Customers Have One Common Problem With Consumer Reports Top-Rated Paint Of 2026

Usually, if you're looking for a new appliance or product for your home, Consumer Reports offers reliable opinions on some of the top products. However, that doesn't mean it's always the perfect option. When it comes to paint, Consumer Reports rates Behr Dynasty as their top with a score of 94 out of 100, but users of this product find that it tends to be too thick and dries fast. 

Dynasty is Behr's premium paint line, and was released in 2021 in an effort to compete with other brands like Sherwin-Williams' Emerald. It claims to be able to hide any previous color in just one coat, its enamel finish can fight stains and scratches, and it comes in several finishes. Behr is considered good overall, but it is a paint brand to avoid buying unless you have experience with the line or don't mind a steep learning curve. It also has some great colors to choose from, including one of the best beige paint shades you can find at Home Depot — Ceylon Cream.

However, despite these perks, there are a few issues with this line. The biggest difficulty most people seem to experience is that the paint is thick, and it dries quickly. While this does mean it covers old colors better, it's also not easy to apply, and can lead to uneven-looking walls or frustration with painting. 

To be fair to Consumer Reports, the ratings are based simply on whether or not the product covers old paint and resists stains. To gather this information, the company starts by painting a single coat on a piece of cardstock that has already been painted black, giving scores based on how well it covers the previous color. Then, it also applies a layer onto plastic pieces and adds a few streaks of staining material on top to see how much the color underneath changes. 

These two scores are then combined to create the final total. As you can see, ease of application, thickness, and drying times don't come into the equation. So while Behr does provide even coverage when painting strips of cardstock and plastic, there is still room for problems with its actual application on a wall, which seems to be the case here.

Thankfully, there are a few tips and tricks you can try to make it less of a headache. The first is to use a spray application, if you don't mind the extra prep work. If you are going to use paint brushes or rollers, make sure you carefully apply even movements up and down, and make sure you have a fair amount of paint on the roller. Also, unless you pick a shade that's actually listed as a one-coat color, like one of HGTV's Leanne Ford's favorite white paint colors, Crisp Linen, you will still probably need to do two coats.