How to open a paint can?
Use a paint-can opener or a flat tool such as a putty knife under the lid rim, and work it around the whole edge a little at a time rather than levering up one spot. The lid seals in a groove all the way round, so prying at a single point bends the rim and ruins the seal.
Why not a screwdriver point
A five-in-one tool or a purpose-made can key is the right tool; a flat-blade screwdriver works in a pinch but is more likely to dent the rim because its tip is narrow. Move around the lid in short steps, lifting a centimetre at each, and the lid comes off flat and undamaged.
The rim groove is not just a lid rest — it is the seal that keeps the paint usable between coats and between jobs. A bent rim will not reseal, and paint in a can that will not close skins over and dries out.
Before you hammer the lid back down, wipe the groove clean with a rag. Paint that dries in the groove holds the lid open a fraction, breaks the seal, and also sprays everyone nearby the next time the can is opened. Tap the lid down around the edge with a rubber mallet or a block of wood over a hammer, not by striking the centre, which distorts it.
How we sourced this
This answer is composed from our knowledge base, which holds only what a regulator, a standards body or a manufacturer supports. The sources behind it are listed below with the date we accessed each one. If a claim on this page has no source under it, that is a bug — tell us and we will fix it.
Where a figure is product-specific — coverage, dry time, recoat time, temperature limits — we point you at the manufacturer's technical data sheet rather than printing a general number as though it were a specification. That distinction is the most common error in this trade, and it is the one that costs people a repaint.
Common mistakes
- Prying at a single point with a screwdriver, which bends the rim and breaks the seal.
- Leaving dried paint in the rim groove, so the lid never reseals and the paint skins over.
- Hammering the lid down in the centre, which distorts it.
Related questions
Sources
- Sherwin-Williams. Product technical data sheets (accessed 2026-08-17).
Also asked as
- How to open paint can?
- How to open a paint can lid?