5 Kitchen Colors Going Out of Style in 2025 — And the Designer-Approved Shades to Pick Instead

A great kitchen should have longevity. Design or remodel in 2025, then, and your decisions, including those on color, will likely be ones you’ll live with for a while.

The choices we all make for our homes are deeply personal, but knowing what’s on trend is worthwhile — and it isn’t about slavishly following fashion. There’s a reason why elements of interiors come into favor and fall out of it, and that’s no different when it concerns kitchen colors.

So, to provide you with inspiration for a kitchen refresh, we asked designers and color experts for their advice on the kitchen colors that are losing their appeal, and the shades taking their place in kitchen trends lists in 2025. This is what they revealed.

1. White is out — green is in

White kitchens are clean and crisp, and the color is one we’d never exclude as an option for the room. But their popularity over many years is perhaps their downfall — for all its admirable qualities white doesn’t feel as if it proclaims personality.

What’s in instead, though, is natural color with green kitchens the top choice, and green even deserves special acclaim, according to Michel Smith Boyd, SMITHBOYD Interiors, NKBA Design Council.

“Green has been grandfathered into ‘classic’ status,” he says. Follow his lead and you might want to try its latest incarnation. “I’m really enjoying the variations in smokey tones like Acacia Haze, SW 9132, in lieu of the traditional dark greens,” Michel says.

2. Muddy brown is out — rich brown is in

Brown has grown as a trend, but if you want to catch the wave, you should focus on brown with a red undertone – it’s this that’s in style rather than the muddy takes on the color.

In fact, it‘s not only brown but earth colors as a whole that are great choices for kitchens in 2025 and beyond, and they’re also capable of providing the depth and interest rich brown can. “The more unusual sources of earth tones are catching my eye lately,” says Caleb Anderson, Drake/Anderson, NKBA Design Council.

“The depth of color of a beet, whether it be a deep muddled red or a golden hue, illustrates a return to naturalism and experimentation in design,” he says.

3. Cool gray is out – warm neutrals are in

It has been dominant for some time, but there’s a take on gray kitchens that’s definitely had its moment: “The reign of cool grays is coming to an end,” says interior designer and founder of Custom Home Design Nina Lichtenstein.

Yes, cool gray is sleek and contemporary, but it just doesn’t feel inviting nor organic. “Grays with blue or green undertones tend to lack the emotional depth that kitchens now crave, and they can make a space feel disconnected from natural elements, which are becoming more crucial in modern home design,” explains Nina.

“With over a decade of cool tones or ‘millennial gray’, we are finally welcoming warmer tones again,” agrees Shae Wilder, manager of designer relations at BlueStar. She sees designers selecting more nature-inspired softer cream, taupes, and warmer grays for kitchens.

4. Sober blue is out — warm blue is in

Our next out-of-style color also demonstrates the shift away from cool hues. Like cool gray, blue kitchens with gray undertones create a feel that’s on the sober rather than the welcoming side.

What takes its place in 2025 is part of the trend for a more joyful ambiance for the kitchen. “It’s about a different approach, such as opting for a cleaner blue rather than heritage classics,” says Patrick O’Donnell, brand ambassador for Farrow & Ball.

Interior designer Lisbeth Parada of Dutch Boy Paints agrees that “kitchen design trends are making room for warmer, more dynamic colors that bring personality and a welcoming feel to this space”. Its Mapped Blue (shown above) has a slight yellow undertone and, she says, “modernizes traditional spaces and pairs beautifully with wood tones, brass accents, and both cool and warm complementary shades”.

5. Cool-toned wood is out — oak and walnut are in

Just as with painted finishes, wooden kitchen cabinet ideas go out of style and (you might notice something in common with the other trends here), it’s cool-colored woods that are out.

“There’s a clear shift toward warmer, natural wood tones, with oak and walnut taking center stage,” says Kiara Perdomo, director of product development at Nemo Tile + Stone.

“Gray-washed or cool-toned weathered woods are being replaced by rich, earthy finishes that highlight the wood’s natural grain and warmth.”

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