I recently discovered the best gray paint for the walls of my home and I can’t wait to tell you all about it! If you’re struggling to find a true gray paint without any undertones, this post is for you!
True Gray Paint For My Walls
As anxious as we were to move right in to our new home, we pushed back our move date so we could have the entire home painted from flat white that our builder included, to a light gray egg shell paint that would be prettier on the walls and easier to clean. (We have 5 kids, so flat paint was not happening!)
I’ll be honest, choosing a gray paint scared me. I’ve heard (and seen) plenty of horror stories of friends who finally decide on a nice neutral light gray color, only to end up with walls that are too purple, too blue or just too dark.
And some of these people chose their color after seeing it and LOVING it in their neighbor’s home – so they thought it was “safe.” But the amount of natural light in each home can vary so much, that even the exact same color, finish and brand of paint could look totally different from one house to the next.
When I finally decided to tackle the task of choosing a paint color, I walked into the Dunn Edwards paint store and headed straight to the paint chip samples. The nice sales lady must have sensed how OVERWHELMED I was, so she kindly asked if I needed any help.
“I need a true light gray paint that will look good on every wall in my home.”
“Ok, here you go” she said, and she handed me this paint chip sample in less than 4 seconds.
Miner’s Dust Paint Color
Then she continued –
“This is a super popular color that stays a true grey, no matter the lighting. I’ve never heard a single complaint about it, and it looks really pretty on every wall.”
Me: That looks more beige than I was thinking.
Her: It has a beige-look, but it isn’t beige at all on the walls. I think the beige keeps it neutral so you won’t see any blue or purple.
I asked her about a couple other gray swatches that caught my eye, but she quickly pointed out the blue or green undertones in each of those gray paint colors. She warned me to be careful of those because they could potentially pick up colors outside of the “true gray” color I was going for.
This lady knew her stuff, and it was weird how much I trusted her and valued her opinion. Still, I left the store with 3 swatches and 3 small paint samples, just to be safe.
Best Gray Paint Colors
After about a week of staring at these colors and stressing over making the right choice, we ended up biting the bullet. We ordered the grey color the sales lady first suggested and ordered 45 gallons of Dunn Edwards Miners Dust paint so there was no turning back!!!
True Gray Paint With No Undertones
You guys. Is it possible to LOVE paint like a member of your family?! Because that’s kinda how I feel about this gray paint color!
We get compliments on the color of our walls all of the time and I am so quick to brag about this perfect gray color, just as a parent would brag about their own child. (Weird, right?)
(I just LOVE the way this gray pops against all our white trim!)
We have this color on every wall in our home and the lighting varies from room to room. Our Family Room has 4 BIG windows and it gets a ton of natural light, but our laundry room is tiny and only has 1 little window. Both rooms have the prettiest light gray walls you ever did see, the only difference being it looks slightly darker or lighter and neither has a blue or pink undertone! (YAY!)
In fact, one day while I was sitting in my Office, the superintendent over the construction of our new neighborhood stopped by after our house was painted and he loved this color SO much! He said he has seen a lot of gray houses lately but this was the nicest color of them all! He told me just last week he ended up painting his entire home this same color and he has recommended it to several new home owners in our neighborhood.
When we first moved in our loft was empty and I was a little concerned how the gray color would look once we furnished the room. But once we turned the loft into a Teen Hangout, I couldn’t be happier with the color.
Since we’ve painted the interior of our house, my sister bought this color for her rental property and my cousin is painting her entire home in Miners Dust this weekend.
You guys, I am serious about this, you can’t go wrong with this gray paint color.
Miners Dust Is The Best Gray Paint
Here are a few more rooms in my house for you to see how this true gray color looks with other decor and accent colors.
So stop by your local Dunn Edwards store and pick up a sample.
And let me know how you like it!
…just try not to treat it any differently than the other members of your family.
Your other kids might grow to resent it. 😉
Disclaimer: I reached out to Dunn Edwards to see if they’d want to partner with me on a product review. They sent me the paint for my home in exchange for this post, but all opinions are 100% my own. Rest assured I wouldn’t promote this product if I didn’t absolutely LOVE it!
Want to use this color in kitchen and family room. What is the LRV?
Just had my entire home painted in Miners Dust. All trim in milk glass… and we have alot of white: doors, tall baseboards, shutters, and kickboatds of stair. Looks fabulous !!
Did you prime first ? Would not priming over tan or beige cause it to pull green ? I’m OK with it pulling lighter or darker in different rooms. Not ok with green. That and anything with yellow make me look very ill in pallor.
Yet another looking for the best gray to paint the entire house.
Thanks !
I didn’t prime it, but our walls were all white. Try it on a section first just to be safe, but I think you’d be ok not priming with this color over tan. Good luck!
I never comment on websites, etc., but I absolutely had to this time because you saved my sanity!
I had no idea (until we recently remodeled one of our bathrooms) what a challenge it is to pick gray paint. I cannot tell you how many paint samples we tried before settling on Behr Natural Gray. It was a little darker than I wanted to go on such a small bathroom, but I read someone else’s article about this color and how it’s a pure gray, no blue or purple coming through. Well, after our contractor meticulously painted the bathroom I went in to see how it looked and told my husband that we have to repaint it because it looks like a purple people eater exploded in there. AUGH!
At this point we were under a time crunch. It was Tuesday evening and the paint has to be dry before the cabinets go in on Friday. How am I possibly going to pick another gray (I had literally already sampled 9 or 10 different ones)? Then, just before we headed into town Wednesday morning to go paint shopping again, I found your article. We’re lucky that we have a Dunn Edwards in town so we bought some Miner’s Dust. At first it looked a little more like a gray/beige color (but even that was going to be better than purple), but now that it is dry it looks WONDERFUL! I cannot thank you enough for this article (and my husband thanks you too)!
This makes me so happy!!! I’m so glad you guys had success with this!!
My painter uses sherwin Williams and this color is exactly what I’m looking for. I have a gray in my house now and it looks baby blue. So I don’t want any undertones. Do you know how I can color match?
Hi Stephanie, I’m just now seeing this and have been looking at grays for the exterior of our house. Do you think Miner’s Dust would also work well for the exterior? Thanks, Becky
I haven’t personally seen it on an exterior, but it would probably be beautiful! It’s a rather light gray, so it could be hard to cover up an existing darker color, but it looks good in all interior lightings, so it could be great outdoors too!
I also have at least 10 gray samples on my wall. I took your advice and got a sample of Miner’s Dust. It really shows how much blue is in all of the other samples! It looks much darker on my walls than in the pictures…did you use full blend or tone it down (80% or 70%)??
I used the full blend.
Thank you! I presently have 9 gray paint samples on my bedroom walls. I just… want… light grey. Im completely overwhelmed. I really want DE paint, so this was so helpful! Heading to DE for my Miners Dust sample!
We tested Miners Dust on our walls as there is a definite green undertone for us. It’s very subtle and a beautiful color, but for me it translates too much into the green. I’m still testing DE colors….we bought a house with cream tile floors that have a yellow undertone. I like the cooler grays but they make the floor really look yellow. I’m trying to find a middle ground. I just put Shady up today and I think it might be too beige. Such a challenge!
Grays can really be a challenge for sure! Good luck!
I also tried Shady.. as its the DE version of SWs Agreeable Grey. Its a little dark for me and beige-y. Have you tried DE Cloud? I have a sample up in my bedroom of cloud and the walls around it are creamy with a a yellowy undertone and Cloud looks true grey next to it. Might be worth a try.
I just ordered a gallon of miners dust for our bathroom! I;m so excited because I can’t even tell you how much time i’ve spent online looking for the right gray…we have a new medium gray vanity and the floors are a light beige…I’m hopeful that this will look great! Thank you for sharing your home and your experiences with this color!
I hope you love it as much as I do!!!! Good luck on your bathroom!
Please let me know how it turned out, I too have painted my bathroom walls a light gray and my vanity a darker gray, both look very purple, just wanting a true light wall gray and medium gray vanity 🙄
I know you said the trim in your home is Swiss Coffee, it reads white in the photos. Is it the same a the ceiling? Is Swiss coffee that light in person?!
Computers are so hard to get actual paint colors off of, aren’t they?! But yes, the trim and ceiling are the same and Swiss Coffee looks like a true white in my home.
Did you paint the ceilings white or gray?
The ceilings are white. 🙂
thank you for posting this review. i have chosen to get this color for our rental. stressing about it until i read this beautiful blog post. getting it painted today!
You’re very welcome! I’m glad I could help relieve some of the stress. It really is a great color!
Thank you so much for this post!!! I think I will go with Miner’s dust for my remodel that’s ready for paint:) You said you used Swiss coffee for trim, do you remember what your ceiling color was? I’ll probably paint the rest of the house in Miner’s dust as well after remodel is done:) Thank you!
You’re welcome! You’re going to love it! I don’t recall what color the builder painted the ceiling but I think it’s just a flat white paint.
Hi, Stephanie, Love the paint color, I’m going to look for it. I also fell in love with the rug between your two leather couches, can you tell me more about it?
Thanks for the compliment – I love that rug too! I have all the details and links to my family room decor on this post here – https://www.somewhatsimple.com/family-room/
Hope that helps! 🙂
Good evening. I love your posts. I am actually going through the exact same thing and feelings as you did when you were trying to find the right grey. I recently painted my livingroom with a grey that they said was a true grey but it looks like im surrounded by a mini egg. I read your post and as soon as I saw the Miner’s Dust on your walls I fell in love. Unfortunetly I live in Saskatchewan, Canada and we do not have a Dunn Edwards supplier here. Do you happen to know the paint codes for it? Or maybe Dunn Edwards would be able to help your Canadian readers? Any help you can provide would be appreciated more then you know. Thank you so very much.
Angela Lischka
I’m not sure how much help these numbers are, but here is what is printed on my small can of touch up paint –
Miners Dust DEC786
1 Quart L Y Notation /48
04: O Y+ 4.766
08: O Y+ 0.641
13: O Y+ 2.250
Good luck!!! 🙂
Hi Angela. I was wondering if your tried this mix from the codes and how it turned out.. along with which brand/kind of paint you did it with?… I am in Ontario Canada and would like to try the same but if you have already done the leg work….amazing!!! LOL! Thanks Tammy
I love this color on your walls! What finish did you use for this paint? We have textured walls which I hate (this is our starter home and it was built in the 70s) and I don’t want to make the texture stand out more than it needs to. Thank you!
Thanks, I love the color too! We used an eggshell finish to make cleaning them easier.
The Miner’s Dust looks green to us.. Definitely looking for a more true gray color. Are you sure it looked true gray on all walls? We have little natural light & the SW Repose Gray we painted one room has a hint of green. ☹️
Thank you,
Adrienne
I have this paint on every wall in my house and I have several friends who have used it and it has never appeared to be anything but gray to me.
It also appears greenish to me. I am also looking for a true gray colour and was considering agreeable gray. Now I guess not. I read some blog that suggested repose gray 🤷🏽♀️
Repose and Agreeable are Graige colors… not “true gray”. This gray paint thing is such a challenge, isnt it! Im so glad we are all having this conversation!
It does look greenish to me , try balboa mist benjamin moore it will look purple while wet but dries to beautiful grey.
Do you know what white color paint you used for your trim? Or one you recommend?
Our trim color was called Swiss coffee.
I called Sherwin Williams and Home Depot and they’ve never (nor have I) heard of Dunn Edwards and can’t match this paint color. Where is this located? Without an actual sample in my hand Home Depot can’t match it and this company is not in their system to be able to make the paint. I am intrigued then becUse it does look a litttle tan so I would have stayed away from it, which makes me wonder if my perfect gray is a sample at Home Depot I’ve passed up because it looked more tan than gray? I never gray would be so hard but I have about 10 samples on my wall and hate all of them. Lol!
Dunn Edwards has stores throughout parts of the country and is also in smaller hardware stores like Ace Hardware but they aren’t in Home Depot or Lowe’s. You can check their website for all of their locations and dealers who sell their paint. I’m sorry you’re having so much trouble but this grey paint is worth it.:)
Why does the paint chip look green instead of gray??? As I was reading this about minersdust paint color, I was scrolling down and there’s a sample chip but it looks green, not gray
Is it possible this will still look as good with darker grey trim and grey flooring, or does it look best with tan floors / white trim?
I haven’t seen it against a dark gray trim, but I have seen it against light gray floors and it looks amazing!
Does anyone have experience using Dunn Edwards Reclaimed Wood DET625?
I have samples of it as well as Miner’s Dust on my walls right now trying to decided which looks best with my furniture and in the various light patterns in my home.
Would this look good on kitchen cabinets?
I haven’t personally seen this color on anything but walls, so I can’t be certain – but gray cabinets are very popular right now, and this color could be a great option!
Thank you so much for sharing this info. Since my painter uses Dunn Edwards, I am going to look into this color right now! You just saved me hours of extra work! 🙂
So glad to help! 🙂
Wow!! I’m so glad I googled this question and found this.I will have to have another paint store mix it for me but can’t wait to try it!! I’ve been trying to find a true gray for months!!!!
Yay!!! I hope you love it! 🙂
It is nice for people who are looking for a non blue gray, and it certainly does look beige on the swatch so you give a great primer. That being said, I ask ya , is there anybody on the planet that ISNT painting Gray? It is pretty and neutral, but just a tad done to death at this point I think. My other observation is that with climate change we are getting more than our usual share of gray weather. Enough already. Can you make any alternate color suggestions?
I think there are a TON of people painting various shades of white right now, and printed wall paper is definitely back in style too. It doesn’t have to be gray, but it sure is pretty!
We do not have a Dunn Edwards paint store in Iowa, how can I get the formula for Miners Dust?
Oh darn! I will tell them to build a store in your area right away, hahaha! 🙂
I just googled the formula for this and here is what came up –
https://www.dunnedwards.com/colors/browser/dec786
I haven’t ever done a formula match myself, but you might be able to take those hue numbers to another paint store and have them make it for you. 🙂
Good luck!
I have been looking for the perfect gray and after reading your review I decided to give it a try since my painter only uses Dunn & Edwards. I went into the store and said like you I was looking for a perfect gray and within 3 seconds he said Miners Dust. Well I was skeptical because it does look beige on the paint chip card but I decided to give it a go. I put a splotch on every room that was being painted and WOW it looked beautiful. I paired accent walls with Looking Glass and it is spectacular!! Your advice was spot on. Glad I found you.
I’m so glad you love it Laura!!!
I have to agree, I love Miner’s Dust and it totally looks grey on my walls. However, I am stuck on picking an accent color to go with it. Looking glass and Bank Vault were my 2 top picks. I would love to see how it looks paired with Looking glass.
Your house looks lovely in Miner’s Dust! So much that I went out and got a sample. While I was there another lady was having a sample made of the same color! The DE guy said in over 20 years he had never had two people ask for the same color sample back to back. I told him he better buy a lottery ticket!
I put 2 coats of Miner’s Dust on foam board. I like it, but it is definitely GREIGE and not as cool a gray as I am looking for to keep our Phoenix condo feeling cool. So I will be testing DE Cloud DEC791 next, it is listed as another Cool Neutral like Miner’s Dust.
Here is the difference and why Miner’s Dust looks beigey gray, it is a yellow HUE whereas Cloud is a Green/Yellow HUE. Also, Cloud is lighter and might reflect more light in a small condo.
Miner’s Dust HUE=2.89Y LRV 58
Cloud HUE=5.25GY LVR 63
Thank you for sharing this amazing color of Miner’s Dust. It is beautiful and maybe one day I can use it somewhere else.
We are testing Cloud and Miner’s Dust too. Which one did you end up going with? Right now I am leaning toward Cloud. They are both beautiful though.
Love the color! Do you think it would work with beige and brown travertine tile?
I haven’t seen it with travertine, but we have light brown floors and it looks great! My cousin has it in her home and her cabinets are a light brown and the walls compliment it nicely. 🙂 Good luck!
Hi. It’s a beautiful colour. Your home looks gorgeous! I’m so glad I found this post as we are getting our place painted. What color would you suggest if the floors are white & doors & windows are walnut wood finish?
Thanks for the compliment, and thanks for stopping by!
I can’t say for sure how this color would look with those exact colors all together, but my cousin has Walnut cupboards in her kitchen and the gray next to the walnut looks amazing!!!
What was the sheen and color of your white trim you used with the Miners Dust? So pretty…
The builder painted it, so I am not entirely sure of the sheen, but I believe it is Swiss Coffee semi gloss. 🙂
Hi Stephanie your home looks beautiful and I too love Miners Dust can you please tell me what sheen you used in your living room?
I used eggshell. 🙂
I am so glad I found this post!! I was looking for a gray for my bathroom but kept thinking they looked to blue or purple. Just finished painting my bathroom and I am in love with it!!! I could seriously paint my whole house in this too!!! Thanks so much!!
So glad you like it Heather!!!! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
When you sampled the miners dust did it look darker? I’m sampling a few right now and the miners dust looks rather dark, maybe it’s lighting ? It looks so perfect in your photos .
I know – going off a computer screen can totally vary from the actual walls in your home! But here is what I told another reader with the same question/concern:
Even in my darkest room (the laundry room) it still isn’t dark at all for me. I know natural lighting varies from house to house, but I wouldn’t describe this paint as dark gray at all. When we’ve used it to touch up spots on our walls, it is definitely darker while it dries. I always have to remind myself not to freak out that it doesn’t seem to match right away, but once dry it looks totally normal again! Sorry I am not much help! ?
thanks so much that does help a lot !!
I just tested miners gray and shady on my wall from dunn Edwards My husband thinks it’s too dark..looks darker than what is in your photos is it because I only did a small square of paint?
Even in my darkest room (the laundry room) it still isn’t dark at all for me. I know natural lighting varies from house to house, but I wouldn’t describe this paint as dark gray at all. When we’ve used it to touch up spots on our walls, it is definitely darker while it dries – is your test square all the way dry? I always have to remind myself not to freak out that it doesn’t seem to match right away, but once dry it looks totally normal again! Sorry I am not much help! 🙁
It’s a gorgeous color in your house! May I ask what color the trim is? We’re picking out colors for our house this week and I’m both excited and nervous! Thank you!
Thanks Marie! Our trim is “Swiss Coffee”. We’ve been in our house 8 months now and I still have no regrets on the color – I love it as much as I did the day we painted! And it still gets a ton of compliments – you cannot go wrong with this one! Good luck picking paint colors – paint is SOOOOOO hard!!!!!!
I am a Color Consultant for Dunn Edwards Paints in Arizona. I totally agree with you on Miner’s Dust being an awesome color. My first question when folks come in looking for a “gray” especially in a remodel is “what color is your floor”. If it is any shade of brown or tan I always hand them a miner’s dust chip as one of my top picks, when paired with browns it always looks grayer than it does in the store. You said your designer took about 4 seconds to pick it out at the store you visited, I believe it with gray as popular as it is right now I get the same question at least 2 or 3 times a day. The picks of your house look amazing, hopefully your children will learn to live with being second best.
Hi Dottie,
Thanks for your comment! It is always nice hearing advice straight from the expert! 🙂 Have a great weekend!
What if your floors are dark grey wood floor?
My cousin has grey floors and this paint on her walls and it looks great! I’m not sure how dark your floors are in comparison to hers, but her home looks great!
I’ve seen Dunn-Edwards Paints DEC 786 Miner’s Dust used on numerous interior ‘Gray’ projects; Great choice Stephanie!
Thanks Peter! This color is perfection!!!
This gray paint has totally redefined the space and made home look amazing. Totally loved this gray shade of color.
Thanks John! I’m glad you like it!
Do you happen to know what the closest Benjamin Moore match would be to Miner’s Dust? Dunn Edwards paint is not available in my area. Thank you!
I’ve never tried color-matching myself, but I’ve heard if you take these numbers to your paint/hardware store, they should be able to make the exact formula –
Miners Dust DEC786
1 Quart L Y Notation /48
04: O Y+ 4.766
08: O Y+ 0.641
13: O Y+ 2.250
Good luck!