Easy Way To Instantly Improve Curb Appeal – How to Paint a Garage Door

If you’ve been following along, you know that we’ve been working on giving the exterior of our home a little facelift with a brand new paint job.

After we got the new exterior paint on the house and finished the trim, the old dingy garage door stuck out like a sore thumb.

PHOTOS: Before Painting the Garage Door

Even though we washed layers of dirt and grime off of the garage door with a pressure washer, it was still riddled with years of yuck that was never going to come off.

Painting your garage door is an easy way to instantly improve the curb appeal of your home.

We chose to give our exterior a refreshed look with a simple white garage door in the same color as our trim.

Alternatively, you can paint your garage door the same color as your exterior paint color and even an accent color (like I did with my fun front door color!).

If you are stumped on what color to use, check out these front door paint color ideas that could totally work for a garage paint color too!

Related – Other Exterior Painting Posts:

• 15 Things You Need For Painting Exterior of House
• 9 Things To Do Before You Paint The Exterior Of Your Home
• Choosing Front Door Paint Colors (& How To Paint A Door)

This post contains affiliate links, but nothing that I wouldn’t wholeheartedly recommend anyway! Read my full disclosure here.

9 Tips for Painting Garage Door:

1. Start with cleaning garage door.

Be sure to give your garage door a nice cleaning before starting to paint.

We used a pressure washer to clean the entire exterior of our home before we start painting (one of the 9 things you need to do before you paint the exterior of your home).

If you don’t have a pressure washer handy, you can give your garage door a good scrubbing with soap and water before painting garage door.

2. Check the weather.

Choose a warm day when painting the garage door. It’s best to paint on an overcast day if possible. Avoid painting your garage door in direct sunlight.

3. Choose the right products.

Use a 4-inch roller to make it easier to paint in the smaller nooks of the panels of the garage door.

4. Use a grid directly in the paint bucket.

Put a grid in the paint bucket. This allows you to get more paint on the roller, so you can work faster. It also helps save some money because you don’t need to buy a paint tray – score!

5. Use high-quality exterior paint.

Wondering what kind of paint you should use on your garage door? We recommend using high-quality exterior paint, like the Behr Marquee line, which required only one coat of paint for us. A high-quality paint will also be more resistant to fading and stains.

You also want to be sure to choose a semi-gloss paint sheen so that it is durable and easy to clean in the future. Learn more about paint sheens here.

We also didn’t need to use a primer because the Marquee line is a paint + primer. Learn more about when you do and don’t need to use a primer before painting here.

6. Get enough paint for the job.

Wondering how much paint you’ll need to paint your garage door? If you’re only painting the garage door, a quart should be enough paint if you’re using a high-quality line that requires one coat.

When in doubt, one gallon of paint will be more than enough.

7. Consider your trim paint

We painted the trim the same color as the door, so we didn’t have to worry about this.

But if you are going to paint the garage door trim a different color, paint the trim first and let it dry fully.

Next, use painter’s tape to cover the trim before painting garage door.

8. Protect your driveway.

Lay down a drop cloth below you while painting garage door to protect the driveway from any spills or splatters.

9. Open garage door after painting while drying.

Open up the garage door shortly after painting. This will help the panels not stick together as they dry. Leave the garage door open while it dries.

Are you ready to see our painted garage door transformation?

Remember, here’s what we started with. An ugly, grimy garage door…yuck.

And here’s what it looked like when we were all done painting the garage door.

What a dramatic exterior transformation, don’t you think?  It was such an easy way to instantly improve the curb appeal of our home.

How much does it cost to paint a garage door?

If you’re thinking about painting your garage door after reading this tutorial, you’re probably wondering how much is this going to cost me?

If you’re DIYing it and you are painting the garage door and nothing else – the cost is pretty minimal. All you need is:

• 1 quart or 1 gallon of high-quality exterior paint – like Behr’s Marquee: $30 for a quart, $62 for a gallon
• Drop cloth: $18
• 4-inch roller cover: $9
• Paint bucket grid: $3

Keep in mind, of course, that these costs are subject to change!

So all in all, you’re looking at a total cost of $60-$92 to paint your garage door, depending on how much paint you purchase.

At such a small investment, it is definitely worth it to paint your garage door. For less than $100 and a few hours of your time, you can improve your curb appeal with a freshly painted garage door.

What color would you paint your garage door??

Let me know in the comments below!!

Source List for Painting Garage Door:

• Garage Door Paint Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Semi-Gloss, Palais White
• Exterior House Paint Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Satin, Black Bamboo (learn more about Black Bamboo here)
• Exterior House Paint Trim Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Semi-Gloss, Palais White
• Drop Cloth
• 4 Inch Roller
• Paint Bucket Grid

How To Paint Your Garage Door

Yield: 1

Active Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours

Difficulty: Easy

Estimated Cost: $50

Wondering how to paint a garage door? Painting your garage door is a quick and easy way to improve curb appeal for your home. Here's what you need to paint a garage door, plus painting tips!

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Materials

• Garage Door Paint Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Semi-Gloss, Palais White
• Exterior House Paint Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Satin, Black Bamboo
• Exterior House Paint Trim Color – Behr Marquee Exterior Semi-Gloss, Palais White

Tools

• Drop Cloth
• 4 Inch Roller
• Paint Bucket Grid

Instructions

1. Clean garage door.
2. Paint smaller nooks using the 4 inch roller.
3. Paint the trim.
4. Leave the garage door open while it dries.

Notes

Choose warm day to paint.

Put a grid in the paint bucket.

Lay down a drop cloth below you while painting garage door to protect driveway from any spills or splatters.