Best types of paint for children's rooms – safe and durable options for kids

If you’re after the best types of paint for children’s rooms, you’re probably looking for an option that is tough enough to survive any knocks and marks, is easy to clean, and is safe enough for use in a room where your children spend a lot of time, either sleeping, studying and playing. 

Choosing a specific paint for each room of your home is important, as every space has different purposes – such as bathrooms, which need to be able to handle lots of moisture. Paint in a child's room needs to be both safe and durable – and thankfully, there are plenty of paint options that are suitable, in terms of quality, safety and how hardwearing they are.

And you don’t need to compromise on the finish when it comes to paint ideas for kids' rooms – many options that are suitable for children’s bedrooms are just as stylish as the paint you’d use in any other room of your home.

Best types of paint for children’s rooms

So what exactly do you need to look out for when buying paint for a child’s room? We spoke to paint experts and interior designers to get their professional take on the key components your can of paint should have when redecorating a little one’s room. These are the types of paint they’d recommend in order to create a healthy, easy-to-maintain, and fun space for your kids.

1. A low or no-VOC paint

Perhaps the most important consideration when deciding on the best paint for your child’s bedroom is ensuring that it has a low amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These are chemicals found in many solvent-based paints, which vaporize when they come into contact with the air.

'In selecting paints for kid’s rooms, we strive to strike a balance between air quality – meaning low – or preferably no-VOCs, and durability,' interior designer Monica Guarnaschelli, owner at Indigo Mavens said.

Why? Trina Rogers, color consultant at Five Star Painting, explained that VOCs can be pretty damaging. 'Volatile organic compounds are added to most paints to speed up drying time, and they inhibit the growth of mold, as well as adding more durability to the final product. Unfortunately, however, prolonged exposure to VOCs can lead to headaches, dizziness, lung irritation, and other potentially serious health problems, especially for young children, pregnant women, and the elderly.'

Trina Rogers

Trina Rogers is the Color Consultant at Five Star Painting, a Neighborly brand located in Temple, Texas.

As such, a low-VOC or no-VOC paint is one of the best types of paint for use in a child’s room, in order to reduce their exposure to something that has the potential to be harmful. You can now get great quality low-VOC paints from the likes of Backdrop Home, Lick, Sherwin-Williams, and Benjamin Moore (one of the best paint brands around).

Because of this, it’s also vital to ensure that your son or daughter doesn’t inhabit the room you’re decorating too soon after doing so. 'The most critical factor in making paints safe in children’s rooms is giving adequate curing time,' Monica told Homes & Gardens. 'While the paint is drying, the off-gassing of VOCs will be at their peak. Keeping little ones (or pregnant moms) away during this period is very important.'

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2. A higher sheen paint – for durability and washability

When planning the best paint for children’s rooms, another consideration (likely among all parents) is how well it can sustain any knocks, dents, and marks, and how well any such marks  – be it crayons, pens, or dirty hand marks – can be cleaned off.

So what kind of paint finish is the most durable and washable? Is matte or eggshell paint better for kids' rooms? According to the experts, there’s a clear winner. 'While we love the look of matte and the trending lime wash or mineral finishes, children’s rooms typically demand a higher sheen paint (eggshell or greater) for clean-ability,' Monica told us. 

Interior designer Kristina Phillips explained further, 'A matte finish tends to show scuff marks, and is hard to wipe clean. Increasing the sheen will ensure your paint can withstand the rigors of a well-used room.' As such, eggshell, satin, or semi-gloss are usually great options.

Kristina Phillips

Kristina Phillips is a NJ-based interior designer with over a decade of experience. Prior to starting her own eponymous firm in 2020, she had been the principal designer and co-founder of K+K Interior Design for over 6 years.

If you prefer, she also suggested that, 'Acrylic based paints allow for wiping away marks without leaving a chalky residue. Or, another fun way to use paint in a kids room is with chalkboard paint, a textured paint. Designating a section of wall (within easy reach) for drawing and writing fosters creativity.'

3. Paint that isn’t lead-based

Jordan Woolf, CEO of We Buy Houses In Bama shared that it is vital to ‘opt for paints that are specifically labeled as non-toxic and lead-free. This ensures they are safe for children and minimizes potential health risks.'

As you may well know, lead can be highly toxic, and can cause a range of health problems – particularly so if the lead paint is damaged, chipping, or cracking.

Similarly, ensuring that any existing paint in your child’s room is safe – whether it was put there by you, or perhaps a previous owner or tenant – is also something you’ll want to consider when it comes to redecorating. Monica said, 'One important thing, especially in older homes, is testing for old lead-based paint. If there’s evidence of lead, a special primer, or professional intervention, may be advised.'

Advising further, Trina said, 'Lead paint can be very harmful to young children, and special care needs to be given for the removal of it. Lead test kits are available in most paint and hardware stores or can be ordered online. If you have lead paint, it is highly recommended that you hire someone certified in lead paint removal to safely dispose of it.'

So if you’re wondering whether you can stick with the paint that’s already in your child’s room, it is well worth checking its quality beforehand before making a decision.

4. Allergy-free paint

Though it may not have crossed your mind previously, Kristina explains that using allergy-free paint can also be a fantastic option for kid’s bedrooms, explaining that the lack of contaminants in this kind of paint means that it’s a solid choice whether your little one currently suffers with allergies or not.

'As a mother and a designer, I would always recommend using the cleanest paint possible in a child's bedroom, or any room in the house for that matter,' she said. 'After all, allergies can develop at any time, so minimizing that factor is always a good idea.'

Plenty of brands have their own allergy-free paint, but there’s one Kristina especially recommends for children. 'The Eco Spec line by Benjamin Moore, for example, is Green Seal Certified and also certified Asthma and Allergy friendly by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.  This line comes in three finishes, and is 100% acrylic.'

5. Consider alternatives to paint

Though you may have your heart set on paint, there are other safe wall options that are also easily cleaned which you can use if you’re looking for kids' room ideas.

For example, Monica said, 'Outside of paint, we also like to consider vinyl wall coverings in children’s rooms. The new generation of wallpaper is incredibly durable. Some brands, including our favorite, Thibaut, can literally be scrubbed with bleach - making them an ideal choice for hardworking spaces for children.'

And in fact, many brands have their own washable wallpaper, with a specific kind of coating, which can sometimes be much easier to get clean than painted walls.

FAQs

Emily Finch

Emily Finch is an interior designer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is design director at Emily Finch Design Studio, and designs homes almost exclusively for families with children, meaning she regularly uses paints that are safe and durable. 

Finally, if you're looking to paint other rooms in your home, it may also be helpful to take a look at our expert guides to the best paint finishes for living rooms, how to paint kitchen cabinets, and the best paint finishes for bathrooms.