What’s The Difference between Matte and Flat Paint?

The finish of your paint can have a huge impact on the way the paint color appears when it is applied on the surface. Also, the finish of your paint determines the durability of your paint. There are many different types of paint finishes like a flat, matte, egg-shell, satin, etc. Actually gloss and sheen create the main difference between these types of paint. Flat and matte finishes have no or minimum gloss and as a result, these two types of paints are often used interchangeably. However, as their name implies, there are some basic differences between flat and matte paint finishes.

Matte Paint Finishes:

According to the paint experts, a matte finish can be termed as velvet finish. Matte paint usually has very low-gloss, but it has more shine than a flat paint finish. As these types of paints have a low-gloss, they are the best to cover the imperfections of your wall. This is because these paints absorb light rather than reflecting. As these types of paints have the most pigments, they offer the best coverage rather than the flat paint.

Flat Paint Finishes:

According to the paint manufacturers and paint contractors, flat paint has no shine at all. This means flat paint is unable to reflect even a little amount of light. As a result, flat paint too can be a great choice for hiding imperfections and irregularities on the walls, ceilings, or other surfaces. Also, it is easier to add touchup coats to the flat paint finishes because this type of paint finish blends better than the paint finishes with high gloss. Also, most of the flat paints that are available nowadays are easily washable and can hold up to mild cleaning.

Because of their nature, flat and matte paint finishes are ideal for use in ceilings and walls. Also, both these paint types are ideal to use in a room that received low traffic, but you should not use it in places like a kid’s room, kitchens, bathrooms, etc.

However, this is true that there is actually no standard industry rule to define the uniformity of paint finishes. As a result, a paint finish type that one paint manufacturer defines as ‘flat’ may be similar to the one that another company calls ‘matte’. The best way to determine which paint type would the best between flat and matte paint, you should purchase a sample first and then test it on the surface on which you want to apply the paint.

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