Buy ASSURE when price per gallon is the number deciding the job — a rental turn, a flip, or a color-for-color refresh. At $20 to $28 a gallon it rolls easily, cuts in cleanly, covers in two coats on a like-color wall, and the zero-VOC formula lets you paint an occupied room. Where it falls short is exactly where a cheap gallon falls short: one-coat hide is not there, flat and eggshell burnish, and touch-ups flash months later.
Which Sheen Are You Buying?
Four sheens, and on a value paint the sheen decides how long the wall looks new. The washability gap between the flatter and shinier finishes is wider here than on a premium line, so pick for cleaning, not for looks.
Spec Sheet
- COVERAGE
- Up to about 400 sq ft / gal per coat; two coats recommended
- SHEENS
- Flat, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss
- TYPE
- Paint-and-primer-in-one interior latex
- TOUCH DRY
- About 1 hr
- RECOAT
- About 4 hr at 50–90F
- FULL CURE
- Several days
- VOC
- Zero VOC, low odor; tint bases may add a trace
- PRIMER
- Self-priming on sound painted walls; bare, patched, or glossy surfaces still want a primer
- SURFACES
- Interior walls and ceilings; drywall, plaster, primed wood and trim
- COLORS
- 1,200-plus in the Olympic palette, tinted at Lowe's
- SIZES
- Quart, 1-gallon, 5-gallon
- PRICE
- $20–28 / gal at Lowe's; started under $20
When It Goes Wrong — and How to Fix It
A thin, patchy first coat
Why it happens: One-coat hide is not in this paint. The first pass goes on thin, which is normal for a value latex but a real cost in time and product. Over a color change or a deep tint base it can take three coats to even out.
The fix: Plan two coats from the start and buy the gallons for it. On a dark-over-light change, prime first — a real primer coat costs less than a third coat of paint and gets you there faster.
Shiny patches where you wiped the wall
Why it happens: Flat and eggshell burnish. Rubbing the finish polishes it, so a cleaned spot in a hallway or behind a chair reads shinier than the wall around it. That is standard for a value paint at these sheens.
The fix: Put satin or semi-gloss on anything you clean, and keep flat for ceilings and low-traffic bedrooms. Once a wall has burnished, the only real repair is re-rolling it corner to corner.
A touch-up that shows from across the room
Why it happens: Spot-coating a scuff months later leaves a visible patch on the flatter sheens, and satin can ring with a halo. This is where the value quietly leaks back out in a house you are keeping.
The fix: Repair to a natural break — cut in and roll the whole wall rather than dabbing. In a long-term home, that recurring cost is the argument for spending up a tier at the start.
Stains and patches bleeding through the paint-and-primer
Why it happens: Self-priming works on a sound, previously painted wall in a similar color. It does not replace a real primer on bare drywall, fresh patches and skim coats, stains and water marks, glossy surfaces, or a big color change.
The fix: Prime those surfaces properly first. Chasing coverage with extra coats of ASSURE spends the savings you bought the paint for, and a stain will keep ghosting through no matter how many coats go over it.
Application Settings That Work
- BRUSH
- Cuts in cleanly and flows off a roller without much spatter, so a weekend DIYer will not fight it. It drags a little on long cut lines next to a premium acrylic — work in shorter runs and keep the brush loaded.
- PRIMER
- Self-priming on a sound, previously painted wall in a similar color. Use a real primer on bare drywall, fresh patches and skim coats, stains and water marks, glossy surfaces, and any big color change like white over red.
ASSURE vs Valspar Ultra vs HGTV Home Showcase
All three sit on the same Lowe's shelf, which makes this an unusually clean comparison. The price gap is about $10 to $15 a gallon, and what it buys is coats and cleanability.
| Olympic ASSURE | Valspar Ultra | HGTV Home Showcase | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price per gallon | $20–28 | $32–37 | Mid-tier, above ASSURE |
| Hide and coats | Two coats minimum, three on a color change | Hides in fewer coats | Trades blows with Ultra on coverage |
| Washability | Flat and eggshell burnish; satin and semi-gloss take a wipe | Scrubs noticeably harder | Strong for the tier |
| VOC | Zero VOC, low odor | Low-VOC acrylic | Low-VOC acrylic |
| Colors | 1,200-plus Olympic shades | Deep Valspar deck | The HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams deck |
| Where you buy it | Lowe's exclusive | Same Lowe's aisle | Same Lowe's aisle |
| Best for | Volume work on a budget | One room done once | One room done once, with the SW chemistry |
The honest ranking: ASSURE wins on price, Valspar and HGTV win on hide and washability. If you are covering a whole rental on a budget, ASSURE's price per gallon is the argument and the savings are real. If you are painting one room and you want it done right, the $10 to $15 upcharge to Valspar Ultra or HGTV Home Showcase usually pays for itself in coats you do not have to roll. And if you want genuine one-coat hide and a scrub-grade finish, none of the three gets you there — that is the Behr Marquee and Sherwin-Williams Emerald tier, at two to three times ASSURE's gallon.
What It's Good At
- +Price per gallon — among the cheapest paint-and-primer at any big box
- +Zero VOC and genuinely low odor, so an occupied room stays livable
- +Easy application: low spatter off the roller, clean cut lines, forgiving for a DIYer
- +Color access — 1,200-plus Olympic shades tinted at the Lowe's counter
- +Self-priming on a sound, previously painted wall in a similar color
- +Volume work: quart, gallon, and 5-gallon sizes across four sheens
What It's Not Good At
- −One-coat hide. Two coats, and three over a color change or a deep base
- −Scrub durability — flat and eggshell burnish and pick up marks
- −Touch-ups, which flash on the flatter sheens and halo on satin
- −Kitchens and baths, where a washable premium line earns its price
- −Living up to the lifetime warranty and Good Housekeeping Seal on the label
- −Long cut lines, where it drags a little next to a premium acrylic
Honest Alternatives
The obvious step-up on the same Lowe's shelf. It hides in fewer coats and scrubs noticeably harder for about $10 to $15 more a gallon, and Valspar Reserve goes another tier up. HGTV Home Showcase is the other mid-tier paint-and-primer there and trades blows with Ultra on coverage.
The tier where true one-coat hide and a scrub-grade finish actually exist. They are the benchmarks for coverage, color retention, and washability, and the saved coats partly offset the price. The right call for a forever home, a high-traffic kitchen, or a dramatic color change.
Lowe's rock-bottom contractor lines below ASSURE. Thinner, lighter on hide, and fewer color and sheen options, but they get a wall painted for the least money on a quick rental refresh in white. ASSURE is the better paint if your budget stretches the extra few dollars.
ASSURE Interior Paint Questions, Answered
Is Olympic ASSURE good for the price?
For a paint-and-primer that starts under $20 a gallon, yes, with limits. It goes on easily, it is zero-VOC and low-odor, and on a previously painted wall in a like-for-like color it covers in two coats and looks clean. Where it falls short of a premium gallon is one-coat hide, scrub durability, and touch-up on flat and eggshell. Buy it when the budget leads and the job is a straightforward refresh.
How does ASSURE compare to the Valspar and HGTV paints at Lowe's?
All three live on the same shelf, and ASSURE is the cheapest. Valspar Ultra, and the step-up Valspar Reserve, hide better in fewer coats and scrub harder for roughly $10 to $15 more a gallon. HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams Showcase trades blows with Ultra on coverage. ASSURE wins on price; the other two win on hide and washability.
Does ASSURE really skip a separate primer?
On a sound, previously painted wall in a similar color, yes. It does not replace a real primer on bare drywall, fresh patches and skim coats, stains and water marks, glossy surfaces, or a big color change like white over red. Those need a dedicated primer coat first, or you will add coats of ASSURE to chase coverage and spend the savings anyway.
How many coats will I need?
Two on a like-for-like repaint, and sometimes three over a color change or a deep tint base. The first pass goes on thin — that is normal for a value paint but a real cost in time and product. Prime first on a dark-over-light change; a primer coat is cheaper and faster than a third coat of paint.
Can I use it in a kitchen or a bathroom?
Only in satin or semi-gloss, and even then it trails premium washable lines. Flat and eggshell burnish where you wipe them and pick up marks, so this is not the finish for behind a sink, a stove, or a kid's chair rail. A room you scrub weekly is where spending up actually pays.
Did ASSURE replace Olympic ICON?
Yes. ASSURE is the current Olympic interior wall paint and it replaced the discontinued ICON line. Same shelf, same value positioning, new name. If you painted a room with ICON a few years back and went looking for more, ASSURE is what you will find in its place.
Is the lifetime warranty and the Good Housekeeping Seal worth anything?
They read like premium reassurance and the paint underneath performs like what it costs. Read what the warranty actually covers and you will find the usual narrow film-failure terms, not a promise the finish will outlast a pricier paint. Buy it for the price, not the badges.
Is it safe to paint a room I am sleeping in that night?
The interior formula is zero-VOC and genuinely low-smell, so painting an occupied room without clearing out is the normal use case here. It cleans up with water and is easy to live with around kids and pets. Ventilate anyway while you work.
Where do I buy it, and should I get the 5-gallon?
Lowe's, and only Lowe's in any real way — it is an exclusive line, tinted at the counter across 1,200-plus colors and all four sheens. For a whole-house job the 5-gallon shaves a little off the per-gallon and keeps you in one tint batch. Get the color mixed at the desk rather than picking off the shelf.
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