We get asked this every week: 'what paint brand do you actually use, and which one should I pick if I am painting my own room?' Vancouver's Pacific Northwest climate — 1,200mm of rain, salt air off English Bay, hard summer UV — is genuinely harder on paint than most of North America. Here is our honest, in-the-field comparison of the paint brands available in Vancouver, from a company that buys thousands of gallons a year and sees which ones fail first.
Benjamin Moore Aura — our default for interiors
Benjamin Moore Aura is the premium interior paint we recommend most often for Vancouver homes. Zero-VOC, self-priming on most surfaces, exceptional colour retention, one-coat coverage on many colours (though we still spec two for durability), and the widest professional colour deck in North America. Aura runs $85–$105 per gallon at Vancouver-area Benjamin Moore stores — not cheap, but the film lasts 10–15 years on interior walls.
Sherwin-Williams Emerald — our default for exteriors
Sherwin-Williams Emerald Exterior is our first pick for Vancouver exterior repaints. Advanced acrylic technology, exceptional mildew resistance (essential here), 25-year limited warranty on select systems, and colour retention that outlasts Benjamin Moore Aura Exterior in our own side-by-side testing on West Coast homes. $95–$115 per gallon at Vancouver SW stores. On stucco we often move to Sherwin-Williams Loxon or an elastomeric — Emerald is best on siding.
Cloverdale Paint — the Vancouver local option
Cloverdale Paint is a BC-based brand headquartered in Surrey, and their Horizon interior line and Endurance exterior line are legitimately good paints at a lower price point ($55–$75 per gallon). We spec Cloverdale on rental repaints, contractor work, and homeowner-supplied projects where the budget is tight. Colour deck is narrower than Benjamin Moore and film builds are thinner, but for a first-year rental refresh in Kitsilano or Mount Pleasant it is a reasonable choice.
Behr Premium Plus — decent DIY, not our jobsite paint
Behr Premium Plus and Behr Marquee from Home Depot are the most common DIY paints in Vancouver. Fine for a single bedroom or a garage — coverage is reasonable, colour selection is broad, price is $50–$70 per gallon. We do not use Behr on client projects because touch-up matching two years later is unreliable, the professional colour deck does not exist, and the sheen consistency batch-to-batch is looser than professional brands. If you are painting one wall yourself, Behr is fine. For a whole-home repaint, spend the extra on Benjamin Moore.
Dulux and PPG — capable, less common
Dulux (Diamond and Weathershield lines) and PPG (Manor Hall, Timeless) both make credible paints available at Vancouver-area suppliers. They are middle of the pack — better than Behr, not quite Benjamin Moore. We occasionally use them on commercial projects or when a designer has spec'd a specific Dulux colour. For residential Vancouver work, Benjamin Moore or Sherwin-Williams remain our first choice.
Farrow & Ball, Little Greene and other boutique lines
West Vancouver, British Properties and designer-led renovations in Point Grey and Shaughnessy sometimes spec Farrow & Ball, Little Greene or Portola. These are beautiful paints — deep pigment, distinct sheens — and they cost $130–$180 per gallon. We spray and roll them constantly on high-end residential and treat them as premium finishes with the extra prep and application care they need. For most Vancouver homes they are overkill; for the right design brief they are the correct spec.
The paint brand matters less than the prep
Every paint brand above will fail on a Vancouver home if the prep is wrong: unwashed exteriors, damp cedar, unprimed stains, unsanded gloss, uncaulked gaps. Every paint brand above will last if the prep is right. Spend your money on premium paint AND premium prep — not one or the other. That is why our written quotes always itemize both.
Painting in Vancouver?
Vancouver's wet Pacific climate demands premium primers and weather-rated exterior coatings — exactly what we specify on every job.