Our Review of Cloud Cover by Benjamin Moore

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Selecting a white paint color for your home’s exterior sounds simple enough, but with the seemingly endless number of options available, the process can be more complicated than you might expect. 

We’ve recently reviewed several of our favorite white exterior paint colors — from Benjamin Moore’s Chantilly Lace to Sherwin Williams’ Snowbound — and now we’re putting the spotlight on Benjamin Moore’s Cloud Cover. Keep reading to learn more about Cloud Cover and whether or not it might be a good fit for your home. We cover everything from technical specs and our recommended applications to paint color pairings and more. 

Struggling to select a paint color for your home’s exterior? Or perhaps you’re wondering what your home would look like with the addition of a small deck or covered patio? We can help you visualize these updates and more. Learn all about our virtual exterior design services.  

A home rendered in Benjamin Moore's Cloud Cover

Benjamin Moore’s Cloud Cover: The Specs

Cloud Cover by Benjamin Moore is an off-white hue with an LRV of 81.8. (Not sure what LRV means? We break down everything you need to know, including why it’s important to consider LRV when selecting a paint color for your home, here.) This soft white shade has subtle cool undertones that read gray-blue.

Whether your home gets tons of natural light or sits in the shade, Cloud Cover is a great paint color option and won’t vary much in terms of appearance because its undertones are minimal. That said, we always recommend testing paint colors before fully committing.  

A home painted with Benjamin Moore's Cloud Cover

Recommended Applications for Cloud Cover 

We most commonly use Cloud Cover as a field color on modern and contemporary homes, but it’s a versatile shade and can work on other house styles as well. It also looks lovely on a range of cladding materials, including stucco, board-and-batten siding, and brick. 

A home with white trim

Cloud Cover is a great accent color, too, as illustrated by the rendering above. In this design, it’s used on the trim, soffit, columns, and gutters with Benjamin Moore’s Soot as the siding color. Pairing Cloud Cover with such a rich, dark shade creates striking contrast. 

A home rendering in Benjamin Moore's Cloud Cover

Cloud Cover Paint Color Pairings

You can’t beat a classic combination like white and black, which is why we love pairing Cloud Cover with darker shades, such as Benjamin Moore’s Black Beauty or Sherwin Williams’ Caviar (above). As you can see here, Cloud Cover looks beautiful on homes with natural elements like wood and stone.

A home rendering in Benjamin Moore's Cloud Cover and Hale Navy

Cloud Cover doesn’t only work with shades of black — it also pairs nicely with a wide range of other colors. In the above design, it’s used on the siding along with Benjamin Moore’s Hale Navy, our go-to navy blue. We’ve also created renderings featuring Cloud Cover with Benjamin Moore’s Rosepine, a muted moss green; Sherwin Williams’ Anonymous, a warm, earthy hue; and a slew of other shades. 

An exterior home design featuring Benjamin Moore's Cloud Cover

Pros & Cons of Benjamin Moore’s Cloud Cover

PROS:

  • It’s endlessly versatile and works as a field color and accent hue
  • It’s sophisticated and feels fresh
  • It pairs well with a variety of colors

CONS:

  • It might be too bright for some environments
  • If you’re looking for a pure white, Cloud Cover won’t cut it
We always recommend sampling and testing paint colors before committing. Factors such as natural lighting, undertones, and your property’s fixed elements will have a significant impact on how a color will appear on your exterior. Our friends at Samplize offer extra-large 9 x 14.75 inch peel-and-stick paint samples of the colors we love for exteriors. Order your ‘Real Paint, No Mess’ samples from Samplize here.

Cloud Cover Alternatives

Cloud Cover is an excellent off-white paint color, but it won’t work on every home. Here are a few similar shades that are great alternatives. 

Benjamin Moore’s Simply White

Like Cloud Cover, Simply White by Benjamin Moore is clean and crisp. With an LRV of 91.7, it’s noticeably brighter than Cloud Cover and has more warmth to it, too. Simply White is one of our go-to accent hues, but it can also be used as a field color. 

A home rendered in Benjamin Moore’s Seapearl

Benjamin Moore’s Seapearl

Benjamin Moore’s Seapearl’s — our 2021 color of the year — has an LRV of 77, and like Cloud Cover, it has some subtle gray undertones. Seapearl is incredibly versatile and shines as a base color or as an accent color. Our designers use it on all types of homes. 

A home rendered in Benjamin Moore’s White Dove

Benjamin Moore’s White Dove

Benjamin Moore’s White Dove is another one of our favorite off-white exterior paint colors. It has an LRV of 85.38, which is just slightly higher than Cloud Cover’s, and it doesn’t lean too warm or cold. You can pair it with pretty much any other color you want and use it on a bunch of home styles, from modern farmhouses to Craftsman-style bungalows. 

A home rendered in Cloud Cover by Benjamin Moore

The Bottom Line on Benjamin Moore’s Cloud Cover

If you’re looking for a white paint color with a wide range of applications and pairing options, Cloud Cover by Benjamin Moore might be the shade for you. Whether you use it as a base or accent, you can’t go wrong with this crisp, clean color.

Wondering what paint color will look best on your home? Instead of guessing and potentially ending up disappointed, bring in the experts at brick&batten. We’ll help you pick the perfect shade and visualize any other cosmetic updates you desire. Get started on your exterior design project today.

Author

Britteny has worked as a professional writer and editor for more than a decade. She launched her career as a features writer in New York City, covering fashion, food & beverage, and hospitality. She has contributed to a wide range of publications, including International Business Times, Glam, Thirsty Mag, and Cardinal & Pine and has worked with famous faces such as Kate Upton and Nigel Barker throughout her career. Britteny has been covering the exterior home design industry as a writer for brick&batten for almost two years. Britteny splits her time between New York City, her home state of Michigan, and Caye Caulker, a small island off the coast of Belize in Central America. When she’s not writing or editing, Britteny can be found at the beach or in the kitchen testing out vegan recipes.