How Much Does a Gallon of Paint Weigh?

Before you go painting the town red, you want to know how much you—and your vehicle—will have to carry. With paint, the answer isn’t always so straightforward. Between the type of paint, the quality, and even the color, a typical gallon of paint can weigh anywhere between 7 and 12 pounds. Here’s everything you need to know about how much a gallon of paint weighs.

What Determines the Weight of Paint?

There are many ingredients in a can of paint, but most belong to one of four main categories: pigments, solvents, binders, and additives. Some of these factors carry more weight than others: Here’s a breakdown of each category and how much it affects the weight of your can of paint.

Pigments

The pigment of your paint is what gives it color. Pigments can be made from different ingredients, ultimately impacting the paint's weight. The heaviest pigments are ones that contain heavy metals, like cadmium, whereas the lightest pigments tend to be chemically derived and contain inorganic compounds like oxides, petrochemicals, and sulfates. High-gloss enamel paint, in particular, contains more synthetic pigments to give it that sheen.

But don’t let the color of your paint deceive you—sometimes, the paint that weighs the most has a lighter color than you’d expect. This is due to the amount of pigment needed to conceal underlying colors. Take titanium dioxide, for example. This paint is a vivid white color, and it also happens to be a heavy pigment.

Solvents or Liquids 

Most paints have a solvent or a liquid that gives the paint fluidity. Solvents serve as a paint thinner in oil-based paints and acrylic paints, while latex and some acrylic paints are water-based. 

Binders

Also called resin, binders are the glues that hold the pigment and liquids together so that the paint adheres to the surface where you’re applying it. Different resins include latex, epoxy, alkyd, acrylic, and polyurethane. 

Additives

From preventing mildew to adding texture, paint additives give specific properties to your basic can of paint. These added ingredients can increase the weight of your paint—especially if you choose non-slip paint for projects like building your new deck or resurfacing your pool.

5 Factors that Affect the Weight of a Gallon of Paint

Several factors play a role in determining the weight of your paint, including the type, the quality, and the ingredient composition. Here are five of the biggest contributors to paint weight. 

Type of Paint

Oil-based paint tends to contain heavy metals that can increase the paint’s weight while water-based paints tend to weigh less. There are light-weight oil-based paints on the market, however, so your best bet is to check the label to compare different weights.

Paint Quality 

High-quality paint tends to weigh more than standard paint. Inexpensive paint often has more filler ingredients and is more watered down than high-quality paint, which has more pigment. Paint from brands like Sherwin-Williams® and BEHR® tends to be heavier than budget brands for this reason. 

Ingredients

When you choose a paint with additives, like sand for a textured finish, you’ll find they can add to the overall weight. If you’re looking for anti-slip paint, this can be a good thing, but if you want lightweight paint, you may want to skip out on additives. 

Color

The color of paint you choose will have a different weight depending on the raw materials used to make the pigment. Colors rich in natural earth minerals or heavy metals tend to weigh more than those made from synthetic materials.

Interior vs. Exterior Paint

Exterior paints often have additives to help with weather resistance, which can make them heavier than interior paints. So, if you’re painting the outside of your home, pool, or fence, prepare to haul heavier paint cans from the truck to your yard.

Average Weight by Paint Type

The weight of paint generally falls between 7 and 12 pounds per gallon. Though the type of paint doesn’t necessarily give the whole picture, you can use the following average weights to get a rough idea of how much you’ll have to lug around.

Acrylic Paint

One of the heavier options, acrylic paint weighs between 10 and 12 pounds per gallon, though it tends to weigh closer to the 11-pound mark. Acrylic paint can be either water-based or solvent-based, depending on the formula. 

Latex Paint

Latex paint weighs between 10 and 12 pounds, though it might weigh slightly less than acrylic paint. This paint type has a similar weight to water-based acrylic since they both contain a large amount of water.

Oil-Based Paint

Oil-based paints weigh anywhere from 10 to 12 pounds, with most weighing closer to the 10-pound mark. Though oil is lighter than water, the pigments in oil-based paints increase the weight and make this paint type comparable to the weight of acrylic and latex paint. 

Alkyd Paint

Alkyd paint is the most lightweight paint, weighing just 7 to 11 pounds per gallon. Though it’s often considered an oil-based paint, it’s actually a synthetic resin comprised of alkyd and thinner. Alkyd may be the lightest option, but it’s designed solely for outdoor use due to its high volatile organic compound (VOC) levels. Be sure to avoid it for any interior painting projects. 

Elastomeric Paint

Elastomeric paint is a thick paint that weighs between 11 and 12 pounds per gallon on average—slightly more than the other options. Though elastomeric paint is often made from acrylic, it has special properties that allow it to adhere to masonry, stucco, and brick. 

How to Convert Gallons to Pounds

Temperature plays a role in how much a gallon of paint weighs because the warmer the temperature, the higher the volume and the lower the density. This means the weight can change depending on the temperature. 

If you can’t find the weight in pounds on your gallon of paint, you may need to do a little math. Look for the number of specific gravity on your paint’s label and then multiply that number by 8.34 to get the pounds of paint per gallon.