Kitchen cabinet color ideas are easier to judge in a real kitchen than on a paint chip. A small square of green or navy tells you very little about a whole run of doors next to your own counters and floor.
These 18 kitchens show the color each owner chose, in their own words, and what they paired it with. Some went all in on one color. Others painted only the island, the hood or one tall pantry wall and kept the rest quiet.
1. Sage Green Island And Range Hood In A White Kitchen
Cabinet color: Lemon Leaves by Magnolia Home
Painted: The island, the range hood and a small arched cabinet
Rest of the kitchen: White cabinets, wood floor, leather stools
Project: DIY paint job
The island and the small arched cabinet were deep navy when Sarah Joy moved in. She painted them, and the tall hood, in Lemon Leaves, which she calls “a dark and rich sage green.” Everything else stayed white, so the green reads as a few strong pieces rather than a whole room. The same green carries into the coffee bar nook next door.
2. Tall Green Pantry Cabinets At One End Of A White Kitchen
Cabinet color: A deep green (the name is not given on her page)
Placement: Tall pantry cabinets at one end of the room
Rest of the kitchen: White perimeter and island, black counters, brass pendants
Time: About ten weeks of renovation
Emily A. Clark first wanted color on the island. Her designer suggested the end section of cabinets instead, to break up the long room. The tall cabinets hold pull-out pantries, with chairs beside them as a small “keeping room.” The only paint she names is Deep Jungle by Benjamin Moore, a near match to the green wallpaper behind the table.
3. Olive Green And Dark Wood Cabinets In A Small Sonoma Kitchen
Cabinet color: Olive green paint and dark stained wood
Counters: Calacatta quartz
Hardware: Matte black long pulls
Size: Under 12 feet from fridge to window
This small Sonoma Valley kitchen mixes two cabinet finishes. The dark stained wood matches the tone of the oak floors, and the olive green was chosen “to play off the trees.” A stained wood hood and two glass-front uppers sit above the olive lowers. GE Slate appliances blend with both colors. The painted cabinets are Eden Artisan in Jade, now discontinued, and she names Sherwin-Williams Cocoon as the closest match.
4. Warm Linen Cabinets With A Deep Green Hood And Island
Cabinet color: Natural Linen by Sherwin-Williams
Hood and island: Dark Everglade by Behr
Backsplash: Green tile
Project: Full DIY gut renovation, with cabinets they built
Charleston Crafted gutted this kitchen themselves, and he built new cabinets to match the ones they saved. “We also didn’t go with a white kitchen,” they write, so the cabinets are a soft linen color that runs to the ceiling. The custom hood and the island are a deep green, picked as the closest match to their Samsung Bespoke fridge.
5. Hand-Painted Stone And Green Cabinets With An Oak Island (England)
Cabinet colors: Portland Stone Deep, Portland Stone Pale and Pompeian Ash, all by Little Greene
Finish: Hand-painted solid timber
Floor: Large limestone tiles
Design: Artichoke, in Cheshire, England
This arts and crafts kitchen uses three paint colors on solid timber cabinets. Two warm stone shades form the base, and a bold Pompeian Ash green outlines the cabinetry. A wood work island, copper pans and a woven runner keep the long room from feeling formal. With its specialist painted finish, it is color inspiration more than a DIY plan.
6. Chantilly Lace Cabinets With A Cast Iron Island
Perimeter: Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore
Island: Cast Iron by Sherwin-Williams
Project: Existing cabinets painted, with new counters and lighting
Time: Started in September, revealed in February
Jennifer O’Brien kept her existing cabinets and painted them. The perimeter is a clean white, and the island is Cast Iron, which she calls a “green hue.” Next to the white subway tile and wood floor, it reads as a soft gray-green. Batten board island sides and DIY wood beams finish the room. She says new cabinets would have cost double or triple.
7. Navy Lower Cabinets And White Uppers With Gold Pulls
Lower cabinets: Outerspace by Sherwin-Williams, Emerald line
Upper cabinets: Sherwin-Williams Extra White
Hardware: Champagne gold
Time: About a month of painting, after a week of cleaning and repairs
Within the Grove repainted their existing cabinets navy on the bottom and white on top. They call Outerspace “the perfect navy with a hint of gray.” The paint needed no top coat and washes with soap and water. The uppers match their trim, and thin plywood shiplap on the sides and back of the lower cabinets cost $25.
8. Hague Blue Glass-Front Breakfast Nook Cabinets
Cabinet color: Hague Blue by Farrow & Ball, color-matched into Benjamin Moore Advance
Painted: A glass-front built-in by the breakfast nook, and the island
Main cabinets: Sherwin-Williams Extra White
Walls: Agreeable Gray
This deep blue sits on the glass-front built-in by the breakfast nook, with dishes showing through the doors. The island used to be Benjamin Moore Blue Note, and she repainted it to match. Hague Blue, she says, is “a bit warmer and muddier.” Around it are a rough wood beam, a round white table and a light wood floor.
9. Waterloo Blue Cabinets With Brass Pulls
Cabinet color: Waterloo by Sherwin-Williams
Paint: Emerald Urethane, satin
Hardware: Brushed brass pulls
Project: Paint and hardware makeover, not a gut job
This was a plain white kitchen before. Lovely Etc. painted every cabinet Waterloo, “a great dark blue color with a lot of gray in it,” and added new brass pulls. The brown granite and the angled peninsula stayed. It shows how much one color can change a kitchen without new counters. She warns that brass pull finishes can vary between orders.
10. Moody Factory-Finish Navy Cabinets To The Ceiling
Cabinet color: Maritime, a stock color from Diamond Cabinetry at Lowe’s
Paint matches: Benjamin Moore Navy Masterpiece, Sherwin-Williams Mount Etna
Extra: Touch-up lacquer came with the cabinets
Age: Almost ten years
Sarah Gibson did not paint these cabinets. They came from the factory in a navy called Maritime, with a matching hood and a navy range with brass. Pale gray tile keeps the range wall from feeling too dark. For anyone who wants the look in paint, she lists her closest matches. She says little has changed in almost ten years.
11. Gray-Stained Cabinets With A Navy Cabinet Wall
Navy cabinets: Cyberspace by Sherwin-Williams
Gray cabinets: Stained Sherwin-Williams Pickle White with Gray Tone
Walls: Sherwin-Williams Alabaster
Built: About ten years ago
Instead of splitting uppers and lowers, this kitchen puts the dark color on one segment of cabinets. The rest are stained gray, the same stain used on the living room built-ins, so the kitchen ties into the open plan. Dark wood beams and antique furniture make it feel traditional. Rachel Paxton says the gray stain has been low maintenance.
12. Onyx Black Lower Cabinets With White Uppers And Open Shelves
Cabinet colors: White and onyx black, by Kraftmaid
Finish: Factory-finished
Hardware: Amerock Blackrock knobs and pulls, mixed metals
Sink: Elkay farmhouse
The DIY Playbook calls the black “outside of my comfort zone.” The black lowers sit under wood open shelves on a wall of Allen + Roth subway tile, with brass sconces above. The cabinets came finished, with organization built in. A red vintage runner and a plank ceiling warm up the black. This remodel was sponsored by Lowe’s.
13. Three Cabinet Colors: White Uppers, Ivory Lowers, Black Island
Uppers and hood: Simply White OC-117 by Benjamin Moore
Lower cabinets: Ivory, with new pieces custom color-matched
Island: Custom black
Hardware: Brushed golden brass
“We have three cabinet colors in this space,” CITRINELIVING writes. The new uppers and hood are white, the lower cabinets stayed ivory, and the island is black. Brass hardware runs through all three and ties them together. Blue and white jars and bamboo-style stools sit against the black island.
14. Pure White Cabinets With A Dark Walnut Island
Cabinet color: Pure White SW 7005 by Sherwin-Williams, satin
Island: Walnut tone, dark stain
Style: Inset shaker with a small bead
Backsplash: Glazed white thin brick to the ceiling
The cabinets here are painted the same white as the walls, so the room feels calm and all of a piece. The dark walnut island stands out against all that white. White oak floors and a hemlock ceiling add warmth above and below. The cabinets were designed with Benchmark ATX.
15. Soft White IKEA Cabin Kitchen With Wood Grain Showing
Cabinet color: Niveous by Benjamin Moore, in Advance paint
Cabinets: IKEA, customized
Prep: Two coats of primer and lots of sanding
Counters: Wood
This small cabin kitchen started as IKEA cabinets, with cut-out details, a plate rack and an apron sink added on. Erin Zubot stopped after two coats, so a hint of wood grain still shows through the soft white. It looks more like old painted furniture than new cabinets. A vintage table and a warm wood ceiling suit the cabin.
16. Egret White Inset Cabinets With A Wood Work Table
Cabinet color: Egret White SW 7570 by Sherwin-Williams
Paint: Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel, satin
Pantry cabinets: Sage SW 2860
Walls: Snowbound SW 7004
Michael Wurm Jr.’s custom inset shaker cabinets are a warm white, with walnut-stained interiors. The pantry cabinets are a soft sage, a quiet second color. The kitchen is narrow, so a custom wood work table with turned legs takes the place of an island. The fridge and dishwasher have panel fronts, which keeps the white unbroken.
17. Cloud White Cabinets With A Revere Pewter Island
Perimeter: Cloud White by Benjamin Moore
Island: Revere Pewter by Benjamin Moore
Inside the cabinets: Maple veneer
Walls: Edgecomb Gray
Cloud White covers both the cabinets and the tongue and groove pine ceiling here. The island is Revere Pewter, a light greige that adds a little weight in the middle of the room. Butcher block counters, an apron sink and wide-plank wood floors give the kitchen a farmhouse feel.
18. Edgecomb Gray Painted Cabinets And A Butcher Block Peninsula
Cabinet color: Edgecomb Gray by Benjamin Moore, in cabinet and trim paint
Prep: Primed and lightly hand sanded
Hood: DIY cover, painted the same color
Lighting: Flat LED recessed lights at 3000K
Angela Marie did this makeover in sections. The cabinets are a light greige, and the DIY range hood cover is painted to match, so it blends in under the vaulted ceiling. A wood-top peninsula with a beadboard front adds warmth. She also built a new cabinet around the fridge.
Final Thoughts
Kitchen cabinet color is easier to choose once you know how much color you want. It can go on every cabinet, like Lovely Etc.’s Waterloo blue, on one part, like a green island or a navy nook, or stay quiet in warm white, greige or wood.
Pick one color family and one place for it. Buy two or three sample pots, paint a spare door or a large card, and look at it next to your counters and floor in the morning and at night. The one you still like after a few days is your color.
