Painting your ceiling is a troublesome task—the paint splashes and drips on to your hair, face, and the floor, creating a mess. Ordinary paint is thick and hard to clean, but ceiling paints are spatter-resistant.
Most ceiling paints provide remarkable coverage; they can conceal imperfections, giving your ceiling a flawless and brand-new look. Using ceiling paint will result in a smoother process and a better-looking result.
Some paints will serve as the primer and require only one application, but most give the best results after a second coat. We recommend ceiling paint with low odor and VOCs and fast drying time. To help narrow your search, here is a list of the best paints for ceilings.
The Best Paint for Ceilings
Rust-Oleum Metallic Accents Paint
The Rust-Oleum 253536 Paint can make your home look stylish and elegant. With 15 color shades and a metallic finish, its mica beads cause a shimmering effect when highlighted by light. You can use this water-based paint on various projects, including walls, doors, furniture, and ceilings.
This multi-purpose paint has a low odor level. A 32-ounce container will cover about 105 square feet, and it has a 30 minute drying time.
Rust-Oleum Metallic Accents is an easy-to-use paint that can bring a luxurious style to your home without a leftover mess. You can clean any mess easily with soap and warm water.
Be sure to also check out these cool spray paints for plastic and let yourself be creative.
Glidden Latex Ceiling Paint
If you’re looking for an affordable ceiling paint to deliver a flawless white finish, the Glidden Latex Ceiling Paint is an excellent choice. Its capability to minimize and conceal surface imperfections is unmatched.
The Glidden Latex Ceiling Paint has low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOC), so its mild odor will not irritate your nose. This product is spatter-resistant, eliminating a big mess, and the paint’s drying time is about an hour.
Due to the thin consistency of the Glidden paint, your jobs will require multiple coats to cover imperfections adequately. It is still a noteworthy product considering its reasonable price and great features.
Montage Signature Eco-Friendly Paint
Made in the US, Montage Signature Eco-Friendly Paint is an excellent choice for those looking for local, environmentally conscious ceiling paint. It is made with pollutant-free and ecologically friendly materials, provides maximum coverage and protection against moisture, mold, and mildew.
The Montage Signature Eco-Friendly Paint is available in semi-gloss or low sheen finishes. Different shades of color give your imagination a chance to run wild, and you can use this paint for various outdoor and indoor surfaces, including walls, trim, and ceilings.
All Montage Signature paints come with a 10-year warranty. One downside for this product is that the swatch behind the can is small, confusing when identifying the color.
If you are looking for reliable paints for glass, don’t miss our comprehensive guide on the best ones on the market.
Benjamin Moore Ultra Premium Ceiling Paint
The Benjamin Moore Ultra Premium Ceiling Paint is a premium-quality product that can hide common imperfections like drywall seams and cracks. It delivers an ultra-flat finish that can tone down ceiling glare and provides maximum diffused light.
This ceiling paint from Benjamin Moore is spatter-resistance when you apply it with a roller. It is self-priming when applied over drywall. Free of volatile compounds and harsh odor, and it contains additives that can prevent the growth of mildew and mold.
With all these great features, the Benjamin Moore Ultra Premium Ceiling Paint is undoubtedly one of the best paints for ceilings. Quality comes at a high price, though, and you cannot return the paint if you’ve purchased a custom color.
KILZ Stainblocking Ceiling Paint
With the KILZ Stainblocking Ceiling Paint, you don’t have to guess if your paint is already dry. The color will appear pink if it is wet and change once dry, turning white. Its stain-blocking technology will deliver a flawless matte finish and brighten up worn or tired ceilings after a few coats.
KILZ ceiling paints are splatter resistant, and the low odor will make settling into your new room quick and easy. A gallon of this paint can cover about 400 square feet (smooth surface) or 250 square feet (porous surface).
Here are the best electric paint sprayers on the market. Take a moment to check them out and select the right ones for your home projects.
Homax Smooth Roll-On Texture Paint
The Homax Smooth Roll-On Texture comes in two different shades—a decorative sand finish and a smooth decorative finish. This easy-to-use paint can hide imperfections for a flawless finish, and various applicators can create different textured patterns.
Homax Ceiling paint is fast drying and has a low odor level, making it an excellent choice for all your rooms. A two-gallon container can cover about 150 square feet.
You should make sure the Homax Smooth Roll-On Texture Paint is very dry before touching, but most reviewers recommend the product, mainly because it is easy to use.
Prestige Paints Ultra
The Prestige Paints Ultra is a premium 100% acrylic latex paint, and it is available in a variety of shades. Aside from covering cracks and scratches, this ceiling paint will deliver a smooth finish. Because it’s acrylic, you can clean up any messes with soap and warm water.
This ceiling paint from Prestige Paints contains low amounts of volatile compounds. A gallon of this paint can cover up to 250 to 400 square feet, depending on how porous the ceiling material is. Its drying time is about an hour, and you can apply a second coat after four hours if necessary. A downside for this great product is its price—a bit high compared to the other paints on this list.
Benjamin Moore Studio Finishes Molten Metallics
The Benjamin Moore Studio Finishes Molten Metallics offers gorgeous metallic finishes. It creates a deep rich shimmer, perfect for highlighting your ceilings.
This durable ceiling paint from Benjamin Moore is available in 32-ounce containers, and it comes in six different colors, including silver, gunsmoke, gold, copper, charcoal, and bronze.
A second coat may be necessary after an overnight dry to achieve a flawless finish. You can use this product to give a dramatic metalized look to your furniture, trim, walls, and decorative pieces.
Hy-Tech Acousti-Coat Paint
Hy-Tech Acousti-Coat Paint can reduce noise by about 30%, making an excellent choice for musicians or kid’s bedrooms. The ceiling paint has sound-absorbing fillers and ceramic microspheres in the formula. The combination of ThermaCels with their vacuum centers helps reduce sound transmission, and the pigment fillers limit the sound’s ability to bounce off the surface.
With a drying time of one hour, this ceiling paint from Hy-Tech has a bright white finish. It can be applied to various interior surfaces using a brush, spray, or roller. You can clean any messes easily using soap and warm water, and it is non-toxic and environmentally friendly.
KILZ TRIBUTE Matte Paint and Primer in One
Designed with intention, the KILZ TRIBUTE Matte Paint and Primer in One will hide any imperfections on your ceilings effectively. It has a mildew-resistant finish and coverage with excellent longevity, making this product one of the best paints for ceilings.
You can get precisely the look you’re going for; this paint comes in four different sheens and 100 colors, and a gallon of this ceiling paint can cover up to 400 square feet.
A matte sheen offers a flat finish with a scrubbable film for easy cleanup. Its GREENGUARD certification means it emits low levels of volatile compounds.
BEHR Premium Plus Ultra Flat Ceiling Paint
The BEHR Premium Plus Ultra Flat Ceiling Paint is a combination of paint and primer. It has a gorgeous matte finish, and this paint can hide flaws and traces of previous paint coats with a few applications.
The stain blocking capabilities can help produce a non-reflective appearance so that the ceiling will appear smoother, and the paint is resistant to mildew and mold.
This ceiling paint from BEHR is splatter and drip-resistant, so it does not make a mess. If there are any mishaps, you can clean it easily with soap and warm water.
Benjamin Moore Muresco Ceiling Paint
The Benjamin Moore Muresco Ceiling Paint is a popular product among professional painters and homeowners because it delivers a uniform flat finish and offers several great features. It is splatter-resistant when applied with a roller, making little to no mess. When applied to drywall, it is self-priming, eliminating a step.
As an acrylic latex paint, the Benjamin Moore Muresco Ceiling Paint creates a rubbery layer on your ceilings, toning down glare and delivering maximum diffused light. It has a less-toxic formula, making it great for health-conscious individuals.
Although a great product within the professional industry, it is most efficiently applied with a roller, and it is not great for spray-on application.