---
title: "Best Metal Roof Color for Energy Efficiency | NEMA Roofing"
description: "The best metal roof color for energy efficiency: how reflectance and emittance work, cool dark colors, aged CRRC ratings and California's color rules by zone."
url: "https://nemaroofing.com/metal-roofing/ence-efficih-metal-roofing-bofing/"
updated: "2026-09-29"
---

**The best metal roof color for energy efficiency is the one with the highest aged solar reflectance and a high thermal emittance in the Cool Roof Rating Council’s directory: white and light colors rate highest, but “cool” pigments now let many mid-tone and dark colors reflect much of the sun’s invisible heat too.** Bare, unpainted metal reflects well but sheds absorbed heat poorly. In much of inland California, a steep-slope reroof must also meet minimum ratings. For help choosing a finish, call NEMA Roofing at [866-631-3366](tel:866-631-3366).

## Why does color change how hot a metal roof gets?

Sunlight arrives as ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared light, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Heat Island Group notes that about half of the sun’s energy is invisible near-infrared. Only the visible part sets a roof’s color. That is how “cool” dark pigments work: they look like ordinary dark colors but reflect more of the infrared. The lab gives an example of a cool-colored roof reflecting 35 percent of sunlight staying about 22 degrees Fahrenheit cooler on a summer afternoon than a same-looking roof that reflects 10 percent. Two numbers describe a finish:

- **Solar reflectance** (0 to 1): the share of all incoming sunlight, visible and infrared, that bounces off.
- **Thermal emittance** (0 to 1): how readily the surface releases the heat it did absorb.

Most painted finishes have high emittance. Shiny unpainted metal is different: it reflects a lot of sun, but like a steel tool left in the yard it holds onto the heat it absorbs, because its emittance is low. That is why a bright bare-metal roof is not automatically a cool roof.

## Which metal roof colors are the most energy efficient?

| Finish | How it usually performs | What to check |
| --- | --- | --- |
| White and very light colors | Highest reflectance; the only practical choice where low-slope roofs face strict values | Aged reflectance, since light finishes show dirt |
| Light earth tones, tans and light grays | High reflectance with a less stark look | Whether the aged rating still meets your zone’s value |
| Mid tones with cool pigments (greens, browns, grays) | Moderate reflectance; infrared-reflecting pigments do much of the work | That the product is listed as rated, not just “cool” in the brochure |
| Dark cool colors (charcoal, bronze, black) | Lowest of the painted finishes, but some dark cool colors meet the steep-slope minimum | The exact color’s aged rating; two blacks can differ a lot |
| Bare metal (unpainted) | Reflective when new, low emittance | Whether it qualifies through the solar reflectance index instead |

The Cool Roof Rating Council itself cautions that lighter colors are generally more reflective, but that color is not the only indicator of performance. Compare listed numbers, not swatches.

## Why should you look at aged ratings, not initial ones?

Every finish loses some reflectance as dust, pollution and sun weather it. The Cool Roof Rating Council lists two sets of values: initial, and aged, measured after three years of outdoor exposure at an approved test farm. The California Energy Commission uses the aged values for code compliance, so those are the numbers that matter for both your bills and your permit.

The paint system also affects how well a color holds. U.S. Department of Defense roofing criteria require paint on metal roofs to use a 70 percent polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) resin with 100 percent inorganic pigments, applied by coil coating, and allow other resins only for unusual uses. Ask which resin system your color uses, and compare the fade and chalk terms in the finish warranty; our guide to the [metal roof warranty](https://nemaroofing.com/metal-roofing/metal-roofing-built-for-decades-of-protection-and-value/) explains what those terms mean.

## Which color rules apply to your roof in California?

- **Coastal zone 6** (for example Santa Barbara, Goleta and Oxnard): no reflectance values apply to a sloped residential reroof, so color is your choice.
- **Inland zones** (zone 9 covers Woodland Hills, Tarzana, Encino and Ojai; the energy code sets the same rule in zones 4 and 8 to 15): when more than half of a steep-slope residential roof is replaced, the new product must reach an aged reflectance of 0.20 with 0.75 emittance, or a solar reflectance index of 16, unless an attic exception such as R-38 ceiling insulation or a radiant barrier applies.
- **Low-slope roofs** in zones 4 and 6 to 15 face a much higher bar (aged reflectance 0.63, emittance 0.75, or an index of 75), which in practice means white or near-white.
- **City of Los Angeles:** LADBS asks for a Cool Roof Rating Council certified product on residential roof replacements over 50 percent of the roof area.

Look up your ZIP code in the California Energy Commission’s climate zone list before choosing, since a single city can span two zones.

## How do you choose the most efficient color for your home?

1. Find your climate zone and whether your roof is steep or low slope.
2. Shortlist colors you like from the panel maker’s chart.
3. Look up each color’s aged solar reflectance, thermal emittance and solar reflectance index in the Cool Roof Rating Council directory.
4. Drop any that miss your zone’s values, then pick the most reflective of the rest you are happy to look at.
5. Check any homeowners’ association or design review rules on roof color.
6. Get the finish warranty for that exact color in writing.

## Choosing colors with NEMA Roofing

We install standing seam, corrugated and metal shingle roofs in a range of factory colors, and you can ask us for the ratings of the colors you are considering. For more on how a finish fits a house’s style, read about [metal roof designs and colors](https://nemaroofing.com/metal-roofing/top-metal-roofing-styles-to-enhance-your-homes-aesthetic/), and for the valley heat case, [metal roofing benefits in Tarzana](https://nemaroofing.com/metal-roofing/metal-roofing-benefits-for-efficient-homes-in-tarzana-california/). Five NEMA Roofing locations (Tarzana, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Woodland Hills and Downey) put us within reach of every town in Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties; see the [San Bernardino County service area](https://nemaroofing.com/service-areas/san-bernardino-county/) for the Inland Empire. Visit our [metal roofing service](https://nemaroofing.com/our-services/metal-roofing/) or call [866-631-3366](tel:866-631-3366).