5 min read

November 5, 2025

If you’re choosing paint for a remodel, these three names come up fast. Here’s a clear, practical comparison you can use to pick the right product for each room.

• Farrow & Ball: Best for soft, elegant look and nuanced color.
• Benjamin Moore Aura: Best all‑around for rich color and tough day‑to‑day use.
• Sherwin‑Williams Emerald: Best for stain resistance and easy cleaning in busy rooms.

Farrow & Ball

• Colors feel subtle and layered, especially in natural light.
• Ideal when the design goal is a calm, luxurious backdrop.
• Matte finishes look refined without feeling dull.

Benjamin Moore (Aura)

• Excellent for deeper shades that need to look even and stay rich.
• Touches up well and stands up to frequent cleaning.
• A smart pick when you want high performance across the whole house.

Sherwin-Williams (Emerald)

• Built to shrug off scuffs, fingerprints, and splashes.
• Great in kitchens, baths, mudrooms, and hallways.
• Widely available, with strong in‑store support for color matching.

• Living rooms and bedrooms: Farrow & Ball if the look is the priority. Aura if you want that look plus extra durability.
• Kitchens and baths: Emerald or Aura for the best cleanability. Use Farrow & Ball when you want its signature finish in these spaces and you’re ok with a little extra care.
• Kids’ rooms, entries, and hallways: Emerald leads for stain resistance. Aura is a close second, especially on bold colors.
• Trim, doors, and cabinets: We usually use a water‑based enamel from Sherwin‑Williams or Benjamin Moore for a smoother, harder finish. Pair it with any of the wall systems above.

Farrow & Ball

• Velvety matte with a subtle 7% sheen that reads soft and refined. Modern Emulsion is formulated for busy rooms and carries a Class 1 scrub rating. It’s washable, scuff resistant, and protected against mold. VOC content is listed at 1 g/L.
• Also in the lineup: Dead Flat, a multi‑surface finish you can carry over walls, wood, and metal when you want an even flatter look that still wipes clean.

Benjamin Moore (Aura)

• Look: rich color with strong depth thanks to the brand’s Color Lock technology. Aura is low VOC and designed to resist scuffs and burnishing. Coverage is listed at 350–400 sq ft per gallon. Sheens include matte, eggshell, satin, and semi‑gloss.
• Notable chemistry: Aura is tinted exclusively with Benjamin Moore’s Gennex waterborne colorants, which are zero VOC to help low‑VOC bases stay low after tinting.

Sherwin-Williams (Emerald)

• Look: premium wall paint known for coverage and washability. Emerald is paint‑and‑primer in one, with advanced stain‑blocking, burnish resistance, and antimicrobial agents that inhibit mold and mildew on the paint surface. Available sheens include flat, matte, satin, and semi‑gloss.
• Coverage: product data sheets list 350–400 sq ft per gallon depending on sheen.

• Design‑first main spaces: Farrow & Ball on walls, water‑based enamel on trim and doors.
• Family‑proof everywhere: Aura or Emerald on walls, enamel on trim and doors.
• Bold accent colors: Aura for depth and touch‑ups, or Farrow & Ball for that signature look.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you want the most characterful walls, choose Farrow & Ball.
If you want a premium do‑everything paint with rich color, choose Aura.
If you want walls that clean up fast in the busiest rooms, choose Emerald.

Not sure what to use where? Send us your room list and a few photos. We’ll put together a simple, room‑by‑room paint plan that balances look, durability, and budget.