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Best emulsion paint

Updated: October 2026

You have eight matt emulsions on amazon.co.uk and you want one of them to be the answer. In this set, the top pick is a score, not a laboratory prize, and the cheapest tin per litre is a different claim from the best film. We ranked the listings checked on 19 October 2026: stars times 20, then a deduction when a field contradicts the tin or the review count is under 250. We did not paint a test wall. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The full table is the [emulsion paint comparison](/hub/paints-and-varnishes/emulsion-paint).

You have eight matt emulsions on amazon.co.uk and you want one of them to be the answer.

Our top picks

Johnstone's Johnstone's Ballet Slipper matt 2.5 L

Best overall

Johnstone's Johnstone's Ballet Slipper matt 2.5 L
9.2/10about £16.30
View offer
Dulux Dulux Matt pure brilliant white 7 L

Alternative

Dulux Dulux Matt pure brilliant white 7 L
8.8/10about £27.05
View offer
Crown Crown brilliant white matt 10 L

Best value

Crown Crown brilliant white matt 10 L
7.6/10about £20.87
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What best means in this set
  2. 2.White for more than one wall
  3. 3.A named colour
  4. 4.A scuff, not a wall

What best means in this set

Johnstone's Ballet Slipper, 2.5 litres at £16.30, is the top pick inside these eight because 4.6 from 1,041 reviews scores 92. A trade vinyl matt with a published scrub class is a different shelf, and it is not in this file. The next three tie on 90: Natural Sage, Manhattan Grey, and Magnolia. Magnolia's 4.7 would have scored 94 before a 4-point deduction for an item volume of 25 litres. Dulux's 7 litre white scores 88. Crown's 2.5 litre white scores 80 after the 35 m² field. The 30 ml touch-up scores 80 because 241 reviews is under 250. Crown's 10 litre scores 76. The litre rule sits in the emulsion paint buying guide.

White for more than one wall

Dulux Matt pure brilliant white, model 500006, is the 7 litre at £27.05, about £3.86 a litre. The listing says 10–12 m² per litre; the brand page says up to 14. Use the lower band. In the first 50 UK reviews it is a bright hall white, and also thin, short, or leaking. One buyer said it yellowed over filler. Crown's 10 litre, model 5022863, was £20.87, about £2.09 a litre, the lowest per litre among packs of at least 2.5 litres, so it is best value on price. Reviews call it thin, with extra coats over dark walls, and many tubs arrived smashed or leaking. The size field says 10 ml while the volume says 10 litres. Full cure says 1 hour against a dry time of 4 hours. Crown's 2.5 litre white at £10.87 scores 80. The coverage field of up to 35 m² per litre cost the 4 points.
Johnstone's Johnstone's Ballet Slipper matt 2.5 L

Testsieger

Johnstone's Johnstone's Ballet Slipper matt 2.5 L
9.2/10about £16.30
View offer

A named colour

Ballet Slipper, model 308630, is the dusty pink at the top of the score. Reviewers mention low odour, and also a thin or purple first coat. One of three pots had dried lumps. Coverage is 12 m² per litre. Dry time is 1 hour and full cure is 24 hours, against a bullet that says 1–2 hours. Natural Sage, model 308639, at £17.18 has 2,011 reviews at 4.5. Reviewers call it a true green rather than apple-yellow. Waterproof is false while water resistance says waterproof. Manhattan Grey, model 307781, is the 5 litre at £28.65. Some call the grey warm once dry; others say it looks blue while wet. Listed coverage is 65 m² per tin. Magnolia, model 304025, at £16.05 is the cream. Weight is 3.55 kg, which fits 2.5 litres, whatever the 25 litre volume field says.

A scuff, not a wall

Paintsmiths Home Touch-Up, 30 ml at £8.79, part PS000910, is the scuff bottle with a brush in the cap, score 80. People use it on filler chips. It is the only waterproof-true listing, and it does not replace a 2.5 litre tin. A kitchens-and-bathrooms bullet belongs on the emulsion paint for a bathroom page. A hallway you will wipe belongs on matt vs silk emulsion.

Common questions

Which tin is the top pick, and who should skip it?
Ballet Slipper is the top pick in this set of eight. It is Johnstone's 2.5 litre matt at £16.30, 4.6 from 1,041 reviews, score 92. Choose it for a dusty pink room when you are following the star rule. Skip it for brilliant white, a large white run, and any bathroom that steams. The score is not a lab result.
Is the £20.87 10 litre the best buy?
It is the best value on price per litre, at about £2.09, among packs of at least 2.5 litres. It is Crown brilliant white matt, score 76, from 4.0 and 1,411 reviews. Reviewers often call it thin and report smashed or leaking tubs. Buy it when you want the most white paint for the money. Do not buy it as the best film in the set.
Is Dulux 7 litre better because it has more reviews?
It has the largest sample, 3,208 reviews at 4.4, and it scores 88, below the Johnstone's tins on 90 to 92. At £27.05 it is about £3.86 a litre, dearer per litre than Crown's 10 litre. The review depth supports a pattern of bright, sometimes thin, sometimes leaking. It does not make this the top pick.
Which colour tin is for a small room?
A 2.5 litre Johnstone's tin matches a small room: Ballet Slipper at £16.30, Magnolia at £16.05, or Natural Sage at £17.18. Two coats at about 12 m² per litre is roughly 15 m² of wall. Manhattan Grey's 5 litres is the step up for a living room. Magnolia's size, unit count, and weight all say 2.5 litres, whatever the 25 litre volume field says.
Is the 30 ml bottle a cheap emulsion?
At £8.79 for 30 ml it is a dear way to buy litres and a way to avoid repainting a wall. The score is 80 because the review count is 241. Use it on a few scuffs in magnolia or white. Reviewers who needed an exact match were often disappointed. Waterproof true on this bottle does not make it a bathroom paint.

Related pages

How to apply emulsion paint

Emulsion paint

Emulsion paint for a bathroom: the waterproof flag

Emulsion paint buying guide: room, wipe and litres

Matt vs silk emulsion: wipe the wall or hide lumps

Sources

Public sources from the research digest, last checked on 19 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the amazon.co.uk figures in the display file. The price band is this set, not a market average. No listing was lab-tested.

  1. SI 2012/1715 Schedule 2, VOC limits for paints (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Dulux Matt (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Dulux: painting on new plaster (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Dulux: paint finishes explained (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Johnstone's matt emulsion, Paint Direct (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. HSE: lead in old paint (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Dulux Trade Vinyl Matt technical data sheet (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. EN 13300 scrub classes (retrieved 19 October 2026)