10 Best Solar Reflective Paint for Roofs

If you’re a savvy business owner or a smart homeowner tired of sky-high cooling bills due to AC working overtime, here’s a clever fix hiding in plain sight—your roof. Swap that heat-trapping surface for a sun-savvy solution: a coat of solar bounce-back brilliance (a.k.a. reflective paint).

This ingenious coating acts like sunglasses for your building—bouncing off the sun’s fury before it ever gets a chance to sneak inside. Instead of absorbing all that blazing heat, your roof simply says, “No thanks,” and keeps the indoors refreshingly chill. All thanks to the white color of these heat-reflective paints.

And the best part? It’s a breeze to use.

Whether your rooftop is metal, concrete, or something in between, this reflective wonder can be rolled on just like your regular Sunday DIY paint job. No fancy tools. No steep learning curve.

Even the darkest roofs can get this smart heat-blocking paint makeover without breaking a sweat.

So, if your cooling costs are climbing faster than summer temps, maybe it’s time to give your roof a cool coat of brilliance with some heat-reflective paint. After all, why battle the heat when you can bounce it away?

Best Solar Reflective Paints

Whether you call the shots for your home or manage a commercial space stateside, picking the right solar reflective paint formula isn’t just a choice—it’s a game-changer.

Here’s the lowdown on the 7 standout roof coatings that result in cooler interiors, slimmer utility bills, and a roof that sticks around longer.

1- Henry 587 Dura-Brite White Elastomeric Roof Coating

Henry 587 Dura-Brite is the all-star in the elastomeric arena—think of it as a sunscreen for your roof with added muscle. Waterproof, resilient, and highly reflective, it trims rooftop temps and extends durability. Perfect for homeowners and businesses who want to stay cool and smart.

2- Kool Seal KS0064600-20 Elastomeric Roof Coating

On a budget but don’t want to compromise too much? Kool Seal offers solid heat defense at a friendly price. Ideal for mild climates or smaller jobs, it’s like the reliable workhorse in your roof’s toolkit.

3- Liquid Rubber RV Roof Coating

Road warriors and tiny building aficionados love this one. Easy to apply and tough against the elements, Liquid Rubber doubles as a UV armor and weather shield—perfect for those always on the move.

4- Ames Maximum Stretch Elastomeric Paint

When your roof faces wild swings—from blazing heat to icy chills—Ames Maximum Stretch flexes with the challenge. Its stretchy, weatherproof layer guards your home year-round while keeping energy efficiency front and center.

5- GacoRoof Silicone Roof Coating

Think of GacoRoof as the luxury sedan of coatings: pricey but built to last with minimal fuss. Its silicone backbone laughs off standing water and harsh weather, making it a stellar pick for flat roofs and commercial spaces where endurance matters.

6- INSL-X Roof and Floor Coating (RC230009A-01)

Striking the perfect balance between price and punch, INSL-X works wonders on pitched roofs. It cuts solar heat and keeps your roof looking sharp—a dependable middleweight in this lineup.

7- Dicor RPCRC1 White EPDM Roof Coating

Got a rubber roof? Dicor has you covered with a specialized shield that blocks UV rays and locks out moisture. Not the jack-of-all-trades, but a master of its niche.

8- Jetcoat Cool King Reflective Acrylic Roof Coating

A favorite among pros and DIYers alike, Cool King shines on metal and layered roofs. It delivers a potent combo of reflectivity and breathability, perfect for slashing cooling expenses in sunny regions.

9- Stormdry Masonry Protection Cream

For tile and stone roofs that demand subtle care, Stormdry offers more than just a paint job—it’s a stealthy guardian. Waterproofing meets sun defense without changing your roof’s natural charm, ideal for historic beauties.

10- Lankwitzer Cool Roof Coating

Top-tier performance meets long haul resilience with Lankwitzer. Popular in commercial builds and now accessible to savvy homeowners, this coating handles expansion and contraction like a pro, all while fighting heat like a champ.

Ready to give your roof the royal treatment? These high-performance coatings are widely available through major home improvement retailers, specialty roofing suppliers, and online marketplaces like Amazon and Home Depot.

Whether you prefer to shop in-store to get a hands-on feel or order with a few clicks for doorstep convenience, finding the perfect shield for your roof has never been easier. Your wallet—and your comfort—will thank you.

How much does heat reflective paint generally cost?

On average, you can expect to pay around $13 to $15 per square meter (or per 10.5 square feet) for coating a normal house roof with solar heat-reflective paint. Depending on the brand of paint and your roof condition, this estimation can go even higher.

Solar Reflective Paint Pros and Cons

The benefits of solar reflective paint (also called heat-reflective paint or anti-glare paint) start with the passive quality of the paint to reflect heat.

In other words, once applied, the paint works to reflect the solar rays when the sun is out.

The paint does not need any additional support or energy to do its work. This means that once you pay for the paint and its application, you do not pay anything else until the paint needs to be replaced.

1- It’s Highly Versatile:

The solar paint can be applied to different surfaces that include metal, concrete, brick and mortar, bitumen, stable felt, and more.

Because of the wide range of materials, anti-heat paint can be used on different types of roofs, including conservatory ones.

It can also be used for walls that face the sun most of the day to reflect solar heat as well.

2- Good for old roofs:

If you are planning to repair old asphalt roofing rather than setting out the new one, solar paint and heat reflective coating can be a fantastic option.

The most reliable paints on the market meet the requirements for the Energy Star reflectance performance requirements.

Plus, they provide protection to various types of roofs like pitched roofs and flat roofs, along with low and high-sloped metal roofs by providing over 80% of the sun’s rays.  

3- Fungal Growth Reduction:

For humid areas that suffer from fungus, the paint has qualities that reduce fungal growth. This means a reduction in the need to treat surfaces for fungal growth that have this paint applied.

However, there are a few issues with heat-blocking paint, which you may need to keep in mind before applying it.

What are the Cons?

The first major drawback is that solar reflective paint is somewhat more expensive compared to standard paints.

Although the price difference is not too great, it should be noted that ordinary white paint may not have the durability to last on the roof compared to the heat-resistant type. 

Another issue is that, at best, heat-reflective roofing paint will reduce energy costs by up to 15%.

While 15% is nothing to sneeze at, it’s also not all that dramatic of a decrease.

There are reasons why the paint does not do a more efficient job, but keep in mind that the sun is only one of several reasons why your home may be heating up.

And finally, if you live in an area that gets cold during the winter, then the heat reflective paint may work against the snow melting off the roof.

The added weight of the snow over time may cause damage to flat roofs at a higher rate compared to dark paint, which helps melt the snow.

It is why some advocate for solar air conditioning rather than heat reflective paint as being a better, all-around choice.

What Color Paint Does Reflect the Heat Best?

For keeping your house exterior cool, white color paint is the most effective and popular choice among the masses. That’s the reason you will find ultra-white cooling paint for roofing the most. Using these will reflect light and heat from the UV sun rays the best.

Silver paint color also reflects heat like white and is also many times preferred by homeowners who have excessive cooling costs during warmer seasons.

When choosing the UV reflective paints and the colors, keep in mind that these paints are only effective in reflecting or rejecting the heat energy from the sun. It provides no energy benefits if you apply it to the inside of a building. So, it should only be used on exteriors and roofing.

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Solar Air Conditioning vs. Heat Reflective Paint: What’s Better?

Solar air conditioning is basically the use of solar panels to run your air conditioning system and tap into the sun’s energy to cool your home instead of relying solely on electricity from the grid.

In other words, you’re using the very source of heat—sunlight—to fight the heat, flipping the script in the smartest way possible.

The benefit is two-fold, as the solar panels on the roof either absorb or keep the sunlight from striking the roof. And the power generated by the solar panels runs the air conditioning, which saves on your electricity bills.

For comparative purposes, the solar air conditioning system offers considerable advantages over heat reflective paint. The most important of which is that it generates electricity, which means that you save more on your energy bills by comparison.

Plus, the solar panels will reflect much of the light that strikes the roof, although not quite as much as the heat reflective paint.

Where the paint has the advantage is that solar panels require maintenance and care, which adds to the overall cost which is considerably higher.

While the solar panels will pay for themselves eventually, the initial cost, along with the maintenance, is higher compared to the heat shield paint.

Which works better?

In terms of which one is better, solar air conditioning has the advantage over paint that repels sunlight. It works well across the country, no matter the temperature conditions, in providing electricity to the building.

While the panels will require maintenance, the cost is normally paid for long before the panels stop working. This means that despite a higher initial investment, solar panels will pay for themselves and keep adding value for many years to come.

However, if you are on a strict budget and solar panels are not a practical addition to your building, then heat and light reflective paint is a better choice.

Heat reflective house paints do not do as well during the winter months, but you can save upwards of 15% on your electricity bills. 

What are TSR and SRI – How Do They Relate to My Roof Coating?

Total Solar Reflectance (TSR) simply refers to the method that measures the reflective capability of a surface coating.

It is generally represented as a percentage between 0% and 100%. The higher the number, the more effective the surface is at reflecting the radiation from the sun back into the atmosphere.

This also means that surfaces with a higher TSR will tend to stay cooler than surfaces with coatings that absorb more heat and sunlight.

Then there is another term used, which is Infrared Emittance (E). It’s also referred to as Thermal Emittance and is rated between 0 and 1. It refers to the ability of a surface to get cool by releasing heat back into the environment.

Solar Reflective Index (SRI) is yet another term used in roof coatings, which is a combination of TSR and E values (TSR x E). It’s rated from 0 to 100 where 0 is generally for black surfaces and 100 for standard white.

SRI is most commonly used by paint/coating manufacturers to measure the reflectivity of the surface. This helps in picking the highly reflective roof coating product to save you money on your cooling bills.

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A Few Other Ways to Cool Down Your Roof and Control Heat Absorption

Roofs, particularly polycarbonate roofs in your conservatory, can be very hard to keep cool in extreme summer temperatures.

And that’s the reason: metal, slate, single-ply membrane, clay, terra cotta, or rubber shingles are the better options for homeowners in warm climates.

But if you already have your roofs installed and want to control heat from the roof, there are a few widely accepted ways and expert tips out there, besides using sun-reflective paint for the roof.

Some of them include:

1- Tiled roof

Tiled roofs for the conservatory not only enhance the aesthetics of your property but also help by improving thermal performance by making a significant difference to the temperature.

If you like to keep your roof look more traditional without giving them a feel of glazing, tiles can be a great option for homeowners living in areas with warm climates.

2- Glass roof

Unlike old polycarbonate, glass does not overheat your roof much.

So, to boost the thermal performance and keep the temperature under control you can definitely go for a glass roof replacement for your conservatory which should be within your budget.

3- Integral blinds

If you already have glass panes installed on your conservatory’s windows and glass roof, integral blinds can be installed.

These are available in a wide range of colors, and you can opt for manually or electronically operated options to keep your place cool as well as shaded.

4- Window film/tinting

Metallic coating/films and tinted windows are the other great options that can be added to keep your place naturally cool via an overheated roof.

These are almost invisible and can help in reflecting the sun’s rays to reduce the solar glare and heat to a significant level.

5- Go green with a rooftop garden

Roofs other than conservatories can be replaced with rooftop gardens to reduce the surface temperature as well as the overall building temperature.

Plus, it offers a great many benefits along with a feeling of pleasure to homeowners who love gardening but do not have a backyard garden available.

The Bottom Line

As you can see, solar reflective roof paint and coatings can be one of the best ways to keep the temperature under control. These reflective roof coatings and protection paints are also available in color options like white, black, and a few others.

But it isn’t the only way you can choose for your property.

If you think it’s a lot of hassle to pick and apply the right heat reflective paint, you can go with many other ways to cool down your roof, as I have mentioned above. It all comes down to your expectations, the condition of your roof, the color, and the budget you have in mind.