Agreed. And especially so with rich, saturated colors. I learned that lesson the hard way with a bright yellow that I ended up putting numerous coats on a dresser before I realized it was worthless.

I bought a cheap red and an expensive red. The expensive one took two coats over white. (Amazing!) The cheap one... I gave up after the fifth patchy coat.

I change my mind about colors so frequently (well, every few years) that I don't spend a lot of money on paint, but I don't buy the cheapest around either. I typically go to Sherwin Williams, because their stores are convenient for me, the staff at the stores are helpful, and I like the quality of their paints. I do splurge on their Harmony line of interior paint, however- it's usually around $50-$55 a gallon, but if you plan correctly you can get it during one of their sales for 30%40% off. Even at full price, however, it's worth the extra expense for me.

Benjamin Moore has a lower cost line called BEN, and it's phenomenal. It's about $40 a gallon and is totally worth it as a splurge if you're on a tight budget.

Absolutely!! When we painted our living room a deep red color 6 years ago, we got tinted primer, and we still had to do at least 3 coats. I hope that paints have improved since then, but maybe it was a cheap brand. As a new homeowner, everything seemed expensive to me then.

You get what you pay for...

@Amber, I should have mentioned in my post, but I've become a huge fan of gray primers as opposed to tinted or white. If you decide to repaint or paint something else, go to a knowledgeable sales person and find the right gray primer. And a higher quality paint will be more expensive initially, but you definitely do save in coverage.

Devine Paint is amazing!!! Colors are gorgeous and and the quality of the paint is fantastic.
http://www.devinecolor.com/

Benjamin Moore strongly suggests tinted foundation paint for certain deep colors. Apparently there is a correlation between the amount of pigment in a paint and its translucency. The foundation coat makes a huge difference.

For a small project, such as some kitchen cabinets or a door, it may be worth the $50-plus price to order a quart of Fine Paints of Europe paint, such as their Eco line. The coverage is the best I've ever seen. Not only that, but the consistency of the paint is delightful. Brush marks are nowhere near as prominent as with other paints I've used.

Farrow & Ball paint is outstanding, too. As with FPE, you may have to order it if there is no stockist nearby. Do try it once.

You have to weigh your options when you're painting. If you're going from white walls to say, beige, you can probably go with the cheaper paint. But if you're working with dark colors (either painting new or trying to cover up) a better quality, and yes, more expensive, paint is a MUST.

Pretty much. The first time I tried a Benjamin Moore paint, I immediately noticed the different just from spreading it on the wall. It was rich and thick and spread so easily. I would love to use it all the time but it's just too expensive. I save it for special occasions. There are other decent paints. My first floor is Sherwin-williams and I am not dissatisfied. I used top of the line Valspar for spare bedrooms and bathrooms. But my bedroom is painted in Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue (with 25% white to lighten it a bit) and I love waking up to it every morning.

If you're painting a deep color of anything, put down an achromatic gray primer first. Then the second coat is more of a touch up coat. It's a tip I learned years ago from some one who worked at Sherwin Williams for close to a decade. It's pretty amazing.

The second coat of color, not primer...derp.

ALWAYS buy good quality paint for all the reasons listed in this post. Here's one more: reduce the buildup on surfaces with layers and layers of unnecessary paint. I live in a 20s craftsman bungalow. The interior, including built-ins and doors, has been painted so many times that surfaces are gummy and morphing into their own latex sculptures, rather than the clean-lined architecture that makes the craftsman style so appealing. Now when I paint I spend a lot of time scraping away these layers so I that my paint doesn't add to the problem.

I second the use of Devine Paint - the quality of the paint is really high.

I've been more impressed with Behr in recent years. In our first house we ended up needing to go back for a second gallon to even make it around a typical master bedroom on the first coat. But I've used the new stuff several times in this house and been really impressed with the coverage and color. And I absolutely agree that BM's Ben line is fantastic too. Olympic and Dutch Boy are the worst we've used.

Behr Pure Premium Ultra is great. I won't use anything else.

We just painted our whole place. The valspar paint covered in 2 coats but the Olympic took 4. There isn't much of a price difference and we should have spent the extra few dollars on the valspar for all the walls.

Lowes is the closest home improvement store to us so we went with their brands...

I had a room painted very dark grey by a professional using BM Aura. It looked incredible, but even he said it was difficult to keep a wet edge, and he had to thin it with something. As a newbie DIY-er, I'm nervous to invest so much in paint and then have it look crappy because I don't know what I'm doing.
Anyone have experience painting with Aura?

I paint and repaint all the time, I had been buying Behr and then decided to try Glidden since it's cheaper (maybe $15 instead of $22, but it depends on the finish you choose). I've also used Sherman Williams, though only once. I can't tell the difference. I did a solid black wall with Glidden and it barely needed the second coat I put on (painted over a very pale gray). I have no problem paying a little more if the quality is superior, but so far I don't see a difference in quality.

I got talked into Behr's washable wall paint once and it isn't good. It was rubbery and peeled of in strips when I tried to pull my painter's tape off (which I had done many times with no problems before).

My paint of choice is Behr. It is affordable (although it keeps getting more expensive - a gallon of eggshell used to cost $27, now it's $38. Plus 13% tax.) and it covers really well. I paint dark on light and light on dark with no fear. I have NEVER used a primer. You need two coats anyway, for the finish to be absolutely spotless. So I don't see the point of a primer. (Recently, I painted dark purple on bright lime green - no primer, and it is fab).

I used Benjamin Moore only once but I did not like it. It seemed to me too thick, kinda like butter and to clean the brush was hell.

I have to admit that I recently did buy a cheap Glidden at Home Depot, because I needed to paint only 1 wall and I did not want to spend too much on the paint. I had used Glidden before so I knew what I was doing. But the existing paint and the new paint were of a similar intensity so 2 coats were all I needed. But I would not risk it for the entire room because 1 gallon of Glidden would not have been enough (with Behr, one gallon would suffice).

@baby_smalls - I've not used BM Aura, but Sherwin Williams can be pretty hard to work with (Although I like it a lot) due to the same issue. Most likely your painter used Flotrol, which is excellent for getting the paint to "lie down" as well as slowing down the drying, especially in the heat.

Benjamin-Moore/Sherwin Williams are both solid paints to use. My wife never believed me there was a difference until we went over to help a friend paint some rooms in their house and they had Dutch Boy - she's a believer now.

Behr works alright as well, just doesn't seem to flow as well as the other two.

I also second using Ben, great quality paint. Also, Benjamin Moore's Aura is mildew resistant and therefore a great paint for bathrooms.

Best explanation I have read. Thanks.

We repainted our front porch, at the end of the summer… while searching for the ideal color for our front doors and shutters, I shopped nearly ever paint vendor local to me. The Benjamin Moore was really nice, like everyone says, but my store didn’t offer sample-sizes in all of their colors, only some… and I’m really sold on the sample containers being the way to go if you’re undecided about color.

We ended up with Behr, which we thought compared well to some of the more expensive paints we’ve used on the interior of the house. Also, we used a great primer. I forget which brand, and it wasn’t grey tinted, but it was insanely expensive… after we went through a couple five-gallon buckets, I couldn’t believe how much we spent!

An undercoat or primer in a neutral gray absolutely helps build opacity - especially for the more shear colors like vivid reds.

What gets me is everyone thinks they need to sample on a white board, or wall, or worse use a white primer as an undercoat even if "primer" isn't necessary. White impedes opacity and color perception just as much as, and arguably more than, any other color. Swatch Right™ is a grey paint-peel-and-stick color sample decal that helps build accurate color opacity no matter what price point of paint you choose. www.swatchright.com

My dad always told me that when you paint the walls yourself you're saving money on labor--buy the good paint.

I once did several rooms in Farrow & Ball paint - AMAZING. A dream to paint with. I still think about how the colors looked and how they seemed to change as the light changed or viewed from different angles. Wonderful paint and worth every penny. I would use it again if I could afford it. As a bonus, it's low VOC and totally odorless.

We just had our house painted and our painter said he'd rather not use Aura (which we had used in two rooms that we painted ourselves) for that very reason. He recommended Benjamin Moore's Regal line instead, as it also has a scrubbable matte and can do deep dark colors in two coats. And he was right -- it looks fantastic, and is slightly cheaper than Aura (though not as cheap as the brands Lowe's would carry).

@baby_smalls: I have lots of experience painting with Aura (full disclosure: I work for a paint retailer that sells Aura (amongst other brands/products), and the application technique is different - but not harder - than working with a conventional latex paint. The trick to Aura is to make sure your conditions are right. If your house is very warm and very dry, that stuff will dry on the brush. It's a quick drying acrylic product, and it's designed as such that you are supposed to put it on fairly generously. Applying it too thinly (or thinning it) ruins the coverage. The best way to apply it is to fully cut in your space (that is to say, trim around all of your ceilings/trim/doors/etc), let that dry for a full hour, and then roll the product out. Don't roll heavily back into product that you've just put on, and don't worry too much if the first coat isn't perfect - the second will completely even it out. As long as it isn't dripping off of the wall, you haven't put it on too heavily.

I'm not a pro painter (not by a long shot), but I've used Aura in a couple of rooms in my house (their Bath and Spa product is amazing, by the way) and when I followed those instructions, I had no problems with it. All the new Ben Moore stuff dries quickly, so if you're not doing a huge colour change or want a flat/matte finish, you might like to try their less expensive Ben paint - it has a much bigger 'open' time.

Also, I've been told to be careful where you buy your paints. For instance, Pratt and Lambert is sold at Ace Hardwares, and our painter told us it wasn't actually the same quality as when you got it through a professional paint store or their showroom.

I'm also a big fan of YOLO colorhouse paints.I'm allergic to a lot of paint and when I painted our house, I couldn't afford Aura and I didn't really like SW's green line the last time I used it. YOLO's dark colors go on like yogurt and all of the colors were a pleasure to work with. AND I wasn't allergic to any of them.

Paint sure isn't what it used to be (although it's getting better). This seems to be the case with all types of paints from latex to autos (if you breathe too hard on my wife's Toyota it will scratch).

When I first started painting, the paints were a lot more durable, abrasion resistant and lasted longer. Then the EPA took away all of the "good" paint chemicals and paints went downhill. Sure, the formulation may be better for the environment, but is it really that much better when it takes more coats and you're having to paint more often?

What I really hate is that all of the manufacturers keep changing their formulations without really telling the consumer. 10 years ago I used to like Behr as a good budget based paint, but not any more. Then I went to Sherwin Williams and they changed. Benjamin Moore has always had consistently good paint - it flows well, covers well, adheres well, and lays evenly, but it is expensive.

Another vote for Farrow and Ball paints, which go on beautifully, and the colours have a lot of depth.

I'm a fan of the colors in the Martha Stewart collection at Home Depot, but I found the Glidden paint they use for MS to be difficult... too thick but also patchy. I had them color match using Behr and the difference was night and day. I recommend getting all the paint you will need at once if you are color matching; if you run out and get another batch mixed there may be slight variation between the batches.

I painted one house with Valspar and the next house with Benjamin Moore. No contest. Ben Moore is fabulous. Also like Sherwin Williams as a good 2nd choice. I would love to try Farrow and Ball but it isn't available where I live.

I agree with the last post. Benjamin Moore is fabulous. They put tons of Research and Development into their paints, and the staff is extremely knowledgable. Describe your project and they will steer you in the right direction. You will save hours and hours by buying the right paint. Buy a good brush, too!

Aura is wonderful paint. Here in dry Colorado, upon the advice of my Benjamin Moore stockist, I have "extender" added to the paint - as much as the can will hold. This lengthens the drying time and does not add to the cost.

Fine Paints of Europe has fan decks, but they are very expensive. When I order from them (online, as there is no stockist nearby) I specify the brand, name, and number of another company's paint. FPE's current policy is to custom-mix the color at no extra charge.

I'm amazed by some of these comments. I moved to the Netherlands five years ago, and I was shocked by the cost of paint when we bought our house - but it sounds like we get much better paint than you guys back home. I just repainted the living room, which we originally did in a deep shade of burnt red (what a mistake), and the white I bought (about 40 euros/5L, which I thought was horrifying) covered it in just two coats with a transparent primer. Colors get expensive, but again, they cover well, even the hardware store's brand. Sounds like we're at least getting what we pay for. Suddenly I don't feel so ill about it!

When my garage was off an alley, the graffiti it accumulated was terrible. (That's Hollywood!) Although the rest of the house was yellow, that side of the garage was painted dull grey so it was less of a target. When I had a fellow paint the garage, I told him to get Dunn Edwards paint. He didn't. He regretted buying the cheap brand - it took four coats of paint to cover the graffiti. DE only took one or two - and we had to repaint that wall every second year.

I've never used anything other than Benjamin Moore, so I don't know the difference between them and cheaper paint to be honest. It seems to coat well, but I generally need to put two coats on my walls to ensure even coverage...might just be the wall texture causing that though. I usually use Ben and Natura...didn't much care for the Aura.

I use them because I had seen many recommendations for them and their store is closer to my house than Lowes, Home Depot, or Sherwin Williams. The folks that work there are really nice and helpful to boot.

I used to work for many years in the UK as a painter and decorator, and ended up qualified to teach it.
Although the paint companies have done a lot to make painting much easier than it used to be, it's still worth knowing a little about how paint works.
A primer is formulated to soak into and bind a porous surface or grip a non-porous surface. This is why you sand first: to clean up and remove loose surface material and to scratch it up a bit for grip. Always use a vacuum to get rid of dust after sanding.
An undercoat (now often the same thing as primer) is a dense neutral-colored paint designed to obliterate any variation in the original surface and to provide the right kind of base for the top coat. It also often reveals imperfections that can be sorted out before the final coat is applied.
Now, this is subtler than you'd think. We see color on surfaces based on what gets reflected back from light shining on it. If the layer of paint is very opaque, then the undercoat color matters less. If it's more translucent (reds and yellows for instance) then the undercoat color matters more, as what you see is at least in part light that has passed through the top layer and bounced off what's underneath. In fact, glazes are paints that have been specifically formulated to be translucent, and so you can get wonderful special effects with them. Varnishes are paints with no pigment in them. (FYI pigment is solid and needs a binder, dye is liquid and usually translucent and might stain on its own or provide tinting in a colored varnish or glaze.)
All paint has solvent (to make it easy to apply and that evaporates), a binder that hardens to provide the actual protective layer and support the pigment, pigment to color it, and then variable amounts of fillers and extenders to either help with opacity, or simply add more body to cheaper paint.
Some cheap paints have so much extender that although they look OK in the can, you'll simply never get a full bodied finish with them. They are a total waste of money.
So if you take into account the hourly rate of your painter (or your hourly rate if you're taking time off work to do it yourself) then do it right the first time - it's always more economical.
I was trained to be able to apply paint finishes that could last for decades. Even if you paid me three times more than some unskilled optimist, would it be worth it if the work lasted ten times as long? Maybe not if you just wanted to freshen up and move out in a couple of years. But if you're serious about establishing a lasting professional finish, use the good stuff, and use a professional.

After typing many brands of paint, I' now swear by SICO Cashmere (also the same paint sold as RONA Collection).
It applies evenly in a thin but well saturated coat of colour. Often one will do, even for dark colours - you get solid coverage. It's no VOC so there's no "paint smell" that lingers afterwards. It comes as a "washable flat" - it has a washable texture that still gives the matte appearance of flat paint. I like it because it dries very sheer and doesnt make your wall's sharp crisp edges look heavily built-up or or blobby like I found Behr paint to do (that paint applies very thick).
If you buy the RONA brand it is very competitive with mid-price paints (around 30 to 35$ a gallon). The SICO branded paint is around $40 to $45.
As for the worst paint I've used.. Glidden - Canada's Pride, aka the cheap(est) paint. It's just awful. After trying to repaint dark-coloured doors to white (which I primed, twice), after 4 coats the original colour still was clearly visible. I switched to Moore Spec to finish the job - the doors ended up needing some adjustments from all the added paint as many would no longer fit in the door frame.