Paint Color Trends for 2026 for a Calmer, Serene Home

Home should feel like a sanctuary. I always want to feel a sense of peace and calm as soon as I walk through my door, especially after being in the hustle and bustle of what’s going on outside. Of course, your home can evoke any kind of feeling you want, but at the end of the day, home is the place where we rest. It’s where we relax after a hard day at work, it’s where we lounge in our pajamas on Sunday mornings, and it’s where we fall asleep and wake up each day. Having a home that exudes calm is a good goal for the new year, and there is a sure way to help you achieve it: color.

Top color predictions for 2026

There’s no denying that color has an effect on our mood and well-being, and the paint color trends of 2026 show us that we’re all looking to collectively relax. “Homeowners are looking for comfort and stability, and will look to create this especially in the home,” Carolyn Fife Bever of foundry house says. “The future of paint colors is one big, warm embrace of nature: comforting, familiar, and grounded.”

Designers look to warm neutrals, soft blues and greens, and desert-inspired hues meant to help you feel at ease. Below, interior designers share their favorite paint color trends for 2026 and how they can create a relaxing feel in every room.

warm neutrals

Cool gray used to be a neutral years ago. The tide, dubbed “millennial grey,” has turned and warm neutrals still reign supreme. “Instead of cool grays, we’re seeing a shift toward warmer neutrals, like a taupe, a soft stone, or a warm-toned beige,” Daniele Doerge, color expert at California Paintingsactions. “These colors are timeless and can create a space that feels comforting rather than cold or stark.”

If you think neutrals seem a little boring, Lauren Lerner, founder and lead designer of Living with Lolosuggests the opposite. “Warm neutrals create a welcoming backdrop that allows the architecture, furniture and textures to really shine,” she says. “Colors inspired by limestone, sand, clay, weathered wood or mushroom tones seem timeless to me because they are based on nature, not trends.”

Paint finishes can also create calm, especially when working with warm neutrals. “You’ll see higher-gloss paints that bring sunlight back into rooms, especially in warm paint colors like Farrow and Ball Brown Broccoli and Sherwin-Williams Creamy”Fife Bever adds.

grey

If gray continues to call you, all is not lost. 2026 Paint color trends include greige, a warm, creamy gray that does not include cold, harsh tones.

“Looking ahead to 2026, I recommend a warm gray for its calming and calming qualities,” Erica Yaw, lead designer at Rumor Designssays. “Now that cool grays are finally fading, this neutral feels fresh, clean and inviting, without any yellow or dated undertones.”

Current interior design trends are embracing unique and highly personalized spaces, and Yaw explains that greige works in both calm and relaxed spaces and those that are a little more daring. “I’ve applied this color to both the walls and ceilings of a living room, establishing a warm, inviting atmosphere while providing a neutral base for bold design elements, such as icy blue armchairs, a patinated metal fireplace, and a vibrant accent rug,” she says. “The overall effect felt rich and inviting, with the warm gray color tying all the components of the space together.”

Greens and blues that lean towards nature

There’s a reason why lush green forests and a sun-kissed body of water make us feel relaxed. Being in nature calms us, so it makes sense to use the same calming paint colors in our homes. “Earthy greens will continue to lead the trend until 2026 because they create that immediate connection with nature,” explains Doerge. “These shades have a restorative and relaxing effect, making them ideal for living rooms, bedrooms and anywhere someone wants to encourage calm.” As for what shade of green? “Intense greens like Dakota Woods Green by Benjamin Moore We will be heating the reading rooms and grounding the kitchen cabinets,” predicts Fife Bever.

The same goes for soft blues. “A secret to a serene painting that will be popular in 2026 is to select a color that imitates natural light,” Leigh Falkner of Leigh Falkner Interiors stock. “A space with few windows, particularly a bedroom, can be enhanced and calmed by the gorgeous light aquamarine color. Farrow and Ball No. 204 Pale Powder.”

Colors inspired by the desert

Camille is the queen of desert-inspired color palettes, and it’s no surprise they’re trending big this year. “We’re seeing more plays with clay, terra cotta, and those ‘sunbaked’ earth tones,” Doerge shares. “These bring warmth and serenity to a space, while also encouraging color for those who want to add some different tones to a room.”

“Clay, putty, soft terra cotta, and hot coals feel incredibly grounding,” adds Lerner. “They’re relaxing because we already associate them with the outdoors, so they create balance rather than demanding attention.”

Desert-inspired neutral colors are also incredibly flattering, and who doesn’t want to look and feel good in their own space? “While visiting a spa with beautiful plaster walls painted similarly to Farrow and Ball Setting Plaster #231, I noticed that the color complemented a wide range of skin tones, enhancing the wonderful experience for everyone,” shares Falkner. “As an additional option, this color can be softened a little satisfactorily by mixing it at 75% intensity.”