What Grit Between Paint Coats?
Quick answer
Between paint coats you sand lightly with a fine abrasive, usually 220 to 320 grit, to knock off dust nibs and give the next coat a surface to grip. The goal is a scuff, not a removal pass: you are leveling the film’s high spots, not cutting down to the previous coat. On flat walls you can often skip this step, but on trim, doors, and cabinets it is what separates a smooth finish from a grainy one.
Key takeaways
- 220 to 320 grit is the working range between coats; 320 or finer for the last finish pass.
- Sand to remove nibs and create adhesion, never to cut through the coat you just laid down.
- Only sand once the coat is dry to the product’s recoat window, not just dry to the touch.
- Dust removal after sanding is part of the step; skip it and you seal nibs into the next coat.
The short answer
Sanding between coats serves two jobs at once. It knocks down the dust nibs, runs, and brush or roller stipple that land in a fresh coat, and it scuffs the surface so the next coat bonds instead of sitting on top. Both jobs need only a fine abrasive and a light hand. If you press hard enough to change the color underneath, you have gone too far.
This step matters most on trim, doors, and cabinets, where the finish is seen up close. On large wall planes the film is forgiving enough that many painters skip between-coat sanding and only de-nib problem areas. The grit you use before the first coat is a different question, covered on our sandpaper grit before painting page.
What matters
Four things decide whether between-coat sanding helps or hurts. Grit is first: too coarse and you cut through the coat, too fine and you do not scuff enough for the next coat to key in. Pressure is second: this is a scuff, so let the abrasive do the work. Dryness is third: sand a coat that is not dry and the paper rolls the film instead of leveling it. Dust removal is last: the same nibs you sand off must be wiped away, not painted over.
The recoat window on the can tells you when the next coat can go on, and it doubles as the cue for when the film is hard enough to sand. Sanding too early is the most common mistake, because a coat can feel dry on top while it is still soft underneath.
Grit between coats
These are standard task-to-grit ranges, not test results. Stay fine and stay light.
| Task | Grit range |
|---|---|
| Scuff-sand between coats of wall paint | 220 to 320 |
| De-nib trim and doors between coats | 220 to 320 |
| Final scuff before the last finish coat | 320 or finer |
| Smooth a run or heavy stipple | 220, then re-coat the leveled area |
220 is the workhorse: it removes nibs and scuffs without cutting through a healthy coat. Drop to 320 or finer for the final pass on a finish you want perfectly smooth. Reserve anything below 220 for the prep stage before the first coat, not between coats.
How to choose
Choose the grit by what you are sanding off and how smooth the result needs to be. If you are only removing dust nibs on a wall, 220 does it. If you are chasing a flawless trim or cabinet finish, use 220 for the body of the work and 320 or finer for the last pass. A sponge or a fine pad follows contours better than folded paper, and a rigid block risks digging edges on profiles.
Match the abrasive to the surface, not to habit. Our sanding sponge guide covers the sponge formats, and the grit before painting page covers the coarser prep grades this step builds on.
Practical recommendations
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Wait for the recoat window
Sand only when the coat has reached the recoat time on the label, so the film is hard enough to scuff without rolling.
-
Use 220 to 320 and a light hand
Let the abrasive do the work with the weight of your hand. A few light passes remove nibs and dull the sheen.
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Sand the problem, not the whole plane
On walls, target nibs and runs rather than sanding every square inch. On trim and doors, sand the full surface lightly for a uniform key.
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Remove the dust before recoating
Wipe with a tack cloth or a barely damp rag and let it dry, as our dust removal guide explains.
Watch out
Do not sand wet paint. A coat that is dry to the touch but not yet at its recoat window will roll and pill under the paper. If the paper loads with soft paint, stop and wait for the recoat time on the can.
FAQs
Do you have to sand between coats of paint?
What grit removes paint nibs between coats?
How long should paint dry before sanding between coats?
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