12 Exterior Brick Paint Color Ideas We Love
By: Britteny
From creating contrast with dark brick and light trim to accenting painted brick with natural elements like wood and stone, there is a wide range of exterior brick paint color ideas that can elevate your home exterior.
While many people prefer the look of natural brick, we get plenty of requests from clients wanting to paint their brick exterior. Painting your brick is a relatively easy way to refresh your façade, plus it can seriously boost your home’s value. According to real estate technology company Home Light, painting the exterior of your home can provide a 152 percent return on your investment.
Feeling inspired to paint your brick? Keep reading to see all our best exterior brick paint color ideas.
Whether you’re wondering what your brick home could look like painted or you want to keep it natural and elevate it with other design elements, we can help. Our team of expert designers will recommend appropriate updates that will transform your home and improve your curb appeal. Learn more about our virtual exterior design services.
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#1 // Dark brick, light trim
It’s no secret we love a dark exterior color palette. And while a monochromatic color scheme is great for a moody, dramatic look, we often combine dark brick with light trim to create contrast. The design above features Benjamin Moore’s Stonecutter — a lighter shade of black we named one of our best exterior house colors of 2022 — on the brick and siding with Bruton White, a soft, chalky gray, on the eaves and trim.
#2 // White brick, black trim
Not all homeowners who paint their brick are interested in exploring the dark side. In fact, we get tons of requests from clients for designs featuring white painted brick. Oftentimes, we recommend a black or near-black trim color for a classic color combination.
#3 // Painted brick + stone
Painted brick and stone is a winning combination we love incorporating into our virtual designs. Our designers frequently add sections of stone siding to brick exteriors or update existing stone and brick with limewash or paint.
The use of stone around the entrance in the design below makes the area a focal point, and continuing it along the bottom of the home creates cohesion.
#4 // Painted brick with wood accents
Stone isn’t the only cladding material that pairs well with painted brick. The wood paneling and columns in the rendering above play nicely with the warm beige used on the brick.
Wood accents work with dark painted brick too, as seen above. This home’s brick is painted with Benjamin Moore’s Cheating Heart, a deep, dramatic hue. The saturated shade looks lovely juxtaposed with the rich woodgrain steel siding.
Finally, we’ve got an example of a middle-of-the-road gray brick paired with multiple wood elements, including shutters, the entry door, the patio ceiling, and a planter.
#5 // Monochrome brick + siding
If your home has a combination of different cladding materials, such as brick and siding, painting them all the same color will ensure a cohesive look. The rendering above features Sherwin Williams’ Alabaster on the brick and siding. To keep things from feeling too one-note, we added warm wood and dark stone accents and rendered the fascia and soffits in Sherwin Williams’ Tricorn Black.
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.
#6 // Embrace earth tones
Earth tone color palettes have become increasingly popular in recent years. Brick homes, like the one above, can look especially charming when painted with a nature-inspired hue. For this home, we recommended Sherwin Williams’ Evergreen Fog on the brick. This gorgeous green-gray — one of our top Sherwin Williams’ paint colors of 2023 — brings a sense of serenity to the exterior and looks lovely with the stone accents, wood elements, and lush landscaping.
#7 // Warm + welcoming
If a cozy, inviting exterior is what you desire for your brick home, consider painting it with a creamy warm white like Benjamin Moore’s Seapearl. Wood elements, such as lintels above the windows, the front door, and porch columns, plus copper gutters add warmth to the façade above.
#8 // Create an accent wall
Using a different paint color or cladding material on a small section of your exterior is an effective way to emphasize the area. The home above features horizontal siding rendered in a subtle green with an off-white on the brick around the entry. We also used the off-white on the soffits and fascia to ensure the accent wall felt connected to the rest of the space.
#9 // Shades of gray
If black and white seem too extreme for your brick home, consider a gorgeous gray (or several) instead. The home above features Benjamin Moore’s Gray Shower on the brick with Pewter, also by Benjamin Moore, on the siding. Using two shades of gray instead of one adds some depth and visual interest to this façade.
Below, we used Benjamin Moore’s Baltic Gray on the brick and Night Gray on the James Hardie siding.
#10 // Limewashed brick
We can’t write a post about exterior brick paint color ideas without mentioning limewash. While a limewashed brick house can appear quite similar to one that’s painted, there are a few differences between the two applications.
Unlike paint, limewash soaks into the surface it’s applied to and takes on the properties of the brick. Paint, on the other hand, sits on top of the surface it’s applied to. Another reason we love limewash is that the coverage is customizable. You can choose a distressed look that allows some of your original brick to show through or select a more opaque finish for more coverage.
Romabio is one of our go-to vendors for limewash paints, and of all their color options, Avorio White is one of our favorites. While it looks fantastic on its own, and that’s typically how we use it, sometimes we’ll recommend tinting it with another hue for a truly customized look (above).
#11 // German smear
German smear is a technique that achieves a look similar to limewash, but unlike limewash, it’s permanent and will not fade over time. German smear adds charm to exteriors of all types. Additionally, it’s another great alternative for homeowners who want to freshen up their brick without painting it.
#12 // Painted brick for commercial properties
Residential homes aren’t the only buildings that can benefit from painted brick. We frequently recommend painted brick for commercial properties too. The restaurant design above features two colors on the brick. We used Sherwin Williams’ Panda White on the upper level and Benjamin Moore’s Soot on the lower level. To connect the covered patio space to the rest of the building, we carried the same two hues throughout.
Our best exterior brick paint color ideas
That concludes our list of the best exterior brick paint color ideas. From embracing earth tones to creating cohesion with a monochromatic color palette, there are plenty of ways you can use brick paint to upgrade your exterior.
If this post has inspired you to paint your brick home but you’re struggling to select the perfect color, don’t stress. We’ll recommend the right shades for your property, as well as any other updates you’re interested in making. Begin your exterior design project today.
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