Whether you’re looking to update your front door, freshen up your fence or give your garden furniture a brand new look, it’s important you choose a paint that will provide you with a professional, long-lasting finish.
To make it easy for you, we’ve scoured the market to find a selection of the best exterior wood paints available in the uk, including everything from chalk paint to wood and metal gloss paints.
Keep reading to discover our top pick, and before you start painting, make sure to check out our guide to the best painting tools and the best places to buy paint online.
Best exterior wood paint
Dulux Once Gloss Paint
Designed for both interior and exterior use, a 2.5l tin of this white wood and metal paint will cover a total of 30m2, or the equivalent of 12m2 per litre. In theory, you’ll only need one coat to cover the surface you choose to paint, but if you do choose to add another, you’ll need to wait 16 hours in between coats.
Dulux Once for Wood and Metal is solvent based and has a high gloss finish, so it’s a great option if you want a traditional look for your front door. Learn how to gloss a front door with our tutorial, or go back to basics and learn the difference between gloss and satin paint finishes.
While Dulux Once is only available in Pure Brilliant White (above), their Quick Dry gloss range is available in a wide variety of shades, from pastel pink to vibrant lime.
Ronseal White Satin Wood paint
This exterior wood paint is extremely durable, boasting 10 years of weather protection - all you need to do is apply it with a synthetic brush in the direction of the wood grain and leave it to dry for an hour. The formula is drip-resistant and won’t crack, peel or blister after application. There’s no need for primer either - just prepare the wood by lightly sanding it and wiping with white spirit.
Ronseal's weatherproof wood paint comes in a range of shades, from white satin (above) to black, red, blue and green - so you're sure to be able to find the perfect match.
See our pick of the best decking paints.
Cuprinol Garden shades Matt Wood paint
Cuprinol's Garden Shades weatherproof wood paint can be applied with a brush, roller or spray to provide not only colour, but four years of protection to exterior wood. The water-based formula is suitable for use on all types of garden wood including furniture and fences, will cover an average of 12m² per litre and takes 8 hours to dry. Our favourite shade is silver birch (above), but there are many others to choose from if grey isn’t to your taste.
Valspar Trade Pure brilliant white Satin Metal & wood paint
This Valspar trade paint has been specifically designed to give a durable and long-lasting finish on both wooden and metallic surfaces. It’s tough, durable, and you can easily scrub marks off it without causing any damage after it dries. The formulation is also self-levelling to ensure a smooth finish, and it won’t yellow over time.
Wickes Eggshell Wood Paint
Wickes’ eggshell paint is a solvent-based paint that’s suitable for use on both interior and exterior wood and metal. It dries with a sheen finish that’s washable, so you can easily keep your surfaces clean, and it’s resistant to condensation, moisture and the elements.
Wickes Garden Colour Matt Wood Treatment
This garden paint will colour and protect exterior wood, making it a good option for use on fences and outdoor furniture. It takes a total of four hours to dry, after which the colour becomes fade-resistant, and provides five years of weather protection. You can also use it on stone, terracotta and brick.
Frenchic Al Fresco paint
Frenchic’s Al Fresco range is a water based chalk and mineral paint that can be used on indoor and outdoor wood, as well as laminate, UPVC, metal and stone. The self-levelling, self-priming and self-sealing formula is durable, weatherproof and UV resistant, and comes in a huge variety of bright and pastel colours. It also has minimal VOC content.
Find out more about eco-friendly paints and we've also been busy with our tried-and-tested review of the best wood primer.
