Your kitchen cabinets have been in a need of a fresh coat of paint for far too long now. You want 2021 to be a more productive year, so why not start by tackling the cabinets first? The question becomes what color to paint your cabinets so they look good as new. Which cabinet colors are trending in 2021?
The following colors are the best options for kitchen cabinets in 2021:
Ahead, we’ll discuss each of these 7 inspiring hues in more detail, including why the color is such a wise choice for your kitchen cabinets. We’ll also provide some tips and guidance on how to select the right cabinet color for your kitchen. You won’t want to miss it!
These Are the 7 Best Colors for Kitchen Cabinets in 2021
Black
Country Living, in their kitchen trends list for 2021, stated that black cabinets will make a major splash this year. Why? Black, despite being such a dark color, has a modern look that will make any kitchen look and feel great. Even if parts of your kitchen are seriously outdated–Formica countertops, we’re looking at you–painting your kitchen cabinets black could detract from those old kitchen components until you have the time and budget to replace them.
The key to not bogging down your kitchen in dark colors is to contrast the black cabinets elsewhere in the room. For example, maybe your countertops are white to light gray, or perhaps you paint the walls in your kitchen a similarly light hue. This makes the cabinetry look all the more distinct!
Pink
On the complete opposite end of the color spectrum is pink, as recommended by Apartment Therapy. Now don’t worry, your kitchen doesn’t have to look like an advertisement for Pepto Bismol. Baby Soft, a color by Clare, and shades in this same vein are being painted over a lot of old cabinets this year.
One look and you can see why. A color like Baby Soft is gentle enough that it doesn’t overwhelm your kitchen while still adding a muted pop of color. Since it’s pink and not white, the cabinets won’t stain as easily, but still, almost no one will peg the color of your cabinets as pink unless they’re really looking hard.
If a shade like Baby Soft seems too barely-there for you to warrant painting your kitchen, fret not. Wing It, another Clare color, is a step up color-wise but still doesn’t go too bold. The yellow-orange tint in this pink makes it look almost like ivory, which is certainly appealing.
Maybe you’d rather go whole-hog while embracing the pink trend. If so, then a color like Pink Sky from Clare is right up your alley. This is a darker pink, so you’re still not adorning your walls with some sickly sweet bubblegum color. The hue is stately, not quite red, not orange, but not what you think of when you envision pink either.
Dark Seafoam Green
If the mere mention of the color seafoam green leaves you feeling divided, relax. 2021 is all about avoiding the overly bright colors for kitchen cabinets and painting them a more mature version of that color instead.
For example, take a look at this seafoam color called Gray Morning from Behr. It’s like seafoam green grew up, got a job, and settled down. Despite that Gray Morning might sound blah to you, this color is a cheery green that’s not too cheery. The inclusion of the gray with the green creates a color almost reminiscent of hunter green, although not as dark.
If you have live plants and other greenery in your kitchen, then a color like this will really jazz up the space. Dark seafoam green is especially complementary with gray or white walls as well as silver appliances.
Sage Green
Apartment Therapy also mentions that sage green is having a moment in 2021. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise considering its similarity to dark seafoam green. Don’t be fooled, though, as these are two separate colors. If you look at this sage green paint by Magnolia Home (the Joanna Gaines brand) and then compare it to Behr’s Gray Morning, you’ll notice the sage green is a bit brighter.
Like dark seafoam green, sage green is a sturdy, complementary color that accents your kitchen rather than forcing the eye to look at your cabinets. Kitchen colors like brown, white, gray, and black will all look great with this shade of green for your cabinetry.
Blue
Enough about green, let’s talk about blue! The good news is that whether you’re more of a light blue, teal, or dark blue kind of person, any shade of blue is fair game in 2021. Yes, seriously! This article from Better Homes and Gardens cites some paint recommendations for 2021 from Farrow & Ball, a UK paint company.
Farrow & Ball personally recommends a few colors. One of these is the brand’s Pitch Blue, a darker cobalt-like color with purple undertones that still manages to look bright and animated. According to Farrow & Ball, a shade like Pitch Blue looks best against bright white, so if you have a lighter kitchen, this shade of blue for your cabinets could provide some much-needed contrast.
Goodnight Moon by Clare and Stiffkey Blue by Farrow & Ball are two very deep, dark blues that are best if you feel like making a dramatic change in your kitchen this year. These colors could be a nice stand-in for black if you want to go dark but you’re feeling a bit of trepidation about it.
On the lighter side of the spectrum, Good Jeans from Clare is a pretty blue hue that you can’t go wrong with. Not differentiating too much from the seafoams and sages we covered above, Good Jeans is a moderate blue with hints of gray. It’s a very safe kitchen cabinet color, but sometimes that’s what you need.
Ultra Marine Blue from Farrow & Ball, while darker than Good Jeans, is not in navy territory. It’s a solid mid-to-dark blue that’s still plenty bright. If you have any hints of green in your kitchen, a color like Ultra Marine Blue especially would be impactful.
Ivory White
White is a risky color because, as we touched on earlier, it stains so easily. Plus, there’s something about pure white that comes across as a little too sterile. That’s why 2021 is all about warmer whites such as ivory.
This aptly-named Ivory White from Benjamin Moore, referred to also as Acadia White AC-41, is the ideal mix of light yellow and white. It goes with just about any color as white so often does, but it’s got more panache than your everyday white. The warmth that radiates from ivory white is also very attractive.
Coffee Brown
Porch Daydreamer, a blog run by a woman named Tracey whose work has appeared in HGTV, Apartment Therapy, and more also has some suggestions for kitchen cabinet paint colors. She says coffee brown is a color to have on your radar for 2021.
A shade like Sawdust by Sherwin-Williams is like a warm, creamy cup of coffee that will look great in any kitchen. Better than natural wood by a large margin, Sawdust and other coffee brown shades like it add a natural touch of color that goes well with other earthy colors such as blue, green, and black.
Ramie, also from Sherwin-Williams, is a lighter take on Sawdust that’s more beige-like than brown. It adds warmth to a kitchen much like ivory white does, so it’s worth considering for that very reason.
If you’d rather go a bit darker like a black cup of coffee, Clare’s Coffee Date is a refined deep, rich brown. The warm undertones keep this color from veering too close to black territory though. Your cabinets will boast a natural yet professional look.
How to Pick the Right Color for Kitchen Cabinets
We just presented 7 beautiful color families to choose from when painting your kitchen cabinets. Each is much renowned in 2021, so how do you select the color that’s right for you? Here are some pointers.
Look at Your Countertop and Backsplash
If you’re painting your kitchen cabinets now, what’s stopping you from painting the walls next? Then your cabinets might no longer match if you used the walls as the basis for your color selection. Instead, try to pair your cabinet color with more permanent kitchen fixtures such as your countertop or backsplash.
Choose Warm or Cool Colors
Is your kitchen cooler or warmer in color temperature? Cool shades look best with white, green, gray, or blue. Warm colors feature beige, brown, and shades with orange and yellow in them. If your kitchen happens to feature both warm and cool shades in tandem, then you have the most options with your kitchen cabinets. You could lean warmer or cooler depending on your preferences and the color should match either way.
Use Paint Samples as Your Guide
Before you pick up a paintbrush and open that can of paint, take advantage of the paint samples offered by your local home improvement store. Sometimes colors don’t look the same when shopping online versus in the store. In other cases, even though you like the color, it doesn’t match your kitchen as you thought it would in your head.
Paint samples are there to help you select the best shade of a color family, so make sure you take advantage of them!
Conclusion
In 2021, a whole smattering of colors is popular for painting your kitchen cabinets. These include your usual suspects such as black, beige, white, and gray-based colors. You can also go bold with pinks, sage greens, and every shade of blue in the rainbow. Now you’re ready to paint!