maxineshell - I went through the same dilemma as you. My painter liked using SW Pure White. I finally gave in and I can say that I am shocked at how white the trim has turned out after reading all the same articles and watching the same videos that you did. I did try a sample of Extra White and it looked blue against my polar white kitchen cabinets, which are more of an off-white. SW Pure White is a brighter, crisper white than my kitchen cabinets, but it only bothers me in one area of the kitchen above the range hood. We are going to get a color match to the cabinets and paint the hood 'trunk'. Here are some examples of my SW Pure White in different rooms, including the kitchen. Hope this helps you!

SW Pure White trim next to Antique White wall paint

SW Pure White trim next to SW Neutral Ground and kitchen cabinets

SW Pure White trim next to SW Basalt Powder and every bit as white as the subway tile

SW Pure White trim next to SW Naval (see how white the trim is compared with the white outlet)

Thank you Lori! Yeah, I really want a crisper white ideally. I did find one house where the Pure White looks amazing but it's got huge soaring ceilings and a ton of windows. Would you put Extra White on walls? When I consulted with the Sherwin Williams, the person said, "Oh yes Extra White is great on trim and celings." She didn't even think that I would consider putting it on drywall. When I mentioned I wanted a color for the walls, she said go with Pure White. Ideally, I would proably love Benjamin Moore Simply White but that's not one of my choices unless I want to paint at a later time and pay probably double.

nhb22 thank you so much for the photos! That looks WHITE to me!!! This is really helpful. The sample I have looks super ivory in my house but I think it's because it's picking up the horrendous beige that's all over the place. These pictures are helpful, thank you so much.

I did find one house where the Pure White looks amazing but it's got huge soaring ceilings and a ton of windows.

I've never seen anyone comment that they don't love it if they have it.

Same with Extra White.

Frankly, I don't think you can go wrong with either. It comes down to if you gravitate more towards one sample or the other.

Instead of white walls maybe Shoji, Greek Villa, Eider White. Something with a smidge of color.

Also, SW's new Emerald Design Edition has several, fresh colors that are a little more than off-white and will work as a backdrop to many different decor color schemes.

Here is Pure White trim on Origami White walls.

BTW-We have a lot of natural light in our home and 10' ceilings. Also, I found that the sample paint boards looked different than the actual paint looked on the walls.

I used pure white on ceilings in flat, walls eggshell and trim satin. It works in my house because my cabinets and counters are darker.

I have extra white on walls and trim in the rooms on the north side of my house. It is very white, but I do think it leans light grayish blue in the morning.

We just painted an east-facing spare room using Pure White for ceiling, trim, doors and closet. I love it. It looks contemporary to me, nothing quaint about it. A couple years ago we painted the ceiling of our north-facing kitchen with Extra White and I don’t consider it nearly as pretty as the Pure White. If I knew then what I know now, I’d have gone with PW.

Ellimacgardens, thanks so much. I have found some gorgeous photos of Pure White and hardly anyone has anything bad to say about it. Most people love it. Extra White is probablly too flat and cool. Thanks so much for your feedback.

In our house SW Snowbound looked just about exactly the same as BM Simply White. Maybe a little more white, BM Simply White was a little creamier or yellower but VERY slightly. We painted the whole house Simply White and did the bathrooms in Snowbound because I thought the Simply White looked a little yellow next to the white subway tile. My painters teased me though and said the 2 looked exactly the same.