House exterior · Dark green · colors from 6 paintings
Dark Green House: Forest Green Exterior Paint Colors
A dark green house works best with very dark walls, light warm trim and a front door that shows up against both. This page gives four complete exteriors, each with wall, trim, door, shutter and roof colors measured from a painting. Every wall color is between LRV 4 and 8, so each reads very dark.
Quick answer
Use a very dark green on the walls, warm cream #E4E0CD on trim and the garage door, and a sage, amber, espresso or gold front door and shutters. Keep the roof black.
Every wall, trim and door color here was measured from one of these public-domain paintings.
4 complete exterior color schemes
Walls, trim, front door and roof together. Each scheme takes its colors from public-domain paintings, so the pairings are ones a painter already put side by side.
Fir Green with Sage Door
Walls #304532
Trim #E4E0CD
Front door & shutters #7E8366
Roof: black
Paint the walls of a two-story colonial deep fir green, the trim cream, and the door and shutters sage. The black roof keeps the whole house dark and crisp.
Exterior paint is seen in much stronger light than a room. Full sun bleaches a color by a shade or two, while the shaded side of the house and overcast days pull it cooler and darker. Test a large sample on two sides of the house.
Color
Swatch
Full sun
Overcast
In shade
Golden hour
Deep Fir Green LRV 5
Smoky Olive Green LRV 6
Deep Moss Green LRV 4
Golden Olive LRV 8
Warm Cream Trim LRV 74
Try these colors on a house
Pick a color for the walls, the trim, the front door and the roof, and switch between house styles. Shadows and siding lines follow your choice.
Roof colors are typical shingle, tile and metal colors, not paint. Every other color comes from a painting on this page.
Colors for the walls
#304532LRV 5
Deep Fir Green
A wall color for a two-story house with an LRV of 5 and a clear green undertone. It comes from the portrait Count Giacomo Durazzo and Ernestine Aloisia Ungnad von Weissenwolff by Martin van Meytens the Younger, and it can read near black in shade.
A wall color with an LRV of 6 and a green undertone that looks softer and grayer than a pure forest green. It is taken from Saint John the Baptist Entering the Wilderness by Giovanni di Paolo and suits a long, low house such as a ranch.
The darkest wall color here at LRV 4, with a green undertone that shows more in full sun. It comes from A Marine by George Inness and fits a farmhouse with plain siding.
A wall color with an LRV of 8 and a deep, warm yellow undertone, so it reads as olive rather than forest green. It is measured from The Afternoon Meal (La Merienda) by Luis Meléndez and sits well beside tan brick or warm stone.
Use it on trim, fascia and the garage door. At LRV 74 it stands out sharply against walls at LRV 4 to 8. Its warm yellow undertone comes from Comtesse de la Châtre by Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun.
A front door and shutter color with an LRV of 22 and a green undertone. It gives a gentle step up from a dark green wall. It is taken from the Van Meytens portrait of Count Giacomo Durazzo and Ernestine Aloisia Ungnad von Weissenwolff.
A front door and shutter color with an LRV of 13 and a deep, warm yellow undertone. It looks rich against olive walls. It comes from Comtesse de la Châtre by Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun.
A front door and shutter color with an LRV of 3 and a warm red-orange undertone. It is nearly as dark as the walls, so it reads as a quiet brown rather than a bright accent. It comes from Troops on the March by Jean-Baptiste Joseph Pater.
The brightest door on this page at LRV 29, with a warm yellow undertone. It draws the eye straight to the entry. It is measured from The Afternoon Meal (La Merienda) by Luis Meléndez.
Start with what will not change. The roof, a brick chimney, stone steps or a foundation all have their own color, and the green has to sit well beside them. Every scheme on this page uses a black roof, so check yours first. If your roof is black or very dark gray, any of these walls will work. If it is another color, hold a shingle next to your sample before you decide.
Then look at the undertone. Three of the walls lean green: #304532, #454536 and #353C1C. They read as forest green, smoky olive and deep moss. The fourth, #555027, has a warm yellow undertone and looks more like dark olive.
Pick a green undertone for a cooler, quieter house. Pick the warm olive if your brick or stone has tan or gold in it. All four walls sit between LRV 4 and 8, so expect a very dark house.
How much contrast should trim and the front door have?
Trim does most of the work on a dark green house. The cream trim here, #E4E0CD, has an LRV of 74. Against walls at LRV 4 to 8, that is a big jump. It outlines windows, corners, fascia and the garage door clearly. Use it on all of them so the house reads as one scheme.
The front door and shutters can be quiet or bold. The sage #7E8366 (LRV 22) is a soft step up from the walls. The amber #885B19 (LRV 13) is deeper. The espresso #412D21 (LRV 3) is nearly as dark as the walls and reads as a warm brown shade. The gold #BF8741 (LRV 29) is the brightest door and pulls the eye to the entry.
Choose one door color and repeat it on the shutters. For a calmer house, pick the door closest to the wall in LRV.
Why does dark green look different in sun and shade?
Outdoor light changes paint more than indoor light. In full sun, a color looks lighter and its undertone shows more. A green wall can look clearly green at noon. In shade, the same wall looks cooler and darker, and a very dark green can read close to black.
That is why a small chip misleads. It also looks lighter than the same color across a whole wall. If you like a mid-dark green, go one shade darker than the chip, because sun and a large surface will lift it. The walls on this page are already between LRV 4 and 8, so there is little room to go darker. Treat each one as the darkest end and judge it in your own light.
Shaded walls will show the coolest, darkest version. Walls in strong afternoon sun will show the most green or olive.
How do you test dark green on a house?
Paint large samples, at least two feet square, on the wall itself or on big boards. Do not judge from a paper card. Put one sample on the sunniest side of the house and one on the shadiest side.
Look at them in the morning, at midday and in the late afternoon. Look once more on an overcast day. Note when the green turns blue-gray or olive. Hold each sample beside the roof, brick or stone it has to live with.
Paint a trim sample next to each wall sample, and add a door sample as well. The contrast between them is part of the look. Leave the samples up for a few days. The paint matches on this page are the closest measured, so confirm them on your own wall before you buy gallons.
FAQ
What is a good forest green exterior paint color?
The deep fir green #304532 is a strong choice, with an LRV of 5. The closest measured matches are Sherwin-Williams SW 41 Dard Hunter Green (close) and Behr BXC-12 Deep Forest (near-identical).
Is a dark green house too dark?
These walls are between LRV 4 and 8, so they read very dark. Cream trim at LRV 74 keeps windows and corners clearly defined, and a black roof completes the look.
What trim color goes with a dark green house?
A warm cream such as #E4E0CD, LRV 74. Closest matches are Sherwin-Williams SW 6175 Sagey and Behr N300-2 Canvas Luggage (both near-identical), and Farrow & Ball No. 282 Shadow White (very close).
What front door color goes with a dark green house?
This page pairs dark green walls with sage #7E8366, amber #885B19, espresso #412D21 or gold #BF8741. Sage is the softest. Gold is the brightest.
What roof color goes with a dark green house?
All four schemes here use a black roof. It keeps the house dark and consistent. If your roof is another color, test your wall sample next to a shingle first.
Save these colors
A card with these house color schemes: walls, trim, front door and roof. Pin it, or take it to the paint store.
Painting images: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Art Institute of Chicago, public domain (CC0).
Colors measured by Light & Pigment. Paint names belong to their brands and matches are approximate. Colors look different on screen than on a wall, so always test a sample.
