Finding the right kitchen color is key to the whole space. We’d go as far as to say it’s the most important decision you will make in the entire design, so it’s important to get it right and the kitchen color trends for 2024 are an ideal place to start.
White kitchens aren’t for everyone, and the sizeable cost of a new kitchen shouldn’t dictate that you play it safe. It’s more a case of choosing how and where to introduce these color trends, picking spots that can be easily updated, and introducing shades that mirror the color palette in the rest of your home – these are just a few kitchen color ideas to choose from.
While it is worth paying attention to the latest kitchen trends, it is important to choose colors that truly resonate with you. The new kitchen color trends are both daring and calm, impactful yet soothing, and celebrate both beautiful brights and comforting neutrals, so there really is something for everyone, no matter your style.
The kitchen color trends to try in 2024
Kitchens are rife with color opportunities, from appliances and flooring to window treatments and cabinets. Start by deciding how much of a permanent commitment you are willing to make to room color ideas. One of the easiest and least expensive options is to paint a wall that can be easily updated should you tire of it.
1. Earthy tones – for a warm and livable kitchen
(Image credit: deVOL)
‘As a lover of color and pattern, I’ve observed a riveting shift in kitchen color trends this year. We’re seeing a departure from the traditional white or neutral kitchens, with homeowners now finally embracing bold, dramatic hues,’ explains Kati Curtis.
‘Deep blues and forest greens are creating a striking statement, while the warmth of terracotta and burnt orange offer a cozy, earthy charm,’ she adds. And it’s these earthy tones that are a really liveable way to embrace the kitchen color trend for being bolder. You get that hit of something braver and yet a color like brown or terracotta or orange or sand is still really liveable.
Kati Curtis is the founder of Kati Curtis Design, an design firm based in New York City specializing in classic design with a global influence. Kati founded the studio in 2005 after 12 years of working with international architecture and engineering firms.
2. Neutrals paired with a grounding shade – for a new take on a classic
(Image credit: John Merkl)
White kitchens are always on trend, however, a trend for 2024 that’s on the rise is grounding a neutral kitchen with a bolder darker shade. That can be in any form, a large print, a rug or as seen in this space, a kitchen island.
‘In this Modern Mediterranean remodel project, we brightened up a very dark kitchen with white paint and tiles, and a marble island. For the majority of the cabinets, we chose a complementary neutral color, Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter,’ explains Susan Skornicka of Skornicka Designs.
‘For the marble island cabinets, we chose Benjamin Moore’s Teal to make a statement in the otherwise light and airy kitchen, anchoring the room. This gorgeous cabinet color combo connects with the outdoor palette, including the limestone and blue San Francisco bay view, while giving a nod to colors that are reminiscent of centuries of life along the beautiful Mediterranean coast.’
And note the white is not a brilliant white, which is a kitchen color trend coming through too. Warm white paints are the way to do paints in 2024, as designer Kathy Kuo explains ‘This may not qualify as a ‘trend’ because honestly it’s so timeless, but I love warm whites as a wall color for kitchens. The kitchen is a room with a lot of functional purpose, so it’s important that there’s no sense of claustrophobia. A warm white is going to open the space up and invite depth as well as light and warmth.’
Kathy Kuo is a celebrated interior designer and international guru within the home and lifestyle space. She has 20+ years of experience in the design industry.
3. Yellow – for a true heritage feel
(Image credit: deVOL)
We are seeing a definite trend towards bolder, braver color choices for statement kitchens with more personality and joie de vivre, which is why a heritage yellow is having a moment.
Yellow kitchens are shining a spotlight on our homes this summer. As one of the most uplifting colors, it is not surprising that it is having a renaissance. Embraced in a big way or used in small doses, this sunny shade is rich, versatile and exudes positivity and warmth. Two things we can’t get enough of in 2024.
‘This cheery kitchen cabinet color imbues the room with optimism and is perfect for bringing a sense of positivity into the home,’ says Justyna Korczynska, senior designer at Crown. ‘Yellow is also very soothing, particularly when paired with cool, calming tones such as greys and pale, muted blues. It may seem surprising, but the color creates a sense of calm with a feeling of well-being and restfulness.’
While we love yellow, the kitchen color trend for 2024 is a softer, gentler yellow. Susan Deliss, textile designer and interior decorator agrees: ‘To use yellow or ochre, you need to think of it as the “neutral” in the scheme; as a foil to set off other colors, not to overpower everything else. Avoid anything that says canary or banana and go for something that sets off the architecture or warms up a cooler space.’
4. Red – for a bold, beautiful look that sings
(Image credit: Plain English)
Our love affair with dramatic dark kitchen cabinetry is far from over but this year things are warming up. Move over blacks, deep blues and greens, because rich reds are radiating their way into the heart of the home. Pure primary reds are still a bit 1990s; instead, this trend steers us towards muddier tones with tints of nature-led orange and brown.
‘Perhaps it’s a yearning for the light and warmth of Southern climes that are behind the current demand for reds and burgundies,’ suggests Merlin Wright, design director at Plain English. ‘Warm colors are positive and inspiring and complement other Mediterranean hues such as blues, greens and yellows. Experiment with different tones to the light and scale of your room.’
Choosing the right red kitchen can be tricky, says interior designer Danielle Duggleby, founder of Dalodu Design Studio. ‘I advise my clients to take their time selecting the color, testing it, and seeing it throughout the day in different lights. The right red can be perfect, but the wrong red can be garish. Pick up on other tones and colors throughout the space to complement or contrast – but not to clash.’
5. Vivid greens – for a new take on darker shades
(Image credit: Sawyers Design)
Decorating with green is hardly a trend, however, the tone of green that’s on trend does change year on year. For a while now the go-to green for kitchens has been a deep forest green, and while the love for deep shades is going nowhere we are seeing more vivid and apple greens being used more frequently in kitchens.
‘To enliven more than just your taste buds we suggest tangy citrus shades for kitchen wall colors as seen here with Benjamin Moore Fresh Cut Grass. Our inspiration was nature itself in this client’s country home,’ explains Kevin Sawyers of Sawyers Design.
‘The yellow-green also enhances the complementary wood tones of the cabinetry. If you love a color but find it just a bit too bright there is always the option of adding percentages of white to any color to tame it down a tad. Start by adding 25% and go from there. Your local paint store is happy to do this.’
6. Two-tone – for a modern style that delivers depth
(Image credit: Kati Curtis Design)
Why choose one shade when you can have two? A pleasing kitchen color pairing will deliver depth and interest for 2024.
Two-tone kitchen color involves using different saturations of one color to achieve contrast and movement. It’s a great option for those who struggle with combining colors but don’t want a flat look. To make life easier, many paint companies graduate popular shades numerically, from light to dark.
‘Two-tone kitchens, with contrasting cabinetry and islands, are coming to the fore, providing an interesting visual appeal,’ explains Kait Curtis. ‘Patterned tile backsplashes can pull these color variations together beautifully. We like to use vintage runners on the floor, which not only look beautiful but are great at hiding crumbs and spills. These trends are not only aesthetically pleasing, but they also infuse the space with personality and character, truly making the kitchen the heart of the home.’
7. Pale green – for a lighter take
(Image credit: Mary Wadsworth)
Designers and decorators are replacing dark green in favor of paler and brighter hues for 2024. However, our love affair with green kitchens isn’t going away anytime soon. In fact, sage green is the new neutral to use in your kitchen.
Busy spaces often benefit from muted and quieter colors and a kitchen, with its modern-day hub-of-the-home status, is just one of these rooms.
The kitchen-garden-borne shade inspired by its namesake herb, sage green is a perennial favorite for classic and timeless décor. One of the cleverest greens in the spectrum, this color-shifting hue shares subtle blue and grey tones, making it a sophisticated and soulful choice as well as bringing biophilic benefits with its organic origins.
The perfect shade for a timeless scheme, sage green is a tasteful choice for a classic kitchen look. It is a smart hue that marries feelings of freshness with modishness and is much admired for its muted overtones, which work to balance other strong colors and finishes, such as here in this monochrome partnership, designed by Irene Gunter.
8. Pastel pink – for a sophisticated take on this versatile color
(Image credit: deVOL)
Pink in the kitchen – why not?
Historically, pink was a pigment prepared from chalk colored with Brazilwood, but modern formulas have brought about every dye and paint shade imaginable, and we are now seeing this color enter our design consciousness.
Within interiors, pastel tones gained popularity during the 18th-century Rococo era, used in combination with elaborate stuccowork. Inherently romantic and feminine, sugary pinks also conjure up summery scenes of bountiful rose gardens. This summer, such nostalgia has captured the imaginations of kitchen designers who are using this color more liberally than ever before.
‘This tone works perfectly in a kitchen that is rather dark, or which suffers from a lack of natural light,’ says Elizabeth Hay, founder, of Elizabeth Hay Design. ‘Not only does it inject a space with brightness and cheer, but it will also bring out and highlight any accent colors in the room.’
9. Blue-black – add depth and dimension with dark colors
(Image credit: Haris Kenjar)
With inspiration from deep oceans to velvety night skies, dark and navy blues are life-enhancing shades that have the power to enhance our feeling of well-being. With their wide appeal of serenity and calm, it is perhaps no surprise that dark blues and blacks continue to be one of the most popular choices for interior design.
The depth of pigment of darker blues means that they offer an emotional content that can be as nurturing or soothing as any green, particularly when you decorate a kitchen floor-to-ceiling in a dark, velvety blue. For some homeowners, the idea of dark kitchen cabinet colors might feel foreboding, but for others, it is the dark ‘night’ of a shade that offers serenity in a room scheme.
‘Darker color palettes have become more mainstream,’ says interior designer Heidi Caillier, who designed this deep blue kitchen. ‘They can really give a room a feeling of luxury and sophistication and work surprisingly well in a small kitchen to give it some grandeur,’ she adds.
Heidi Caillier Design is a full-service interior design firm, with a project portfolio spanning the US and beyond. Heidi’s design philosophy is based on the belief that homes should be comfortable and livable while at the same time beautiful and curated.
Understanding color lies at the root of all interior design decisions, and exploring the latest kitchen color trends, along with consulting the color wheel, basic color theory and recent paint trends, will ensure that you choose the perfect palette for your kitchen.
