Sherwin Williams Snowbound vs Pure White

Looking for the perfect warm white paint color? Let's compare Sherwin Williams Snowbound and Pure White to see which might be right for you!

White is a super popular paint color. Obviously, it is light and bright and can make a room feel magazine-ready.

However, you usually want a warm toned white. Anything cool toned can feel cold or stark, while warm tones tend to feel cozier.

Here are all of my favorite warm white paint colors.

Two of the most popular colors in this category are Sherwin Williams Snowbound and Pure White.

Read my full review of Snowbound

Read my full review of Pure White

Snowbound vs Pure White

What is similar about Snowbound vs Pure White?

Snowbound and Pure White are both warm white paint colors. They are VERY similar in general and the differences require you to really look at them next to each other to pick up on them.

With LRVs of 83 and 84, respectively, they have very similar color depths or darknesses.

They both are also warm toned, meaning they will feel cozy and not at all cold or stark on your walls.

What is different about Snowbound vs Pure White?

	Snowbound	Pure White
LRV	83	84
RBG	R:237 G:234 B:229	R:237 G:236 B:230
Undertones	Snowbound has soft, warm undertones. It leans a bit taupe (creamy, pink) or beige.	Pure white has slightly yellow undertones. It does not read yellow at all but more slightly creamy - which keeps it from being cold or stark.

Undertones

The biggest difference between Pure White and Snowbound comes down to undertones. They are both warm toned white colors but there is some variance between them.

Snowbound has creamy, beige undertones and can lead a little taupe (pink). It has definite gray undertones and can sometimes look a little dirty/dingy next to something more paper white.

Pure White has golden, or slightly yellow, undertones.

Which is whiter snowbound or pure white?

Snowbound has a LRV of 83 while Pure White is 84. The higher the LRV, the lighter the color. So, Pure White is ever so slightly lighter and whiter than Snowbound. But, neither is as white as SW Extra White!

How do I decide between these two colors?

If your room gets a lot of golden, natural light - such as a southern facing room, that will make any color look more yellow. So, in that case, Pure White could read as quite a bit yellow. Snowbound would be a better choice.

On the opposite side of the coin, north-facing rooms have cooler light. That could make Snowbound look ever so slightly taupe, pink, or purple. In cool rooms, stick to Pure White.

Does snowbound go with pure white?

I would not pair snowbound and pure white together. They are so similar, it will just look like a mis-tint mismatch. Instead, pick something with a difference in LRV of 10 or more for tone-on-tone contrast.

Thanks for reading!