly Moore Swiss Coffee
Kelly Moore paints have nothing to do with Benjamin Moore, if you were wondering. Not that I googled that…*cough*
The Kelly Moore version of Swiss Coffee is another of the lightest and most neutral options.
You can see beside the Valspar color that Kelly Moore is just a little bit warmer:
I do actually have a couple pictures, thanks to Cassandra from Studio H Designs (@cass.stephens).
I have to say that I really like this one!
(Of course I do, I’m boring and I like light and neutral.)
I think this version of Swiss Coffee reads “expensive.”
It’s giving cream, it’s giving satin, it’s giving fluffy white kitten.
It’s not giving butter. Woohoo!
LRV of Kelly Moore Version of Swiss Coffee
Kelly Moore says that the LRV of Swiss Coffee is 83. If we were keeping in line with the other brand’s scales, I would say it’s more like 85.
Undertones of Swiss Coffee Kelly Moore Edition
This one reminds me quite a bit of Sherwin Williams White Flour, which is another of my favorite whites:
I don’t think Kelly Moore Swiss Coffee has any strong undertones, but if it’s going to pick up a color, it could be peach.
Asian Paints Swiss Coffee
Asian Paints Swiss Coffee is an honorable mention. It belongs more with off-white and beige paint colors, not so much amongst the farmhouse whites here.
The LRV of Asian Paints Swiss Coffee is 73.
If you like this one, you might also like Sherwin Williams Shoji White or Natural Choice.
Sherwin Williams Swiss Coffee
Sherwin Williams does not actually have a color named Swiss Coffee, but they do have many colors that fit the bill.
The Sherwin Williams colors that are most similar to shades of Swiss Coffee are:
- Alabaster
- Greek Villa
- Snowbound
- White Flour
My personal favorite, in terms of matching the Swiss Coffee aesthetic, is Greek Villa.
To help you choose, check out my post: Sherwin Williams Swiss Coffee Inspired Paint Colors (Ranked!) It covers two additional colors too!
Sherwin Williams Alabaster vs Swiss Coffee
Alabaster is the background color in this graphic. You can see that it is most similar to Benjamin Moore, Pratt & Lambert, and Glidden’s versions of Swiss Coffee.
For more on Alabaster, check out my post: Alabaster by Sherwin Williams a Classic White
Sherwin Williams Greek Villa vs Swiss Coffee
We already talked about Greek Villa being a good dupe for both Glidden’s and Kilz’ versions of Swiss Coffee, but honestly it’s not too far off for a lot of them:
Greek Villa is a great “Swiss Coffee Inspired” paint color.
Check out this post for lots more pictures: Sherwin Williams Greek Villa (and Dupes!)
Sherwin Williams White Flour vs Swiss Coffee
White Flour never ceases to amaze me with how versatile it is! This one is a great dupe for a few Swiss Coffee paint colors too:
See more in my post: Sherwin Williams White Flour (Plus Comparisons and Dupes!)
Sherwin Williams Snowbound vs Swiss Coffee
This one surprised me a little actually. Snowbound is one of my favorite whites, but it definitely leans more pink than yellow, so I was surprised to see it working the Swiss Coffee vibes:
It is a little more gray and closer to pink than a lot of these, but not far off in the end.
Check out my post about this color here: Sherwin Williams Snowbound(Plus Dupes and Similar Shades!)
Can You Use Swiss Coffee With Gray Furniture?
Why not?
Swiss Coffee would probably look best with warmer grays rather than cool grays.
Chrissy has a gray chair in her living room with Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee, and it looks great!
I will say that this gray is pretty light and not too cool.
Cassandra has a charcoal gray bed in her Kelly Moore Swiss Coffee room, and I think that works too:
If you find that your gray furniture isn’t tying in well with Swiss Coffee, follow Cassandra’s lead and bring in warm linens, throw pillows, and accessories.
Moody Musings About Every Swiss Coffee Paint Color Ever
Okay, that heading is probably a lie, because why wouldn’t even more brands want a Swiss Coffee in their lineup? They could just be late to the party!
Let’s recap:
- Use the same shade of Swiss Coffee on everything if you want to keep it looking white. Use a cleaner white on the trim if you want to emphasize the cream tones.
- Any Swiss Coffee is a good choice, but Benjamin Moore’s is the most popular, and probably the one you’ve been hearing about.
- The lightest and most neutral Swiss Coffees are Kelly Moore’s and Valspar’s.
If there’s one thing I’ve poured hours into, it’s white paint colors. Find your dream cream in one of these posts:
