What Color To Paint Closet Doors?

If you are redecorating your home, you are probably including some painting in the project. A new coat of paint to your home’s closet doors can significantly enhance room décor.

By knowing what color to select and what painting techniques to use, you can complete this phase of your home improvement project in a single afternoon. If you want to know what color to paint closet doors and how to paint closet doors, this post is for you.

In the end, we will also show you some of the best paints for closet doors. Now, let’s get started!

Closet Door Color Ideas

Many people often neglect the interior doors of their homes instead of using them to make a decorative statement; however, not all doors should stand out from the walls. Some doors have some fitting details or tout impressive moldings.

But that doesn’t mean they visually should jump off the walls still. Make your doors attract people’s attention or blend into the room, depending on the doors themselves and the room.

There are different types of interior wall paint, and the more you know about appropriate paintable surfaces and the effects that are layout or attributes paint can achieve, the easier it will be to make the right choice. It’s also possible to mix various types of interior wall paint within a room, but you should know what you’re doing.

These are the various closet door paint color ideas you can use in your closet to achieve a beautiful finish like a pro!

1. Go Light and Neutral

Choosing a paint color for your closet door can be somewhat difficult. Painting it to match the entire room creates a simple, elegant look for space, but you will be required to repaint the closet door whenever you paint the room.

If you paint the closet door to blend with a dark wall shade, you will find it hard to see the items stored inside the room since dark shades don’t reflect light very well. They also show wear and tear easily, so your closet can end up looking worn out more quickly since you’ll be taking things in and out of it regularly.

Your most possible bet is to choose a light, neutral shade such as WHITE, BEIGE, GRAY, or TAN. It’ll work with possibly any color scheme and help reflect light so you can see better inside the closet when you’re inside the closet.

Read Also: What Color To Paint Pantry Doors?

Tan color closet door

White color closet door

Gray color closet door

Light gray color closet door with a touch of white at the edges

2. Hide and Sleek Color

A door painted a different color to the wall, like bright blue against orange or white, will not only capture your attention easily; it’ll equally visually chop up a small room.

If you prefer a seamless, sleeker appearance, or if the door is in an awkward place like near a corner or at the end of a hallway, paint it and it’s trim a similar color as the walls. Use semi-gloss paint to add a little distinction to a basic door or high-gloss paint to give more presence to a good-looking door.

Doors and their trim tend to get dirty from constant use; a paint with at least some level of sheen is often easier to wipe clean than flat paint. If you wish to give your closet door a bold color, I’d suggest you match it to the room’s accent color, so it blends in.

Pastel yellow, pale aqua, or minty green lend themselves to a shabby chic-style; deep shades of red or green have outstanding appeal; bright colors have a modern edge; while joining black, pale grey, or tan with white helps create a minimalist appearance.

3. Dual personality color

If you have plans of painting the door a different color on each side, you will have to choose one for the edges of the closet door. By painting the curves and edges in the door a color that’s very visible when the door opens inward, it will look like one color while it sits open.

Once the door sits open frequently, choose a color that goes with the walls in and outside of the room. Neutral colors such as tan, black, white, taupe, beige, or gray are colors that essentially go well with dark or light walls.

For instance, in the kitchen, a door with a coat of chalkboard paint could be useful and make a fantastic addition.

4. Subdued Attitude

For a closet door that’s practically asking to be seen, such as one with architectural details or raised panels, give it its due – but gently. If such a door stands out too much, it’s going to become the room’s focal point – and few doors deserve that much attention.

A coat of color that’s a shade lighter or darker than the walls will do, but paint any recessed areas white if you want to slightly highlight raised panels or designs.

Best Paints For Closet Doors

These are the various kinds of paint that can be used on your closet doors.

1. The Spruce Best Home By Kilz

The Spruce Best Home Interior Paint and Primer is a versatile acrylic paint that’s super long-lasting and ideal for closet doors.

The Spruce Best Home Paint is highly suitable for high traffic areas, including closet doors that need to endure lots of abuse. The durable formula will glide onto doors and offer superb protection against mildew, dirt, human oils, etc.

As a paint and primer all-in-one, you can start painting immediately without having to prime the closet door with a separate formula. Interestingly, you only need one coat to complete the job because the coverage is thick enough to cover any existing flaws!

You can use this closet door paint with either a wide brush or a small paint roller, depending on the lines of your closet door and personal preference. Choose from three finishes (eggshell, matte, and semi-gloss) and 32 different shades.

These paint colors were carefully curated, ensuring that every choice offers an alluring and rich hue that will bring joy to your space. All the finishes are low VOC/low odor, meaning there are lesser amounts of toxic chemicals in the paint.

This also means that the paint is healthier for both your household and the environment, and you won’t have to battle with that “new paint” smell for long.

2. Diamond Brite Paint 31000

Although you can use different interior paints on closet doors, you want to choose a paint that will offer extra protection from fingerprints and other stains. The ideal paint should be able to protect against dirt, human oils, and the force from opening and closing, which can lead to dry paint to cracking.

And for interior doors such as closet doors, we recommend the Diamond Brite Paint 31000, which is specifically created to protect high-traffic surfaces. It’s incredibly effective; it’s a common choice for other harsh environments like commercial and industrial spaces with lots of machinery.

It dries to a solid, semi-gloss finish much quicker than other oil-based options. The paint has a 6 to 8 hour drying time on average. The finish is designed to offer superb protection against common types of cracks, scuffs, and fading or peeling. You can also apply the paint with a roller, paint sprayer, or paintbrush.

This means you can easily choose between different paint gadgets to get into the nooks and crannies of closet doors with intricate paneling.

3. Diamond Brite Paint 80000

Most people just absolutely prefer the reflective quality of high-gloss paint. If you’re in search of this option for your closet doors, the Diamond Brite Paint 80000 is an excellent top dog alternative.

The finish will become a lot shinier than other alternatives, meaning it can highlight both perfections and flaws of the door underneath. Go for this paint only if you can thoroughly prepare and sand the door before applying paint.

For protection, the Diamond Brite Paint is designed to withstand both natural contaminants such as human oils and general washing and cleaning.

This makes it an excellent option for homes with children and pets since you can reliably and easily clean undesired marks off of the closet door without damaging the paint.

It is also resistant to moisture for more humid environments. Choose either a brush or roller when using this paint.

4. Glidden Interior Paint

Since gallons of paint can easily add up in terms of cost, it can be wise to choose a budget option when you don’t have use for a lot of paint.

For example, for just a single door project, the Glidden Premium HDGWN52D provides a bunch of the same protection as more costly options in a single gallon can that will cover about 300 to 400 square feet. It also dries to a smooth, low shine finish without lots of trouble when painting.

The Glidden Interior Paint also creates a mildew resistant coating for areas near water, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and mudrooms. The finish is washable and scrubbable while both wet or dry, so you can clean off marks easily with a little bit of water and soap.

With just a single gallon, you can apply the paint to several doors without to head back to the hardware store for more.

5. Rust-Oleum 7798502

For a negotiable price, the Rust-Oleum’s 7798502 is another impressive option for your closet door. While weather-resistant paints are mostly used for exterior surfaces, it can equally be effective inside in places like your closet doors. This is especially true in areas that experience a high level of traffic, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and closets.

Rust-Oleum’s 7798502 is rust and resistant to corrosion for multiple surfaces like metal, concrete, masonry, and wood.

The semi-gloss finish equally offers the type of mild shine many people admire when they don’t want to go overboard with the shiny/reflective surfaces.

The paint dries in just two to four hours, and it’s a fantastic choice for more hostile environments in your home. The oil-based finish offers extraordinary resistance against physical damage such as chipping, abrasion, and more corrosive damage from rust and fading.

6. Soto Touch Up

Sometimes, you only need a slight touchup to renew a closet door. If the closet door is old or has witnessed many abuses, it will undoubtedly have some areas on its surface that are more faded or scratched than others. Instead of spending lots of money on a gallon(s) of paint, touch up paint is all you need for the job.

The Soto Touch Up paint is an excellent touch-up option for most common colors and finishes on both walls and closet doors. This paint can be used on virtually any surface in your home – and a single bottle is enough to use on several walls and doors at the same time.

It comes in 9 shades of white, and it’s also versatile enough to match over 90% of the most common paint shades.

Using this touch-up paint is relatively straightforward. A mess-free brush tip is needed to deliver extra precision wall painting. Interestingly, the paint is not harmful and has an ultra-low odor, so you don’t have to open up your entire house or wear heavy masks to remain safe.

Apart from home surfaces, you can equally use this paint on furniture, windows, and ceiling panels.

7. Kilz 2 Multi-Surface Interior Paint

You may want to use a sealer for the best results while painting. So many times, the primary color or finish is just one step. For closet doors that have older paint layers, you will need an excellent primer to help the paint stick to the old layers.

The KILZ 2 Multi-Surface behaves as a glue between old and new paints while equally providing outstanding protection against mild to medium stains that may seep through while the primer is wet.

To effectively use this type of paint, you have to prepare the closet door before time. While you can easily paint with a sprayer, brush, or roller, you will want to ensure that the surface beneath is free from debris like dust.

The paint dries in less than 30 minutes, so you’ll be able to start on the primary coats almost instantly.

8. Valspar 65001

For the perfect type of reflection on your doors, you have to go with high-gloss paint. Nothing else less of using glass or metal on the door will give you such a high degree of shine in many interior design styles.

Higher gloss paint can reveal the natural beauty of certain types of door materials like closet door materials. The Valspar 65001 is one of the best high gloss finishes because of the high amount of protection it provides and its easy application.

However, one of the downsides of oil-based, high-gloss paint is the odor. Oil-based paints tend to contain more VOCs (volatile organic compounds), which create a strong odor that can be potentially harmful to your health.

When painting, use extra protection like masks and make sure you’re working in a well-ventilated area. The paint dries in one hour, limiting the amount of time you’ll spend exposed to potentially harmful contaminants. Once dry, it’s completely non-toxic and scratch-resistant.

What finish should closet doors be painted?

Semigloss is the best paint finish for interior doors and trim. The reason being, semi-gloss can take up quite an abuse and stand up to nicks and scrapes better than any other sheen, flat or eggshell finish.

Do you paint doors same color as walls?

There are many homeowners who overlook interior doors when they should use the doors to make a decorative statement. You can always paint your doors the same color as the walls to make it catch attention to the potential visitors. It is good to blend the colors of your door to the room’s layout and attributes.

Should I paint the door frame the same color as the door?

If you’ve decided to paint your door, you’ll generally want the door frame to be the same color as the door, or the wall around it. Bringing lots of attention to your front door on the exterior side is a common choice since there aren’t many other obvious focal points that would get traction from the outside.

What is the best paint color for doors?

13 Favorite Front Door Colors

Teal Appeal. Teal is a popular choice indoors and out, starting with the front door.
Better Red. A red front door is a vibrant choice, whether the home has a stucco or brick front.
Classic White and Brick.
Darken Your Door.
Slate Blue.
Down With Brown.
Door With a View.
Brown With Leaded Glass.

Should closet doors be painted same color as walls?

Wondering if you should paint closet doors to match walls? Simply put, whatever trim color on baseboards, bedroom doors, and rest of trim, same color should be used on closet doors inside that particular room. Going a step further, any color you decide to use, all trim should be the same color.

Should closets be painted white?

Most designers prefer to paint the interior of closets either a white or a light neutral color. This is because a white or neutral paint color will provide a certain amount of reflective light, which can be particularly beneficial in a closet.

Do all doors need to match?

It’s a common question, “Do interior doors and trim have to match?” The short answer is no. The doors and trim can be whatever style and color you want them to be. Your home’s design is entirely up to you.

Can interior doors be different colors?

The short answer is that they can be, but they don’t have to be the same color. If you are updating your interior doors, you don’t need to paint them all the same color, but you should keep something about them the same throughout the house to maintain cohesion and consistency.

What kind of paint do you use on doors?

Doors take a lot of use and abuse, so when painting them, choose a durable paint finish that has a semigloss or gloss sheen. Semigloss or gloss makes cleaning easier and holds up to frequent cleaning.

Should door frames be lighter or darker than walls?

If you want to create a contrasted look or bring focus to your windows or door frames, choosing a trim paint color that is darker than the walls of a room can be an ideal choice.

Conclusion | What Color To Paint Closet Doors

Painting a closet door may not take as much time as painting an entire room, but it can still be somewhat challenging if you aren’t prepared. Working with a smaller door presents its own challenges, so using the right tools and materials is the key.

And, just like any door in your home, you want to choose the right paint color and finish to create a beautiful and clean closet door. Make use of the paint color ideas and color ideas for a closet door listed above, and you will be painting your closet door like a pro!

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