Linen White
Behr's everyday warm white, reviewed honestly: the light where it glows, the exact rooms where it goes yellow or flat, and the one name mix-up almost every buyer makes.
Jessica has spec'd whites and neutrals for more than 300 rooms and keeps a sample wall of painted drawdowns in her studio. Every color review is checked against real reader rooms in the comments and re-tested when a formula changes. About the testing process →
- 1First Star69
- 2Classic Gray74
- 3Linen White85
- 4Chantilly Lace91
- 5Ultra Pure White97
The Fast Verdict
Linen White is Behr's dependable, budget warm off-white — a soft cream that sits between a full builder white and a deep beige without picking a side. It never goes stark, and in decent daylight it reads calm and finished instead of cream-cake yellow. It won't win a design magazine's cover, but it is the color a contractor grabs off the Home Depot shelf when a homeowner just wants "a nice warm white" without a special order.
Whole-house trim and doors · rental and resale walls that need to read clean, not cold · bedrooms and living rooms with warm wood floors · budget kitchen cabinet refreshes
Your counters or tile are cool gray or blue-toned · you're pairing it with a brighter, cooler white trim · the room is true north with no warm bulbs · you actually want Benjamin Moore's own Linen White (OC-146) — same name, different paint
- Budget-friendly warm off-white sold at every Home Depot
- Stays warm without tipping yellow in decent daylight
- Flatters oak, walnut, butcher block, and brass
- Works as a one-color walls + trim + cabinets scheme
- A notch brighter than Swiss Coffee, so it reads lighter and less "cream cake" on big walls
- Goes flat and slightly grey in true north light without warm bulbs
- Clashes with cool grey or blue-toned quartz and tile
- Looks dingy next to a brighter, cooler white trim
- Easily confused by name with Benjamin Moore's own Linen White (OC-146) — a different, deeper paint entirely
What Color Is Linen White, Really?
A warm, low-chroma off-white built on a soft beige-cream base — quiet rather than bright, with none of the pink or green that trips up other creams. It has sat in Behr's core deck for years as one of the brand's standard warm neutrals, the kind of color a painting contractor reaches for by number without needing to sample it first. It is not a Color of the Year, it is not a designer darling — it is the reliable, inexpensive answer to "just give me a warm white."
At LRV 85 it reflects most of the light that hits it, sitting a notch brighter than its Behr stablemate Swiss Coffee (LRV 80) and roughly matching Benjamin Moore White Dove (LRV 85) in how much light it bounces back — though Linen White carries a touch more cream and less grey than White Dove's greyed-down warmth. On a wall it stays light and airy rather than deep and cocooning; on trim and cabinets it reads as classic warm-white woodwork, not a stark builder white.
Undertone in one line: warm beige-cream, never pink, never green. If it looks yellow on your wall, that's strong sun or incandescent bulbs doing their job; if it looks grey and lifeless, that's a north window with no warm light reaching it.
Where It Shines
Give it real daylight, warm wood floors, and a normal budget and it does exactly the job it's sold to do. It's the classic Behr trim-and-door white — semi-gloss Linen White under a mid-tone wall color softens the contrast the way an expensive trim white would, at a fraction of the price. On cabinets it's a common refresh choice: light enough to brighten a dated kitchen, warm enough not to look cold against oak counters and brass pulls.
Where It Fails
Almost every disappointed review of Linen White comes down to one of three predictable situations — none of them the paint's fault, all of them avoidable if you catch them before the first coat.
Grey quartz, blue-grey subway tile, or brushed-nickel-heavy kitchens sit at the opposite temperature from this cream, and the contrast pushes Linen White noticeably yellow by comparison. The paint didn't change — the counter next to it is just colder than the wall. If your stone is cool-toned, sample a true white or a cooler off-white like Behr Polar Bear instead.
The most common regret is a mismatch, not a bad color: Linen White walls next to a brighter, cooler white trim (Behr Ultra Pure White, builder-grade ceiling white) makes the walls look dingy by comparison. The fix is the one-color rule — walls and trim both in Linen White, letting the sheen change do the separating.
North light is cool and flat, and it strips the cream out of Linen White, leaving a slightly grey, sleepy off-white that readers call "dull" rather than "warm." Swap in 2700K bulbs before you blame the paint, or move up to a deeper cream like Behr Cottage White or Blank Canvas for a dim room.
Room by Room
With any real daylight it's a calm, forgiving backdrop for wood furniture and family photos — the kind of white that disappears into "finished" rather than announcing itself. Eggshell on walls, same color in semi-gloss on trim.
This is where Linen White earns its keep: a light, warm cabinet refresh that costs a fraction of a custom paint. It loves oak, butcher block, and brass. Cool grey quartz or stainless-heavy kitchens are the one place to sample carefully first.
Under 2700K lamps it turns soft and cozy at night. In a north-facing bedroom with only cool overhead light, it can read a little flat — swap the bulbs before you repaint.
With warm-toned tile, wood vanities, and brass fixtures it's an easy, inexpensive choice. Against cool grey marble-look tile or chrome, it starts to look yellow next to the fixtures — same clash as the kitchen counters.
Semi-gloss Linen White trim under a mid-tone wall color (greige, sage, navy) is one of the most common trim-white combinations at Home Depot, and it holds up: it softens contrast without going stark.
Full outdoor sun brightens it and can push the cream toward yellow on a large facade — fine if you're pairing it with warm trim and okay with a traditional look, risky if you wanted a crisp modern white. Most exterior buyers who want this exact effect are better served by a purpose-built exterior white; test a large sample outdoors before committing.
Your Light Is the Risk
South and west sun keep the cream glowing without pushing it yellow. This is the light Linen White was built for.
Cool flat daylight drains the cream and leaves a slightly grey, sleepy off-white. Test with a big sample before committing a whole room.
Warm and glowing at the sun hours, a quieter neutral the rest of the day. Most owners like the change; it's gentle, not a color swap.
2700K lamps: cozier, creamier. Cool white LEDs: flat and slightly grey — change the bulb before you repaint.
Most complaints about Linen White are a light mismatch. Upload a photo of your actual room and see it on your walls — then ask for the same wall in north light or evening lamps before you buy a single sample.
Need It From Another Brand?
Any paint counter can custom-tint Behr 70 directly. If you would rather stay in one brand's own deck, these are the closest stock matches, measured as ΔE2000. Under 2 is a difference you will not see on the wall.
| Brand | Closest color | ΔE | LRV | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sherwin-Williams | Venetian LaceSW 7119 · Sherwin-Williams | 0.8 | 86 | Color page → |
| Benjamin Moore | White Rock918 · Benjamin Moore | 1.6 | 86 | Color page → |
| Valspar | Milk and HoneyT546 · Valspar | 1.6 | 86 | Color page → |
| PPG / Glidden | Satin WeavePPG1209-1 · PPG / Glidden | 1.9 | 85 | Color page → |
| Glidden | Summer Haze Light44YY 87/118 · Glidden | 0.2 | 87 | Color page → |
| Dutch Boy | Carnival Crème111-1DB · Dutch Boy | 2.1 | 86 | Color page → |
Similar Behr Colors
The nearest shades to Linen White within Behr's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.
WCAG 2.1: AA is 4.5 : 1 for normal text, 3 : 1 for large text, AAA is 7 : 1.
Linen White vs the Colors You're Also Considering
Every Linen White sample board has the same rivals on it. The numbers show the real lightness gap — then it comes down to which risk you would rather live with.
Pick this for a shade brighter and lighter — Linen White gives more punch of white without going stark.
Behr W-B-700 · LRV 87Swiss CoffeePick this if you want Behr's warmest, deepest safe off-white — a step further into cream than Linen White.
Pick this when you're painting at Home Depot prices — nearly the same light reflectance, a fraction of the cost.
Benjamin Moore PM-19 · LRV 85White DovePick this if your painter works in Benjamin Moore and you want the era-defining version of this exact warm-white idea.
Pick this when a contractor says "Linen White" and you're buying at Home Depot — confirm the brand before you order, because these two colors don't match on the wall.
Benjamin Moore PM-28 · LRV 83Linen WhitePick this only if you actually want Benjamin Moore's Linen White — it's a full step deeper and creamier, and the two paints are NOT interchangeable despite sharing a name.
Sherwin-Williams Paperwhite SW 7105 at LRV 87 is the closest match on record, with a color difference of 0.55, which means the same color on a wall. Diamond Vogel Pumice Stone 0016 at LRV 88 is nearly as close at 0.9.
Benjamin Moore Butterfield 897 at LRV 87 and Glidden Arizona White 42YY 87/084 at LRV 87 land at 1.06 and 1.24, so they are visually identical in normal room light. Valspar Warm Milk 8007-8B at LRV 87 sits at 1.75 and behaves the same way.
Farrow and Ball Pointing No. 2003 at LRV 86 is further out at 2.83, so it is very close but worth sampling first, since it is a little less yellow and slightly grayer. Within Behr, Confection BWC-02 at LRV 88 is the choice when you want the warmth pulled back while keeping the same brightness, and Moon Valley ECC-44-2 at LRV 89 when you want a shade more cream.
Linen White Coordinating Colors
The rule for pairing with Linen White is simple: stay warm. It sits comfortably next to warm greiges, deep navy, and near-black accents, and it starts to argue with anything cool grey or blue. These are the partners that keep showing up in rooms that work:
Behr Linen White vs. Benjamin Moore Linen White: Don't Mix Them Up
This is the single most common confusion buyers run into with this color, and it's worth spelling out plainly: Behr's Linen White (SKU 70, hex F7EDD8, LRV 85) and Benjamin Moore's Linen White (SKU OC-146, hex EAE0CD, LRV 80) are two different paints from two different brands that happen to share a popular name. Neither company copied the other — "linen white" is simply a common descriptive name for a warm off-white, and multiple brands have used it.
The practical difference: Benjamin Moore's version reads a step deeper and creamier on the wall, closer to a light beige. Behr's version, reviewed here, is lighter and closer to a true warm white. If you're working from a Pinterest photo or a designer's spec sheet, always confirm the brand before you buy — a Home Depot mixing counter cannot color-match a can labeled only "Linen White" without knowing which company's formula you mean.
Linen White With Wood Tones and Floors
Warm wood is this color's best friend. Oak, walnut, and butcher block all sit comfortably against Linen White because the paint's warmth meets the wood halfway — orange-leaning builder oak looks calmer next to it rather than more orange.
Cool grey or grey-washed LVP floors are the one flooring combination that needs a sample first: they pull Linen White's warmth into relief and can make the wall read slightly yellow by comparison. It's rarely a dealbreaker with a warm rug or wood furniture in the room, but test a large swatch above the actual floor before committing the whole space.
Three Ready Palettes Built on Linen White
A color is never alone on the wall. These are complete combinations in the 60-30-10 pattern, with the reason each one holds together. Every one opens in the visualizer.
One color at two sheens gives depth without contrast lines and costs almost nothing extra to buy. The navy door supplies the single dark note the house needs.
Try this palette in your roomA kitchen you can order in one trip: warm beige walls and cream cabinets share the same undertone, so the wall-to-cabinet line disappears, and the island carries the one dark note without a special mix.
Try this palette in your roomA warm trim white softens the edge between a warm greige wall and a dark door — the same one-color-of-trim logic that makes White Dove a go-to, at Behr prices.
Try this palette in your roomLinen White FAQ
Is behr linen white the same as benjamin moore linen white?
No, and this is the single most common mix-up with this color. Behr Linen White is SKU 70, hex F7EDD8, LRV 85. Benjamin Moore's own Linen White is OC-146, hex EAE0CD, LRV 80 — noticeably deeper and creamier on the wall. If a designer or contractor says "Linen White" without naming the brand, confirm which one before you order paint.
Is behr linen white warm or cool?
Warm — a soft beige-cream with no pink or green in it. It stays warm in most light and only reads flat or grey in a true north room without warm bulbs.
What's the difference between linen white and swiss coffee?
Both are Behr's warm off-whites and both are safe choices. Linen White is a shade brighter at LRV 85 versus Swiss Coffee's LRV 80, so it reads a bit lighter and less deeply creamy on a large wall. If you want the warmest, most cream-forward of the two, pick Swiss Coffee; if you want more punch of white, pick Linen White.
Does it work with gray or white quartz countertops?
It's best with warm-toned quartz, butcher block, or wood counters. Against cool grey or blue-toned quartz, the cream starts to read yellow by comparison. Sample a larger swatch next to your actual counter before committing the whole kitchen.
What trim color goes with linen white walls?
Linen White itself, in semi-gloss, is the safest answer — a brighter, cooler trim white will make the walls look dingy next to it. If you want contrast, go a shade darker or warmer, not brighter.
How many coats does it take, and do i need to prime over a dark color?
Two coats over any light existing wall color. Going over a dark, saturated color, prime first with a tinted primer — otherwise you're paying for three or four coats of white to cover it.
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