The verdict in three lines. Alabaster SW 7008 (LRV 82) is the creamy warm white: soft, muted, and cozy next to wood floors, linen, and brass.
Pure White SW 7005 (LRV 84) is the near-neutral workhorse: barely any undertone, crisp without turning stark, and the safer default for trim and cabinets.
The 2-point LRV gap is background noise. Cream content decides this duel, so the only real tiebreaker is seeing both on a photo of your own room.
Sherwin-Williams Alabaster (SW 7008) and Pure White (SW 7005) are two of the most sampled whites in the Sherwin-Williams deck, and they get cross-shopped constantly because both are light, soft, and famously easy to live with. On chips they look like near twins. On a full wall they part ways fast: one reads gently creamy, the other reads simply white. This head-to-head puts the numbers side by side, walks the duel room by room and exposure by exposure, and tells you exactly when each white wins. For the general method behind any two-color decision, start with our side-by-side method for comparing paint colors.
The numbers side by side
| Attribute | Alabaster SW 7008 | Pure White SW 7005 |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Warm, creamy white | Neutral white with the faintest warmth |
| LRV | 82 | 84 |
| Approximate hex | #EDEAE0 | #EDECE6 |
| Approximate RGB | 237, 234, 224 | 237, 236, 230 |
| Undertone | Soft cream, can lean gently beige in warm light | Just enough warmth to avoid sterile, otherwise close to neutral |
| Loves | Oak floors, linen, brass, warm woods, cozy rooms | Trim, cabinets, ceilings, walls that must match anything |
| Watch out for | Can read yellowed next to cool grays and stark whites | Can feel flat or plain in dim, north-facing rooms |
| Overall vibe | Relaxed, warm, farmhouse-friendly | Clean, versatile, quietly modern |
Try it on your house
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LRV values are the published Sherwin-Williams figures. Hex and RGB are approximate digital renderings; the authoritative reference is a physical Sherwin-Williams chip or peel-and-stick sample.
Read that table once and the shape of the duel is clear. Brightness is a tie: at LRV 82 versus 84, both whites bounce almost the same amount of light, and nobody will ever call either of them dark. Everything that matters happens in the undertone row. Alabaster carries visible cream; it is the white you choose when plain white feels too clinical. Pure White strips that cream down to a whisper, which is exactly why it plays nicely with nearly every wall color, countertop, and tile you put beside it. Hold each chip against a plain sheet of printer paper and the difference jumps out in seconds: Alabaster shows its cream, Pure White almost disappears. That white-paper trick, plus the two-coat sample rule, comes straight from the comparison method in the pillar guide linked above.
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Room by room, exposure by exposure
Because the LRV gap is negligible, the same room can crown either white depending on its light and its fixed finishes. Here is how the duel typically plays out across the most common situations.
| Situation | Usual winner | Why |
|---|---|---|
| North-facing living room | Alabaster | Its cream survives cool, flat light; Pure White can go slightly gray and lifeless |
| Bright south-facing room | Pure White | Strong sun amplifies Alabaster's cream toward yellow; Pure White stays clean |
| Trim, doors, and ceilings | Pure White | Near-neutral base sits comfortably next to warm and cool wall colors alike |
| Kitchen cabinets | Either, pick by counters | Pure White beside cool quartz and marble; Alabaster beside butcher block and brass |
| Bedroom with linen and wood | Alabaster | The cream flatters warm textiles and reads restful rather than crisp |
| Exterior body color | Alabaster, usually | Harsh daylight makes stark whites glare; Alabaster's softness is why it anchors so many farmhouse exteriors |
If this duel is really a proxy for a bigger warm-white shootout, two sibling matchups are worth a detour. The Alabaster vs White Dove head-to-head pits Alabaster against Benjamin Moore's closest rival, and the Snowbound vs Pure White comparison settles which crisp Sherwin-Williams white belongs on your shortlist.
When to choose Alabaster
- You want white walls that feel warm, not bright. Alabaster is the classic answer to "I like white but hate stark." Its cream keeps big white rooms from feeling like a gallery.
- Your fixed finishes are warm. Oak or walnut floors, butcher block, brass or bronze hardware, cream stone. Alabaster joins that family instead of fighting it.
- The room faces north or gets little direct sun. Cool light drains warmth from every paint color; Alabaster has warmth in reserve and stays welcoming where Pure White can fall flat.
- You are painting the exterior. Outdoor light is brutal on bright whites, and Alabaster's muted softness is a big reason it became a modern farmhouse staple.
For how this color behaves when the light is against it, undertone shifts included, see the dedicated Alabaster north-facing undertones guide.
When to choose Pure White
- You need one white for everything. Walls, trim, doors, ceilings, cabinets: Pure White's near-neutral base is the closest thing Sherwin-Williams has to a universal white.
- Your finishes are cool or mixed. Marble, gray quartz, chrome, black metal. Alabaster's cream can look yellowed beside them; Pure White reads intentional.
- The room is bright and sun-drenched. Full southern light keeps Pure White clean and luminous while it pushes creamy whites toward yellow.
- You want crisp without clinical. Pure White keeps a trace of warmth, so it avoids the blue-white hospital effect of truly stark whites.
Its full undertone breakdown, best rooms, and pairing rules live in the Pure White undertones and best rooms profile.
Same wall, both whites, your actual light. Free render in about 30 seconds.
Frequently asked questions
What is the real difference between Alabaster and Pure White?
Cream content, not brightness. Alabaster SW 7008 (LRV 82) is a soft creamy white with visible warmth, while Pure White SW 7005 (LRV 84) is close to neutral with only a whisper of warmth to keep it from feeling sterile. The 2-point LRV difference is invisible on a wall; how much cream you see is what changes the room.
Is Alabaster warmer than Pure White?
Yes, noticeably. Hold both chips against plain printer paper and Alabaster shows clear cream while Pure White reads simply white. That warmth makes Alabaster the friendlier partner for wood, linen, and brass, and the safer pick in rooms with little natural light.
Should I use Alabaster or Pure White for trim?
Pure White is the safer default trim color because its near-neutral base works beside warm and cool wall colors alike. Alabaster trim shines when the walls are also warm or creamy, but next to a cool gray wall it can read yellowed. When in doubt, sample both against your actual wall color.
Can I use Alabaster walls with Pure White trim?
Yes, and it is a quiet, proven combination: Pure White reads slightly crisper, so the trim gains gentle definition without a hard contrast line. If you want the walls and trim to melt together instead, use one color for both and change only the sheen, satin or semi-gloss on the trim.
Settle it on your photo
Chips lie, screens lie, and even honest sample patches sit on someone else's wall in someone else's light. The fastest honest answer to Alabaster vs Pure White is to test both whites on a photo of your actual room and let your own trim, floor, and windows pick the winner. If the duel widens into a full shortlist, the 2026 Sherwin-Williams interior color guide maps the rest of the deck.
1 HD render plus 3 free color variations. Start with Alabaster, swap to Pure White in one click.
Trademark notice. Sherwin-Williams®, Alabaster®, Pure White®, Snowbound® and Greek Villa® are trademarks of The Sherwin-Williams Company. FacadeColorizer is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The Sherwin-Williams Company. Brand and color names are used for descriptive and editorial purposes only, consistent with nominative fair use. Hex and RGB values are approximate digital renderings; the only authoritative reference is a physical Sherwin-Williams color sample.
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