Planning to refresh your home with a splash of color this year, but not sure how to choose the right shade? Color specialists have confirmed and these are the paint color trends 2023 to inspire any decorating project, from Behr's neutral 'Blank Canvas' to Benjamin Moore's 'Cinnamon.'
The latest paint color trends are determined by leading experts who explore the psychology of color and how it can welcome positive energy into our homes and make any room feel more harmonious.
These carefully considered paint shades are also heavily influenced by the must-have interior design trends along with inspiration that filters down from the latest spring/summer fashion trends 2023.
From warm terracottas and earthy browns to sky blues and calming neutrals, here are the hues that are transforming homes right now.
The biggest interior paint color trends 2023
The color we paint our walls has the power to influence not only how a room looks and feels but more importantly how we feel within it – playing a fundamental role in creating a sanctuary where we feel most comfortable.
With that in mind could it be time for an invigorating green living room paint color or a splash of uplifting coral to captivate a hallway? Whether redecorating your kitchen paint color, bedroom, or every room in the house, embrace the latest on-trend shades championed by the expert to make your home feel ready for whatever this year has in store.
1. Wild Wonder, Dulux
Dulux, one of the UK's leading paint brands, recently announced Wild Wonder as its much-coveted Dulux Colour of the Year 2023. The yellow-tinged shade aims to "connect us with the cycles of life, by creating a sense of energy and positivity".
"Our colour of the year 2023 is this beautiful colour called Wild Wonder," explains Marianne Shillingford, Dulux's creative director. "An amazingly organic shade that works with everything. It's like a cardamon pod, that's how I would best describe it – a beautiful golden, delicate green."
Inspired by nature this soft shade is ideal to create a grounded space in any room, where we feel at one with the elements and closer to the outside world – our desire to be closer to nature has been cemented in the past year especially. This gentle tone could be considered the new Sage green for the decorating palette, offering a soft approach to using hues that emulate nature within our homes.
2. Blank Canvas, Behr
For those looking for the new neutral, there's Behr's 'Blank Canvas' to provide a backdrop with limitless possibilities to create the look you want for your interior style. "After years of uncertainty, we were seeking to restore balance, invoke a sense of calm, and inspire renewal and positivity with our Color of the Year," explains Erika Woelfel, vice president of color & creative services at Behr Paint Company.
"We looked at our top-selling colors and chose a versatile warm white with limitless decor possibilities. Blank Canvas is hopeful and welcoming, allows one to be present at the moment, and to embrace the future."
"Blank Canvas is a timeless warm white that offers versatility and comfort," Erika adds. "It is perfect for any home project because it pairs well with other colors, patterns, and materials, allowing them to stand as the focal point. Its transformative power allows it to be leveraged to create any desired atmosphere for the space. Combined with other neutrals, Blank Canvas delivers a cozy and comfortable feel to a room."
This timeless tone is ideal for reinvigorating a white room in need of a subtle hint of warmth to maximize light – making it the best white paint color for use in north-facing rooms that need updating. This depth of off-white provides the perfect foundation for layering warming tones through furniture and soft furnishings, making those colors pop against the serene white backdrop.
3. Raspberry Blush, Benjamin Moore
Beloved paint brand Benjamin Moore's Color of the year 2023 is Raspberry Blush. This exuberant shade of coral is for those who want to make their walls feel more expressive, as Helen Shaw, director at Benjamin Moore explains. “For 2023, we felt ready to take the next step in color – the time is right to take a confident step forward with our color selections to truly embrace the transformative power of color and paint.
“Raspberry Blush is the kind of color that takes center stage and wants to be noticed. Taking the plunge into deep, saturated, or chromatic colors can be daunting, especially when we’ve become so comfortable with all-neutral spaces. For some, bringing a saturated color into the home may be done in a small gesture of color, while for others the time has come to make a fearless color statement.”
4. Beverly, Farrow & Ball
There's a fresh new green in town and it comes courtesy of Farrow & Ball's newly launched paint color collection. The green set to become the latest trending shade is Beverly – a strong forest green that instantly evokes a feeling of being surrounded by the greenery of trees and foliage.
"I've developed a soft spot for many of our new colors, especially Beverly which is reassuring, uncomplicated, and full of depth, " says Charlotte Crosby, head of creative at Farrow & Ball. The strong, clean mid-green works beautifully when paired with more neutral earthy tones of beige and hessian, making it the ideal shade to use as a striking feature wall that adds warmth without overwhelming.
5. Alizarin, Graham & Brown
Graham & Brown's Colour of the Year 2023 is Alizarin, a deep and moody, yet refreshingly warm auburn inspired by the beauty found in natural earthy tones of russet reds and spicy terracotta shades.
The bold red is a defiant move away from greys and beige neutrals but in a way that feels safe because shades of red can create a comforting, cocooning environment in the right room. The brooding shade creates an ambiance that welcomes you like a figurative warm hug.
Paula Taylor, head stylist at Graham & Brown shares, "The rise of earthly neutrals has been growing recently. They are warm and welcoming, providing the cozy feel we love in our homes. With energy bills getting higher, we are looking at ways we can evoke a sense of warmth in our homes, and these tones and their connection with nature, create a warm, relaxed atmosphere.”
Versatile and ideal for any space, when used in a more intimate space this moody hue creates a cocooning effect or in larger rooms transforms the space into an opulent abode. It would provide just a hint of earthy accent color to a Japandi-style living room or bedroom.
"Alizarin will bring warmth to any room and wooden furniture pieces with unglazed ceramics will add to this naturally cozy feel," Paula adds. "When thinking tactilely, you can pair this with velvets, corduroy, jute, or rattan to create a sensory delight."
6. Templeton Pink, Farrow & Ball
Sophisticated pink paint colors have proved hugely popular in recent years, with shades that welcome a more muted approach to using this uplifting hue – pinks that feature bluer undertones to avoid the sweetness associated with pastel shades.
Farrow & Ball's new Templeton Pink sits somewhere between existing popular paint colors 'Pink Ground' and 'Setting Plaster', providing a gentle neutral that welcomes warmth to walls without being overtly pigmented.
We predict this hybrid tone will be a trending hashtag as it continues to filter through the world of decorating in 2023 - watch this space.
7. Optimistic Orange, Albany
Trusted designer paint brand Albany has revealed a trending color palette for 2023, as opposed to one dedicated shade. This palette comprises five shades on the same sunny scale of warming, spicy colors that the brand has named 'Optimistic Orange'.
The harmonious selection of orange and earthy brown tones is ideal for those wanting to create a comfortable, cocooning space but one that still shows off their vibrant personality. It's also perfect for those embracing the 70s-inspired interior design trends making waves right now.
Once thought of as a paint color that can devalue homes oranges are now having a revival, as homeowners look to follow the principles of the dopamine-dressing fashion trend. the key is in finding the right shades that offer warm undertones that can be blended harmoniously with softer tones - as this Albany color palette demonstrates perfectly.
8. Wine Dark, Farrow & Ball
Blue has always been a popular choice as a bedroom paint color due to its calming and tranquil qualities to ensure a better night's sleep. In recent years the trend has been very much leaning toward the deeper, bolder blues inspired by night skies and deep watery seascapes. Farrow & Ball have dived into that depth of blue with the new paint color 'Wine Dark'.
"Inspired by midnight skies, this spiritual color is named after the term Homer used to describe the sea," explains the much-loved paint brand. We predict this clean navy blue will be the new Hague Blue we see trending when people are searching for brooding blues to decorate their homes.
9. 'Wenge' brown, Benjamin Moore
Brown is one of the biggest paint color trends to emerge this year, identified as a particularly key living room trend for creating a grounding environment to rest and reset.
This earth-derived tone is proving popular thanks to our desire to connect further with nature, which has been bubbling as a key interior design trend in recent years. But it's also due to seeking more saturated shades for feature walls when decorating cohesive spaces – brown is the new dark accent color to pair with warm neutrals
"The color of the earth reconnects us with nature in 2023," explains Helen. "Imagine days filled with glowing heat, and colors of burnt soil and rich umber. Strong and striking this look is both confident and simple."
10. Serene Blue, Yes Colours
Sky blue was a popular shade last year, largely thanks to the Dulux Colour of the year 2022 Blue Skies, and the experts are predicting that this optimistic shade of pale blue is still as relevant and important when it comes to decorating homes in 2023.
"We’re predicting blue hues are going to be knocking green off its top spot for 2023," suggests Emma Bestley, co-founder of YesColours. "Starting with sky blue for its calming effect, we’re already starting to see this shade introduced in bedrooms and living rooms."
11. Terra Rosa, Dunn-Edwards
Paint specialists Dunn-Edwards has named its Color of the Year 2023 Terra Rosa, a layered tone of pink. The brand describes it as: "a deep, rosy pink hue with a touch of terra-cotta influence that exudes confidence, creativity, and coziness." An ideal shade for bedrooms to add a hint of elegance to a warming shade that feels cocooning and rich.
The team goes on to say: "Drawing inspiration from modern fashion, lifestyle, and culture, Terra Rosa was selected as a refreshing neutral update to browns and burgundies that projects strength and vitality. A medium chroma, the cinnamon rose hue is positive and joyful, reflecting confidence, creativity, and coziness."
"Reflecting just the right amount of introspection, this high chroma cinnamon rose hue is strong, yet approachable, and acts as a refreshing neutral update to browns and burgundies."
12. Fresh Lilac, Yes Colours
We've identified Scandinavian-inspired pastels as one of the biggest interior design trends to shape 2023, so it is of no surprise to w&h that a soft shade of lilac is among the most-coveted paint shades of the year.
"Make way for berry colors that instantly remind us of comfort and being content, adding a sense of romance and luxury to a space," says Emma. "Purple-red dyes were once considered expensive, which is why this color has remained luxurious and exclusive.
"For a softer approach, lilac continues to be a firm favorite. From fresh pale to deep saturated tones, lilac is amongst our bestsellers and it's winning more and more hearts in the home decor community every day."
13. Cinnamon, Benjamin Moore
Another key 2023 color from the experts at Benjamin Moore is this warming shade of brown that has a redness to it that feels like a rich rust tone.
“Cinnamon is a rich and rusted brown with orange undertones," explains Helen "and is a great alternative for a bolder neutral that stands as a strong focal point. It is a pleasing balance between brown, orange, and terracotta, giving a color that has a gracious yet fresh feel. Cinnamon pairs well with natural materials and furnishings and can sit well in both traditional and modern schemes.”
14. Magenta Pink, Mylands
In line with the Barbiecore fashion trend, the power of pink is being taken to the next level with Myland's bold choice of magenta pink as the Colour of the Year 2023.
Dominic Myland says, “FTT-006 is an unfailingly cheerful and bold pink that’s proving not only to be incredibly popular but also more enduring than just another trend or fad. It’s a confident shade with the power to completely transform a space, and its intensity makes it hard to forget. Hot pink is playful and eye-catching, and though it’s the color of the moment, it’s a stylish shade you won’t get tired of any time soon.”
Not for the fainthearted, this vibrant shade is best used in small doses, particularly for those who feel an entire room painted in this unapologetically bright pink would be intimidating – as we advise for how to use Pantone's Color of the Year 2023 in your home.
Mylands suggests, "painting details within a space, for example accenting the room with a bold pink skirting, doorway, or piece of furniture to create a dramatic contrast." Painting details can be a great way to make a room look bigger with paint, so choose the area thoughtfully if this is the intention.
15. Starry Night Blue, Benjamin Moore
Starry Night Blue is the most vibrant hue of blue to be cited as a key color for 2023, sitting somewhere between the darkness of "Wine Dark by Farrow & Ball and the punchiness of 'Serene Blue' by YesColours. It offers a more playful approach to using this versatile shade.
"Blue is the color of freedom, intuition, imagination, inspiration, and sensitivity," explains Helen. "It's perfect for 2023, and that's why Starry Blue is one of our top color predictions. Think sky and sea, dark blue nights, peace and harmony, stability and wisdom."
Helen concludes by saying, "From pale Cornflower to almost black indigo, blue will be everywhere in summer in both matte and sheen finishes."
16. Rich brown, Francesca's Paint
From 70s-inspired fashion trends to the grounding color palettes being favored by interior designers brown is the somewhat surprising shade of choice for one of this year's biggest interior paint color trends.
Explaining why it's become so popular, leading paint and color specialist Francesca Wezel, founder of Francesca’s Paints says: “Considered a dark neutral, brown has a moody, sophisticated feel and adds great depth to interiors."
"Brown pairs wonderfully with light or bright pink, dark blue, and off-white, as well as sandy tones and terracotta. It is perfect for hallway paint colors and drawing rooms and would work well as a background color for artwork. My color palette includes a variety of brown shades including, Love & Squalor (shown above), Earth, Cohiba Brown, and Cappuccino,
"In fact, I like brown so much that my living room is chocolate brown and I feel that I am enveloped and protected by it - the color of the earth," Francesca adds.
17. Rended Point, Sherwin-Williams
Leading international paint brand Sherwin-Williams has curated a calming color palette to support a cohesive set of shades with the intention of creating a calming environment. The brand describes the color mix as 'natural, inventive, warm and uplifting.'
Within the color palette is its color of the year, Redend Point SW 9081. This deliciously muted plaster-like pink or natural chalky clay sediment feels derived directly from the earth – exuding an effortless warmth and soothing quality.
"Discover warmth and beauty in the soft soulfulness of Redend Point, an intriguing neutral that inspires us to create deep connections as we move through the world," says a spokesperson from the paint specialists. "The soft neutral is highly flexible and imparts a cozy warmth and natural earthiness to any space."
18. Mineral green, Francesca's Paints
Ice House Blue by Francesca's Paints
All shades of green have become increasingly popular in recent years, perhaps due to a yearning to be outside in nature creating a desire to bring an essence of nature into the house. From soothing sage green to more dramatic forest green, there's no doubt this varied shade is one of the biggest interior paint color trends for 2023.
"Green is a wonderfully soothing color, and we all want to create a relaxing feel in our homes. Certain shades of green can act as neutral as they work well with and complement so many other colors.
“It’s important to get the right shade of green for you! There are so many varying shades of green from blue-green to yellow-green, and some will work better in certain spaces than others," says Francesca. "I would also take into consideration the amount of natural light within a space, as many greens will showcase different tones depending on the way the pigments react to light.”
What are the interior colors for 2023?
As we've already explored above, the interior colors of 2023 vary from bold and saturated to understated neutrals but the common thread running throughout all of this year's biggest color trends are warm undertones. The desire to decorate our homes to welcome positive energy and create a sense of comfort is the driving force behind the extra depth of warmth for the biggest interior paint colors this year.
Colors derived from natural pigments are the most popular theme for more saturated color choices in 2023, all with a profound sense of grounding and cocooning the walls of our homes. Within this interior color scheme shades of brown, rust, and red all dominate – ideal for those who want a more daring tone to color drench their walls.
Also inspired by nature but on the other side of the color spectrum are mineral tones of green and blues, also hugely popular for 2023 to offer a sense of escapism and serenity to all spaces.
Even neutral palettes are warmer for 2023, with less of a pull towards brilliant whites and pale grays, instead, the new neutrals have a yellower undertone that adds warmth such as Behr's neutral 'Blank Canvas'.
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