According to Which? emulsion testing and UK decorator surveys, Dulux and Crown are the two dominant mass-market interior paint brands on British shelves. Both sit at accessible price points, both cover every finish a homeowner could want, yet choosing between them shapes both your budget and your repaint cycle for the next decade.
This 2026 comparison pits Crown Matt Emulsion against Dulux Easycare Washable & Tough, then stacks Crown Clean Extreme head-to-head with Dulux Easycare for durability-first rooms. Data drawn from each brand's technical data sheets, Which? ratings, and trade feedback from the Painting and Decorating Association.
Price per 2.5 L: Crown undercuts Dulux by a third
On the 2.5 L tin that most UK homeowners buy for one room, Crown Matt Emulsion costs around £22 (£8.80 per litre) while Dulux Easycare Matt is around £32 (£12.80 per litre). That is a £10 gap per tin, or roughly 31 percent saving with Crown. On a typical three-bedroom repaint needing 20 litres, Crown lands around £176 versus £256 for Dulux — an £80 difference before trade discount.
Both brands offer trade pricing through accredited decorator schemes (Crown Trade and Dulux Trade Centres), typically 15 to 25 percent below retail. Compared with heritage brands like Farrow & Ball at £56 per 2.5 L, both Crown and Dulux sit firmly in the mainstream, with Crown pushing furthest on value.
Tester pots follow the same pattern. Crown sells 250 ml testers around £2.50, Dulux sells 30 ml testers around £1.50. Per millilitre, Crown is again cheaper. Given that both brands recommend testing under morning, noon and evening light, plan £15 to £25 in samples before committing to tins.
Availability shapes real-world price too. Dulux is everywhere: B&Q, Homebase, Wickes, Screwfix, Toolstation, Dulux Decorator Centres, plus every builders' merchant in the country. Crown is almost as ubiquitous in B&Q, Wickes, Homebase, and is the default house brand at Crown Decorating Centres. If you need a tin on a Sunday afternoon in a small market town, both are usually within a 10-minute drive.
Coverage: both quote 12-14 sqm per litre
Crown Matt Emulsion quotes 12 to 14 sqm per litre, and Dulux Easycare quotes the same 12 to 14 sqm per litre. On paper the two are tied. Over a 40 sqm bedroom with two coats, both brands need roughly 6 litres — three 2.5 L tins with a modest cutting-in reserve.
In practice, professional decorators report Dulux Easycare achieves opacity in fewer passes on pale shades thanks to a slightly heavier titanium dioxide loading. Crown Matt is close behind and has improved noticeably since its 2023 reformulation. On deep colours (navy, forest green, charcoal), both brands typically need two good coats over a tinted grey primer, or three coats direct over white.
Coverage comes down to technique as much as paint. A medium-pile microfibre roller, a loaded cut-in brush and a wet edge delivered in single-wall sections will make either brand look consistent. Stretching either paint too thin to save a tin is the single biggest cause of lap marks and patchy finish.
Colour depth and pigment
Dulux leans on its proprietary Colour Palette Generator and a library of over 1,200 mixable shades through Dulux Mix. Tinting is done in-store in seconds, batch consistency is excellent, and the brand's signature colours (Egyptian Cotton, Natural Hessian, Heritage Red) have become cultural reference points in UK homes.
Crown counters with its own large palette of 1,100+ shades through Crown Expressions, plus a more adventurous feature-wall range (Crown Breatheasy, Fashion for Walls). Crown's darker shades sometimes read slightly cooler than the Dulux equivalent at the same chroma, which matters on north-facing rooms in British daylight. Neither brand offers the light-shifting chalky finish of Farrow & Ball — both aim for clean, consistent, predictable colour, which is exactly what mass-market buyers want.
Upload a photo of your room — test Crown and Dulux shades side by side in seconds
Finish options: matt, silk, eggshell and beyond
Dulux offers a broad interior finish lineup including Matt, Silk, Easycare Matt, Easycare Washable & Tough, Diamond Matt, Diamond Eggshell, Once Matt, Satinwood and Gloss. The Easycare family is positioned as the workhorse for high-traffic rooms; Diamond is marketed as the premium scrub-resistant tier.
Crown mirrors the core range with Matt, Silk, Eggshell, Mid-Sheen, Clean Extreme Scrubbable Matt, Clean Extreme Stain Resistant Matt, Satin and Gloss. The Clean Extreme line is Crown's direct answer to Easycare and Diamond, targeting kitchens, hallways and children's rooms. Both brands run similar finish tiers at similar price points, making like-for-like comparison straightforward.
Crown Clean Extreme vs Dulux Easycare: head-to-head
For high-traffic rooms, both brands push a washable flagship. Crown Clean Extreme Scrubbable Matt is rated for 10,000 scrub cycles (ISO 11998 wet scrub class 1) and around £28 per 2.5 L. Dulux Easycare Washable & Tough is also class 1 wet-scrub rated and sits around £35 per 2.5 L. Both resist coffee, wine, ketchup and crayon when wiped within 24 hours.
In independent Which? testing of washable emulsions, Dulux Easycare consistently edges out Crown Clean Extreme on stain removal after 48 hours, while Crown Clean Extreme scores equally on scrub resistance and slightly better on flow and ease of application. For a busy family hallway, Dulux Easycare has the marginal quality edge; for a children's playroom being repainted every three years anyway, Crown Clean Extreme offers better value per wall.
Eco credentials: both Low VOC, both water-based
Both manufacturers are water-based and carry Low VOC certification (under 30 g/L for matt emulsions, meeting EU Directive 2004/42/EC). Both are certified to EN 71-3 toy safety standards and considered safe for nurseries once fully cured (7 days typical).
Crown is a signatory of the British Coatings Federation PaintCare scheme and operates a UK manufacturing base in Darwen, Lancashire, with an ISO 14001 environmental management system. Dulux (AkzoNobel) also manufactures in Slough and publishes detailed sustainability reports with carbon-neutral site commitments by 2030. On pure eco scoring, the two are functionally equivalent. Crown's Breatheasy range goes slightly further with 99 percent solvent-free claims for chemically sensitive users.
Durability and Which? ratings
In Which? emulsion paint ratings 2024-2025, Dulux typically rates slightly higher overall, particularly on white and pale matt emulsions where Easycare consistently earns Best Buy recommendations. Crown sits just below in the same tests, with stronger scores on value-for-money and acceptable scores on every durability criterion.
In real-world use, both brands deliver 5 to 8 years in low-traffic rooms (master bedrooms, dining rooms) and 3 to 5 years in high-traffic rooms (hallways, family kitchens, stairwells). Dulux Easycare stretches to 6 to 8 years in hallways where Crown Matt might need refreshing at 4 to 5 years. Clean Extreme closes most of that gap and extends Crown's durability in wet or greasy rooms.
Availability: both on every high street
Dulux is stocked at B&Q, Wickes, Homebase, Screwfix, Toolstation, Amazon, plus more than 180 Dulux Decorator Centres nationwide. Next-day click-and-collect is near universal on the core Easycare lineup.
Crown is stocked at B&Q, Wickes, Homebase, plus around 120 Crown Decorating Centres and strong independent merchant coverage. Crown Trade has a particularly strong foothold in the north of England where its Darwen factory supports faster local distribution. For colour matching to an existing tin, either brand's dedicated centre will scan your sample and mix on the spot within 10 minutes.
Brush, roller and spray performance
Professional decorators rate Dulux Easycare slightly easier to roll, with better flow and a very forgiving second coat. Lap marks are rare and the paint self-levels well on long wall runs. Drying time is typical: touch-dry in 1 hour, recoat in 2 to 4 hours at 20 degrees Celsius.
Crown Matt has a slightly thinner body than Dulux Easycare out of the tin and benefits from a fully loaded microfibre roller and a tight cut-in. Spraying is possible with both brands through HVLP and airless setups at factory viscosity, with a tiny thinning margin (5 percent water) for airless on larger jobs. For whole-house refurbishment spray jobs, either brand delivers a professional finish.
Full 10-criteria comparison table
Ten criteria side by side, based on each brand's 2025 technical data sheets, Which? ratings and Painting and Decorating Association trade feedback.
| Criterion | Crown | Dulux |
|---|---|---|
| Price 2.5 L (Matt) | £22 | £32 (Easycare) |
| Coverage per litre | 12-14 sqm | 12-14 sqm |
| Colour library | 1,100+ shades | 1,200+ shades |
| Finish options | Matt, Silk, Eggshell, Clean Extreme, Gloss | Matt, Silk, Easycare, Diamond, Satinwood, Gloss |
| Washable flagship | Clean Extreme (£28) | Easycare W&T (£35) |
| Water-based / VOC | Yes / under 30 g/L | Yes / under 30 g/L |
| Availability | B&Q, Wickes, Homebase, CDC | B&Q, Wickes, Homebase, DDC |
| Which? rating tier | Recommended | Best Buy (typical) |
| Durability (high-traffic) | 4-5 years (Matt), 6-7 (Clean Extreme) | 5-6 years (Matt), 7-8 (Easycare) |
| UK manufacturing | Darwen, Lancashire | Slough (AkzoNobel) |
Verdict by room and budget
Neither brand is universally superior. The right choice depends on the room's traffic, the budget and whether durability or upfront cost matters more. Here is a clear verdict grid based on trade feedback and real-world repaint cycles.
| Room / Scenario | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Master bedroom, low traffic | Crown Matt | Save £10 per tin — durability gap is minimal here |
| Family hallway, stairs | Dulux Easycare | Best Buy durability in scuff-prone zones |
| Kitchen, splash-prone walls | Dulux Easycare W&T | Edge on 48-hour stain removal in Which? tests |
| Children's playroom | Crown Clean Extreme | Class 1 scrub at £7 less per tin |
| Whole-house repaint, budget-led | Crown | £80+ saved over 20 litres |
| Rental property, landlord refresh | Crown Matt | Tight cost control, easy touch-ups, wide shade match |
| Bathroom, moisture-prone | Dulux Easycare Bathroom | Dedicated moisture-resistant sub-range |
| Feature wall, deep colour | Either | Both deliver clean, saturated coverage in 2-3 coats |
If you are uncertain between the two, the pragmatic answer most UK decorators give is: Dulux Easycare in hallways, kitchens and bathrooms; Crown Matt in bedrooms, dining rooms and feature walls. You get the Best Buy durability where it matters and the value saving everywhere else. For more cluster context, see our interior decorator cost guide UK 2026, the Farrow & Ball vs Little Greene heritage comparison, and the Dulux Heritage vs Farrow & Ball guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dulux really worth £10 more per tin than Crown?
In high-traffic rooms, yes. Dulux Easycare holds up 1 to 2 years longer than Crown Matt in hallways, stairs and family kitchens, which delays a repaint that costs £400 to £1,200 in labour. In low-traffic rooms such as master bedrooms or dining rooms, the durability gap is minimal and Crown is the better-value choice. Think about the room, not the brand, before picking.
Crown Clean Extreme or Dulux Easycare for a kitchen?
Dulux Easycare Washable & Tough narrowly wins on 48-hour stain removal in Which? testing, making it the marginal pick for kitchens with heavy splash risk (olive oil, tomato sauce, red wine). Crown Clean Extreme matches Easycare on scrub resistance and costs £7 less per 2.5 L, so for a young-family kitchen being repainted every three to four years anyway, Crown offers better value. Both are ISO 11998 class 1 wet-scrub rated.
Can I mix Crown and Dulux in the same house?
Yes, you can use different brands in different rooms without issues, provided you use the same brand throughout any single continuous wall area. Crown and Dulux are both water-based acrylic emulsions with compatible primers. The only caveat is colour matching — each brand's tinting bases are slightly different, so asking Crown to match a specific Dulux shade, or vice versa, will produce a close but not identical result. Stick with one brand for one room.
Compare Crown and Dulux shades on a photo of your own room — free, no signup
The right mass-market paint depends on room traffic, budget and finish needs. Before ordering tins, upload a photo of your room and test Crown and Dulux shades side by side with our free AI interior colour visualiser. Sources: Crown Paints technical data sheets 2025, Dulux (AkzoNobel) technical data sheets 2025, Which? emulsion paint reviews 2024-2025, Painting and Decorating Association trade feedback.
