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7 Best Eco-Friendly Paints For A Nontoxic Home — The Good Trade
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Brush Up Your Interior With Nontoxic Paints
Transforming a space into a sanctuary requires healthy and thoughtful choices. The products we choose to bring into our homes make an impact on our quality of life whether we know it or not. It’s true for the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and even the air we breathe.
Indoors, the air that surrounds us nearly 80 percent of the time isn’t always safe for people or the planet. Toxic interior paints are the culprits behind many common ailments that can affect us and our loved ones—including those furry four-legged family members.
What makes a paint eco-friendly?
Describing a paint, finish or lacquer as eco-friendly means that it doesn’t contain airborne chemicals or gases that will wreak havoc on your health. These low-level toxic emissions are called Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) that leach out into the air and cause symptoms like headaches, dizziness, visual and respiratory impairment—even memory loss.
The EPA notes that the effects of VOCs are about two to five times higher indoors than outdoors, and if you’re stripping paint during a home project, studies show that it can skyrocket up to 1,000 times higher. The good news is that you can be proactive and clean up the air in your home with more than just a few potted plants.
Ready for a fresh start and a fresh coat of paint? Here are the best eco-friendly options for your space, along with our top picks for sustainable furniture, organic mattresses, and nontoxic rugs. (If painting is out of the question, don’t worry! You can check out these eco-friendly removable wallpapers, too.)
1. ECOS Paint
Price | $69+/gallon
Availability | Online (made-to-order)
Best For | Odorless, organic paints
The environmentally friendly ECOS Paint is “paint you can feel good about.
” Entirely free of VOCs and odors, this USA-made brand offers a colorful selection of organic paints for interior and exterior walls (and a transparent ingredient list!). Best of all, a gallon covers 560 sq. feet, more than most traditional options. Used by the Louvre, Westminster Abbey, and the Getty Museum, these paints mix quality and environmental consciousness like no other.
2. Clare Paint
Price | $54/gallon
Availability | Online
Best For | Trim paints
Clare Paint is dedicated to bringing designer-curated colors and environmentally-friendly paint right to your door. 100 percent of its paints are zero VOC and Greenguard Gold Certified, while its factories have low-waste production methods, recycled packaging, and water conservation systems throughout. Not sure where to start? The team offers swatches starting at just two dollars with free shipping and the Clare Color Genius quiz to help you narrow down your options.
3. Backdrop
Price | $59–$65/gallon
Availability | Online
Best For | Exterior paints
Backdrop spent a year curating 50 of the best colors for homes—and became the first climate-neutral paint company in 2020 along the way! Its line of interior and exterior colors are Green Wise certified with low VOCs, low odor, and sent in a recyclable can. You’ll also find a paint calculator and essential painting supplies to tackle the job on your own, instead of paying four times the cost for professionals. From the first swatch to the final coat, you’ll be impressed with how these colors turn out. Backdrop also gives back.
Shop Backdrop4. Graham & Brown
Price | $90/gallon
Availability | Online
Best For | One-stop shop for paint, wallpaper, and wall art
Graham & Brown makes it easy to coordinate your colors, by offering eco-friendly wallpapers and paints to match.
As a carbon-neutral company, the brand mixes your paints to order, and plants trees to offset emissions. With nearly 400 low VOC water-based paint colors to choose from and a wide range of finishes (including metallic and glitter topcoats), Graham & Brown will have the perfect shade for your home. And if you’re not sure, you can request a free color card or order a peel-and-stick sample in your favorite shade.
5. The Real Milk Paint Co.
Price | $62.99/gallon
Availability | Online, find a retailer
Best For | Child-safe furniture paint
Milk paint, made from organic milk protein, is a healthier alternative than a water-based latex or oil-based paint used by many commercial options. The Real Milk Paint Co. has tons of great color options—including loose pigments so that you can blend your own custom color.
The Real Milk Paint Co. has been innovating since 1995, and its time-tested formula is as biodegradable as ever. Even the waxes and finishing creams are non-VOC and odorless! Just add water, and it’ll work on raw wood, dry wall, and concrete.
6. BioShield
Price | $46–$68/gallon
Availability | Online
Best For | Clay paints for a matte finish
BioShield is an eco-friendly paint company offering a line of solvent-free, zero-VOC paints and tints for your interior, exterior, wall finishes, and wood stains. As “healthy living paints”, the company strives to create products from natural and easily renewable resources without harmful chemicals, toxins, or additives. If you’re looking for a brand that’s committed to leaving the environment better than before, this is it.
Shop BioShield7.
Earth Pigments Price | Starting at $54+ for 5 kg of base
Availability | Online
Best For | Nontoxic pigments
Earth Pigments offers beautifully rich colors including earth tones made from ocher, bright oxide pigments, and natural mica. Sustainably harvested from the earth, these mineral and plant-based pigments are a safe alternative to conventional paints. This is a more hands-on painting process that requires you to mix the pigments with additional materials, but the end result is worth the extra effort. If you’re not sure where to start, get in touch for a free color consultation!
Shop Earth PigmentsThe Good Trade editors endorse products we genuinely love. If you end up making a purchase through one of our affiliate links, we may earn a commission. Learn more here.
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Staff Guide
11 of the Best Eco-Friendly Interior Paints on the Market
Green design has been around long enough for builders and consumers to know that it takes more than just a green label for a product to be eco-friendly, but finding the right options can still be a pain.
When it comes to sniffing out safe paints, knowing the off-gassing levels and ingredients of products is key.
What is an eco-friendly paint?
Eco-friendly. Green. Safe. All these vague terms are often thrown around without clear definitions. Though some paints are compostable, eco-friendly usually refers to the home environment rather than the earth when talking about interior paints. These paints focus on increasing indoor air quality by reducing potential off-gassing compared to traditional paints.
“Over the past 10 years, we’ve seen design professionals, homeowners and building codes become more savvy with energy performance metrics,” Stephanie Horowitz, AIA, CPHC, and cofounder of ZeroEnergy Design. “We’re starting to see a similar trend with embodied carbon and indoor air quality. Once a demand and literacy is developed for all of these considerations, energy, carbon, indoor air quality, we’ll be in a much better place.
Real Milk Paint
Biodegradable and compostable, Real Milk Paint is made from organic, non-toxic materials that emits no man-made or natural VOCs.
The paint comes in 56 colors and can be used on interior or exterior products with a durable finish. Fun fact: If swallowed, the safety data sheet recommends consulting a physician and giving the person “two 12 oz. glasses of water diluted with vinegar or fruit juice”--far from the usual poison control call.
ZeroEnergy Design, a Boston-based architecture firm, specializes in green and high-performance home building. When it comes to interior designs, they pay special attention when specifying interior paints because the products will affect indoor air quality, while exterior paints have less of a direct impact, according to Horowitz.
What does “Zero VOC” mean and why is it important?
According to Green America (EPA), paint has many ingredients that painters and homeowners should be aware of, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), fungicides and biocides, and toxic pigments. VOCs, which can give off toxic chemicals in off-gassing, are of special concern when it comes to choosing an eco-friendly paint.
“Many paints contain [VOCs], which refers to a class of chemicals that evaporate readily at room temperature,” Green America says in its guide on eco-friendly paints. “When these VOCs off-gas, a process that can last for weeks depending on the type of paint, they may cause a variety of health problems like nausea; dizziness; irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract; heart, lung, or kidney damage; and even cancer.” Green America also notes that these VOCs do not just pose a risk to maintaining a safe indoor air quality, but they can also escape into the atmosphere and negatively impact the larger environment.
SafecoatSafecoat Zero VOC Eggshell gives off zero VOCs or hazardous air pollutants. Its formula is made without formaldehyde preservatives and the company says it is ideal for interior spaces where limited chemical exposure is a must such as homes, schools, hospitals, or offices. However, the paint is water soluble and should not be introduced to waterways.
Because of this, builders who are concerned with safe paints will choose zero-VOC or low-VOC paint options. Good clues for finding a good option are any credible labels and certifications a product may have.
“Our preference is to look for zero-VOC paints, preferably with a respected third-party certification such as a Declare Label,” Horowitz says. “The Declare product database can be a great resource because it provides transparency by disclosing what material a product is made of or not made of, where it comes from, and where it’s going at the end of it’s lifespan.”
The Environmental Protection Agency recommends looking for products with reduced or eliminated levels of toxins (ammonia, formaldehyde, crystalline silica, odor masking agents, fungicides) and volatile organic compounds. Builders can also seek out recycled paint, salvaged excess paints, alternative paints (made of lime, milk protein, clay, and earth-based pigments).
Green labels and certifications to look for safe paints
To find quality eco-friendly paints, looking for certifications or green labels can help speed up the process.
Here are three that builders can use as a cheat sheet:
- Greenguard Certification: The certification limits the amount of emissions a product can give off and has both a standard and gold level. Gold certification takes high-impact locations such as schools and chemically sensitive individuals into account.
- Declare Label: This label tells a buyer where a product comes from, what it is made of, and where it goes at the end of its life. With the label, builders can check if the product meets the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Standard Method v1.1-2010 (or international equivalent) for all interior building products that have the potential to emit Volatile Organic Compounds.
- Green Wise: Green Wise Gold certificated products contain less than 5 grams VOC per liter, even after tinting with specified colorants.
Clare’s water-based interior wall paints are Zero VOC and Greenguard Gold certified.
The company says that it is a self-priming, low-odor, and washable paint.
Red flags that may mean the paint isn’t as safe as it sounds
Though knowing VOC levels and credible labels helps, it still can be a struggle to identify sustainable paints at first glance. Some manufacturers try to use vague claims to imply that they are an eco-friendly product when they actually are not.
“There are many buzzwords that don’t necessarily mean anything or are unregulated terms including all natural, eco, biodegradable, plant-base, sustainably harvested,” Horowitz says. “At a minimum level, transparency by the manufacturer is important, as is third-party certification of data and compliance with third-party standards. If you can’t find this credible information, we view that as a red flag.”
If that’s confusing to you, you’re not alone. Reputable companies and even this article uses the terms eco-friendly and sustainable to describe products as they’re familiar and easy to understand.
But the important part is context.
“When considering the options available for paints we consider the track record of the product and manufacturer, the health of the people occupying the building, and the health of the greater environment as a result of manufacturing and disposing of it,” Horowitz says. “Benjamin Moore Ultra Spec 500, for example, is a commonly available zero VOC paint that has a Declare label.”
BehrThough the Premium Plus Interior Semi-Gloss Enamel No. 3050 emits VOCs, its emission rate of less than 0.5 grams per litter qualifies it for Greenguard Gold certification. The paint features an antimicrobial agent that is mildew and mold resistant, and it is both a primer and paint.
Limitations of safe paint standards
Though paint manufacturers have come a long way in terms of creating safer paints, the system isn’t perfect. Jay Watts, vice president of AFM Safecoat, says that meeting regulation is just the first step and advocates for real-life testing for paints to make sure the product is sound on both paper and practice.
AFM Safecoat is a paint manufacturer that specializes in products that prioritize indoor air quality.
In the podcast “Non-Toxic Environments with Jay and Andy,” Watts explains how VOC counts only show part of the picture: Some VOCs are worse for humans than others but account for the same count. And other substances that off-gas such as formaldehyde and ammonia that may have looser regulations than other VOCs make their way into even zero-VOC options.
“What negatively affects one person can have no effect on another,” Watts says. “The short answer is look behind the marketing curtain and determine what the company has done in the past and if they have done the real groundwork necessary to make the claims they make.”
Another caveat is that the VOC levels on the can are often based on the base coat without any colorants, which Elemental Green says can add additional VOCs and toxins. Checking the can’s label and researching products before choosing a color can help a builder know what the actual VOC level will be.
And due diligence can also reveal even better options than regulation standards.
“Keep in mind that many paints labeled ‘low-VOC’ simply meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s minimum requirements, which call for no more than 250 grams per liter (gm/l) of VOCs in ‘low-VOC’ latex paints and no more than 380 gm/l for ‘low-VOC’ oil-based paints,” Green America says in its paint guide. “There are paints available with even lower VOC levels (0-100 gm/l).” The organization says to check the paint can label or call the company to ask for a material safety data sheet.
Though zero and low-VOC options are the industry standard for now, there is still legwork that builders who want to prioritize indoor air quality must do.
Designed for covering brick, plaster, and masonry, BioShield Healthy Living Paints is a collection of solvent-free wall paints that emit zero VOCs. The paints are made mostly of water, chalk, and asbestos-free talc.
One gallon can cover roughly 300-400 square feet.
Go Green World Products
Plant-based Agri-Paint, an interior and exterior bio-acrylic paint, emits zero VOCs. Because the company uses raw materials over petroleum-based latex and acrylic resin in its paints, it says it can reduce the VOC emissions even further than EPA-compliant “zero VOCs” standards.
Sherwin-Williams
Besides meeting zero-VOC standards, the Harmony Interior Acrylic Latex paint also features odor- and formaldehyde-reducing technologies which the company says “helps improve indoor air quality by reducing VOCs from possible sources like insulation, carpet, cabinets and fabrics.” The product achieved GREENGUARD Gold Certification and comes in flat, eggshell, and glossy finishes.
Benjamin Moore
Aura Bath and Spa paint is mildew resistant for high-humidity environments, meets zero VOC standards, and is low odor.
The interior matte paint is available in thousands of colors and made of a proprietary acrylic formula.
Ecos Paints
Non-toxic, zero-VOC, and odorless, Ecos Interior Chalkboard Paint turns any indoor surface into a chalkboard. The company says that the “low sheen, washable, super-resilient paint” is compatible with any sidewalk chalk.
Valspar
Simplicity meets Zero VOC standards and is Greenguard Gold Certified. However, the company does note that adding colors to the scuff-resistant paint and primer base can increase VOC emissions.
Dunn Edwards
Spartazero is Green Wise certified, meaning it off-gasses less than 5 grams of VOCs per liter. The company says that the paint is durable, low odor, and “uniquely thickens to minimize roller splatter.”
Environmentally friendly paints, environmentally friendly dyes and additives
Any urban dweller knows such a problem as air pollution.
A person should consume approximately 12,000 liters (that's 26 kilograms) of air during the day. Accordingly, if its quantity decreases for any reason, the living organism will feel tired and irritable, in addition, health indicators will deteriorate and depression will occur. This problem is acute for residents of apartments, as well as offices located in the central areas of the city. The question is also faced by people who develop their livelihoods near highways and industrial areas.
But the cause of poor environmental conditions depends not only on environmental factors (deforestation, a large number of cars and industrial enterprises near cities). Environmental illiteracy is a controllable factor on which the health and strength of society depends.
Air pollution from paints and varnishes
The trouble with the whole situation lies in the fact that outdoor air is extremely polluted, but it has a very useful ability to clean itself. This process occurs due to the wind and temperature differences, both during the day and with the change of the season.
In addition, at times in large cities there is a decrease in the activity of society. This happens extremely rarely (mainly on holidays or weekends) and, nevertheless, brings a kind of "unloading" of the air environment.
Most people do not even think that the air in their own apartments and houses, in places of work and recreation carries an excessive danger to well-being and health. The fact is that in the construction of these buildings, not entirely environmentally friendly raw materials are used.
The World Health Organization has noticed and confirmed the trend that any city dweller is indoors approximately 80-90% of the time per day. Moreover, she noted that in places of almost absolute human presence, the air is 4-6 times dirtier than outside, and also 8-10 times more toxic.
Paints and varnishes and diseases
In the world there are infinitely many factors that worsen the level of ecology in the premises where people spend most of their time.
However, scientists have proven that the most dangerous of them is the use of finishing materials of synthetic origin (wall paints (acrylic, polyurethane), varnishes, stretch ceilings, chipboard furniture, vinyl wallpaper, as well as plastic in its various structures (windows , furniture, household appliances)).
These materials have the ability to release the most harmful organic compounds (carcinogens) into the air mass. Examples of these are toluene, xylene, phenol or formaldehyde. When entering the human body through the lungs or circulatory system, these substances lead to serious diseases. And this is not surprising, because the paint evaporates constantly (like other examples of products), and the surfaces treated with it occupy huge areas of housing (almost the entire space). That is why the influence of the evaporation process leads to very detrimental consequences.
Eco-friendly paints
The use of sustainable raw materials is an excellent finishing option for people who want to be healthy and look great.
Thus, it is advisable to use paints and other finishing elements from natural ingredients.
Considering all environmental aspects of the raw materials, we can confidently conclude that paints made from natural ingredients are ideal compared to acrylics, for example. The fact is that when creating the second, oil is used as the main raw material. Although it is considered a product of natural origin, it is nevertheless too "unfriendly" to various chemical changes.
This is the reason for treating oil with aggressive chemicals. These include ozone or chlorine. Subsequently, the above process creates a specific product that has an extremely negative impact on the well-being and health of a person.
And during the production of paints from natural components, the use of oil or analogues is strictly prohibited. Therefore, the creators of the most modern paints of the highest standard use in the process substances such as oils (orange, eucalyptus, rosemary, flax or lavender), milk casein (created during the production of ordinary cottage cheese), dammar resin of plant origin, clay and pigments of earth or vegetable nature.
. It is worth noting that the label of the package with natural paint is easily distinguished, since the perfect composition of the paint for walls or ceilings is written there.
As an example, consider the composition of AURO paint number 321:
- Oils of orange, rapeseed, eucalyptus, rosemary and castor oil
- Water, sugars, vegetable spirits
- Fillers and pigments of mineral nature
- Lecithin, cellulose ether, borates, dammar, castor oil stem
Eco friendly paint
Table. Dyes of plant origin.
| Source of dye | Protectant | Color of material dyed |
|---|---|---|
| Rose (yellow) | K2Cr2O7 | light brown |
| Rose (red) | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | light beige |
| Cranberry | FeSO4 7h3O | pink |
| Bow | FeSO4 7h3O | gray |
| Cranberry | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | pink |
| Rosehip | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | light brown |
| Cranberry | K2Cr2O7 | pale yellow |
| Rosehip | FeSO4 7h3O | gray |
| Rosehip | K2Cr2O7 | light brown |
| Cranberry | CuSO4 5h3O | pink |
| Hibiscus | FeSO4 7h3O | blue |
| Needle | FeSO4 7h3O | gray |
| Oak bark | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | brown |
| Needle | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | light beige |
| Bow | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | beige |
| Rose (red) | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | light beige |
| Currant | FeSO4 7h3O | dark pink |
| Needle | CuSO4 5h3O | orange |
| Rose (yellow) | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | light olive |
| Rose (yellow) | FeSO4 7h3O | gray |
| Rose (red) | K2Cr2O7 | beige |
| Needle | K2Cr2O7 | beige |
| Rose (yellow) | CuSO4 5h3O | olive |
| Currant | CuSO4 5h3O | light yellow |
| Currant | K2Cr2O7 | pink |
| Currant | FeSO4 7h3O | pink |
| Currant | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | pink |
| Rose (red) | CuSO4 5h3O | beige |
| Rose (red) | CuSO4 5h3O | light gray |
| Bow | CuSO4 5h3O | light green |
| Rosehip | CuSO4 5h3O | light brown |
| Bow | K2Cr2O7 | light brown |
| Hibiscus | CuSO4 5h3O | light green |
| Hibiscus | K2Cr2O7 | yellow |
| Hibiscus | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | purple |
| Linden | CuSO4 5h3O | light brown |
| Linden | FeSO4 7h3O | gray |
| Linden | K2Cr2O7 | orange |
| Oak bark | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | brown |
| Alder bark | KAl(SO4)2 12h3O | black |
Price and durability of environmentally friendly paints
It is widely believed by the people that paints of natural origin have prohibitive prices.
This is far from true! The cost of such paints is only 20-50 percent higher than the price that people pay for analogues from synthetic substances. But after all, environmentally friendly paints and varnishes do not emit dangerous fumes during their operation. So, the price is more than justified, and it's worth it!
Another important difference between the two presented products should be noted. When painting the surface with natural paint, there is no film. This allows the wall (or ceiling) to “breathe”, greatly extending the life of the interior, of which the paint is an element. The latter never flakes off, and if damage occurs due to certain circumstances, this defect is easy to restore. Thus, the wear resistance of an environmentally friendly product is not inferior (but, on the contrary, it is superior) to the wear resistance characteristics of similar synthetic paints.
Additives for environmentally friendly paints
In modern times, companies in the chemical industry provide a very large selection of various additives for varnishes and paints.
Technologists working in the relevant field must be able to make a competent choice of them, as well as use them in the correct proportions in the manufacture of products.
When choosing an additive, the specialist must know the properties and purpose of additives, in addition, his work includes close monitoring of the following factors:
- The degree of profitability of the finished product;
- Stable product supply;
- Complete match with the promised characteristics;
- Availability of a high level of technical support;
- Preferences of a personal nature;
- Laboratory facilities in terms of technical support;
- Process properties at the technological level;
- The employee's knowledge of the subject.
The presented list of factors allows you to make the right choice. Thus, with a sufficiently high level of employee qualification and a technically equipped laboratory, creative experiments with complexes, as well as the choice of the most economical option, are fully justified.
Then the technologist can, with the utmost success, carry out the selection of similar products without damaging the finished product and its properties.
It should be noted that the use of additives is often forced. The reason for this is the ability to purchase raw materials from different suppliers in the event that a further stoppage of production threatens when any substance is missing. Such situations happen quite often due to difficulties in moving raw materials through customs or corrections in the supplier's nomenclature. As a result, companies try to protect themselves with such a move, but still turn to their own raw materials when possible. It is believed that it is the latter option that leads to the highest level of quality of the finished product.
For example, there is a pair of dispersant and thickener. Under no circumstances should the listed substances be taken from different suppliers, because such a move can lead to negative changes in the product (different color, shade, consistency, and so on).
Of course, all technologists have different views on this issue, as well as suppliers. This is the foundation of the relationship between them. The proof is the fact that any supplier has a highly qualified technologist in his team, whom he trusts the most. This person can be asked about the quality of the product, as well as the achievement (or vice versa) of the expected result. Based on the opinion of the technologist, a conclusion is made about the composition of products with which it would be more expedient to produce.
There is also a reverse process: the master of technology can always contact his supplier, because all chemical companies, without exception, have tables with a list of products manufactured by competitive companies, which is confidential information.
From the above, it should be noted that the basis for the choice of additives, as well as raw materials for paints and varnishes, any good technologist should establish the environmental friendliness of the product, and, accordingly, a low level of volatile organic compounds.
So, completely natural paints and varnishes will be an excellent acquisition not only for people who choose health for themselves and their families, but also for those who value the price-quality ratio.
| Methylcellulose | which is a compound derived from natural cellulose. Methylcellulose is non-toxic and does not cause allergies.
Little Greene Paint 
Tom's Eggshell is definitely worth a look if you have any exterior wood or metal that needs to be painted. 
Like GraceMary, Frenchic is a manufacturer of chalk paint ideal for furniture recycling. And they even have a loyal social media community who enjoy sharing their inspiring designs with each other. 
