Is The All-Gray Home Out of Style for 2026
Are gray walls, cabinets, & exteriors still trendy?
While gray was once the go-to, trendy shade for walls and cabinets, times are no longer a-changin’; they’ve CHANGED. In today’s home, we’re seeing much more warmth, including warm whites, creams, and beiges.
So, does this mean gray paint colors are out of style? Drum rollllllllll….
Yup, you bet your boot scootin’ booty they are.
*Updated with relevant content and images for 2026
Gray is still kickin’ it in many parts of the world, and I get requests for it in my Online Color Consulting adventures. However, while three years ago eight out of ten consults were on gray paint colors, these days I’m hitting one out of ten… on a good day, which means it’s out the door.
Here’s the thing…
I’m not here to tell you NOT to paint your walls or cabinets gray.
But if you’re reading this blog post, you might be a bit worried about doing so (or you’re just here for my charm and wit, which is cool, too). I’m here to give you some well-intentioned advice geared towards…
a) Those who like to keep up with trends (if you don’t care about trends, you probably aren’t reading this blog post).
b) Resale, which directly relates to what’s currently trendy and potentially trendy in the next few years.
c) Homeowners who love gray and really want to use it in their home…but aren’t sure they should (based on a and b).
For those in group C: If you plan on living in your home forever or long enough that previous trends are irrelevant and your whole house will need updating anyway, don’t worry—DO WHAT YOU LOVE; it’s your home! In fact, I’ll tell you which grays are the most beautiful!
For everyone else, keep on readin’…
ARE GRAY WALLS OUTDATED FOR 2026?
Yes.
And while we could stop right there, I know you aren’t here for the short n’curlies – you want the long and braided.
Yes, gray is outdated (in most cases) for walls, cabinets, flooring, and other interior finishes. In fact, there are only two situations where you should consider gray…
- You love it and aren’t selling anytime soon. When you do decide to sell, you’ll repaint
- Your room ONLY SUITS gray, not any other color (doubtful).
So, should you paint your entire home gray in 2026?
IF YOU PLAN ON SELLING IN THE NEXT YEAR…
If you plan to sell in the next few years (1-3) and don’t plan to repaint before you sell, don’t paint your walls gray.
By the time you list your home, the world won’t be any closer to loving gray. Gray will make your home look dated compared to newer, trendier homes on the market.
Sure, if you want to do one or two rooms in your favorite shade of gray, it’s cool beans with me – a few rooms won’t kill the deal.
But think twice before doing an open layout or painting your whole home gray.
YOUR WALLS ARE PAINTED GRAY & YOU’RE SELLING SOON
What if your home is already gray on gray and you want to sell your home – should you repaint? It depends on your situation…
- How many rooms are painted gray? If your entire home is gray, shifting some key rooms to a trendier, warmer, lighter color could be a good call. Even a soft, warm white might work.
- How warm or cool are your grays? Warm, light, subtle shades of gray have more mass appeal than cooler shades (with few exceptions). But still, if most of your home is painted gray, you may want to change some key rooms.
If your home is light and bright, you have a better chance of pulling gray off. However, if your home isn’t bright or is north-facing, you might want to change.
This next home doesn’t have the right natural or interior lighting to handle a gray like this…
Even painting your main living areas or 5 key rooms is a great way to transform your home without painting every square foot of wall space. If you have a room or two that needs a refresh, I suggest transitioning to a coordinating off-white paint color.
How to Make a Cool Gray Room Look Warmer
Sherwin Williams Colonnade Gray
Sherwin Williams Light French Gray
Why You SHOULD or Shouldn’t Follow Today’s Trends
ARE GRAY KITCHEN CABINETS OUTDATED FOR 2026?
HECK YES! Wait, was that my inside voice? Now before all of you gray cabinet lovers burn me at the stake for the wicked lil Ginger witch that I am, hear me out…I HAVE GRAY CABINETS IN MY HOME!
My home – see it ALL HERE
That’s right, I have gray cabinets, and I desperately love them. When we remodeled our home eight years ago, I knew I wanted gray cabinets, so I chose gray cabinets. However, here are a few things to consider…
- If I were to redo my kitchen today, four years later, I wouldn’t paint my cabinets gray; I would paint them white (or consider a slightly darker, earth-toned neutral, as it suits our home and my tastes).
- I love change, and when I originally painted my cabinets, I knew that within the next five to ten
monthsyears, I would change them to my next color fetish (which is in my New Year’s plan – don’t tell Tim).
SHOULD YOU PAINT YOUR CABINETS GRAY?
If gray is the only paint color that suits your countertop and backsplash, then yes, paint your cabinets gray. HOWEVER…I suggest doing a lot of due diligence to see if a better color could work (e.g., white).
Because I’m not here to blow smoke up your – wait, there’s a better way to say this…
I’m not here to tell you what you WANT to hear; I’m here to tell you what you NEED to hear.
And you need to hear that painting your cabinets gray will immediately peg them as being painted in 2016-2021 (with only a few exceptions).
Why is it such a bad idea?
Benjamin Moore Chelsea Gray
These days, my Online Paint Color Consulting clients are looking for white cabinets or, at the very least, warm greige, taupe, or cream cabinets. And what my E-design clients are looking for is what many of your future house buyers will be looking for in an updated home – again, gray is rarely timeless or trend-proof.
Sorry to tinkle on your toenails; gray is gone.
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If you love gray and have ALWAYS loved gray, regardless of whether it’s trendy, paint your cabinets gray. However, I bet your booty that your cabinets will be better painted in a more timeless color.
Another consideration, if you have a mad love for gray cabinets, is to add more UNDERTONE and DEPTH. That’s right, rather than choosing any old gray, find one with a bit more meat on its bones, something like Sherwin Williams Uncertain Gray…
The Best Gray-Blue Paint Colors
There will come a time when this might not be in style. However, it has a bit more personality than the average gray cabinet and could last a few more years—especially if you pair it with the right countertop and backsplash.
3 Steps to Choose the Best White for Your Walls or Cabinets
ARE GRAY EXTERIORS OUTDATED IN 2026?
While walls and cabinets can be more finicky, when it comes to exteriors, gray is a color that will last longer than the average trend.
Why?
- When coordinating with exterior finishes like roofing, brick, and stonework, gray is often the best color.
- When the exterior of a home is well-coordinated, it will last longer.
- Well-chosen exterior finishes tend to have a longer lifespan in the trend world, whereas interior finishes get a good five to ten years…if they’re lucky.
5 Steps to Choose Your Home’s Best Exterior Paint Color
However, there are a few things to keep in mind when updating your exterior…
- A gray exterior will look outdated if gray is the WRONG COLOR for your home’s exterior finishes. In five years, it will look like you tried to hop on the ‘gray trend’ but didn’t jump far enough and fell flat on your face instead.
- Dark gray with black trim was trendy, and it’s already going out of style (along with the black-window trend). When it comes to a gray exterior, white trims and windows are generally a more timeless choice.
SHOULD YOU PAINT YOUR EXTERIOR GRAY IN 2026?
If I were repainting my home (which is currently a darker blue-green-gray), I would absolutely consider gray.
Why?
Gray suits my exterior stonework, roof, windows, and the overall vibe of my home. And if gray satisfies your exterior needs, I think it can be a great choice.
Just be careful if you have black windows, as often, it’s the COMBINATION of finishes that dates a home. If you have black windows, I suggest a warmer, more moderate earth-toned paint color.
ARE GRAY-WASH WOOD FLOORS TRENDY IN 2026?
Hard no. In fact, it’s such a hard no; I’m getting a little excited…(wink wink).
Seriously, though, for the love of everything that’s beautiful and timeless (or even currently trendy), don’t choose a gray floor, whether it’s LVT, laminate, solid wood, or carpet.
Benjamin Moore Classic Gray
Gray wash floors are not trendy and started their downward fall a few years ago. While they’ll still be used often in new construction and remodeling, thanks to contractors and builders who aren’t in the know, they won’t be around for much longer (I hope).
Sherwin Williams Pure White & Balboa Mist
This is more of a whitewash, but the same idea. LOOK at how it makes the floor look violet-pink!
Are there still people who love gray-washed wood or laminate floors and see them as the epitome of style? You bet, but as of the last few years, a gray wash won’t satisfy mass appeal (which is the goal if you want to sell your home at any time).
WHAT’S NEXT AFTER THE GRAY TREND?
As mentioned earlier, I still get some requests for gray, but beige is the most popular color right now, with soft shades of cream, warm white, and greige and taupe coming in a super hot second place.
Why?
Beige/tan are in style, and many homeowners are leaning toward warmer, trendier shades of beige (rather than the heavier tones found in early 2000s homes).
Greige and taupe are great hybrid colors, bridging the gap between the cool look of gray and the warmer beige, tan, and cream end of things. And for the thousands of homes dressed head to toe in gray, we’ll NEED a hybrid to get us to the next step.
As for white, it’s often a great solution when a home committed to one trend won’t translate into another; often, the right white comes to the rescue! However, the ‘white-on-white’ home is falling out of favor.
BMoore Edgecomb Gray
So, if you’re worried about longevity and aren’t sure if gray is the color for you, maybe you need to warm up to the idea of color with a bit more warmth.
PEOPLE ALSO ASK…
WHAT’S NEXT AFTER THE GRAY COLOR TREND?
As mentioned earlier, trends are leaning warmer for the 2026 painting season.
- Gray has shifted to greige and taupe, as well as subtle shades of beige and tan.
- Bright whites are leaning toward the softer, warmer whites.
Long story short, cool is out; warm is in.
WARM GRAY VS. COOL GRAY – WHICH IS BETTER?
The best gray is the one that suits your finishes. However, if you’ve got room to move, warm grays will be in style longer than cool grays (in lighter shades).
As for darker shades, warm grays are still reasonably popular, but DARK COOL grays, especially gray with blue undertones, are still kickin’ it as cabinet and accent wall colors.
Paint Color Review of Benjamin Moore Balboa Mist
There you have it! I hope this blog post gave you the answers and inspiration you sought! If you have questions, please leave me a COMMENT!
READ MORE
The Ultimate Guide to Updating Your Gray Home
How to Make a Cool Gray Room Look WARMER
Get the best paint color & home update advice…
Grey looks wonderful in the above pictures, but where I live everyone has a ranch home with 8 foot ceilings and not a lot of natural light. Gray looks depressing when I see it used foe a flip. I agree with the creams Greig and light tans. I painted my home in Eddie Bauer pecan 12 yes ago and now I’m going for a little lighter tan
Well, you’ll definitely be going with the trends, as the light tans are coming in! And I agree, while some homes can pull off gray so well, gray is a TOUGH SELL in low light homes, that’s for sure.
Love your column! Can I send you a pic to get your opinion on an area?
Hi Vanessa, I would love to see your home, but this is actually an Online service I offer, either via a Quick Consult (which is super fun and easy) or a full consultation (under the HIRE ME) section :). Thanks for reading!
I am relieved by your advice to paint kitchen cabinets white over the newer trendy neutrals, as I agonized over whether to choose white cabinets or greige/cream/beige and ultimately went with white. The death of the white kitchen is always being heralded. So I am glad that you believe it still a good choice in 2022. Do you think brighter (but not cool) white cabinets can coexist with some warmer neutral wall colors/counters/backsplashes? Or is color the answer if you have brighter white hard finishes? I would love to see a future post about it since I am now agonizing over these elements. 🙂
Hi Erin! You know it’s so funny, there are those that think white kitchens are trendy, but as far as I’m concerned they’re the most TIMELESS of all! And yes, I do think some brighter whites can exist with some warm toned finishes, it all comes down to WHICH white and which finish – how strong each are and where their undertones lean :). GENERALLY though, with brighter white hard finishes I lean into gray, greige OR colour :).
Gray is the most depressing color. No gray in my home! Never understood why anyone bought into this.
Yikes, I’m days away from painting my lower cabinets and island in BM Cheating Heart…. Is this a mistake I should try to avoid? Uppers are finished already, in SW Pure White. At 60, there’s a possibility of moving in the next 5 years, but nothing set in stone.
I’m personally obsessed with Cheating Heart. And it actually has more BLUE to it and less gray than you’d think, so I wouldn’t apply it to the whole ‘gray trend’ thing :). On the small scale, it can seem very subtle, but on the large scale with the satin/pearl finish of cabinet paint, the colour can come up QUITE nicely 🙂
Thank you so much for all your valuable advice! My question is whether trends apply to lake houses. I feel like gray along with blue and white are traditional lake house colors. Is your advice about gray the same or different for this type of setting? While I’m not a gray fan, I do really like grey blues and have incorporated that color in some bathroom tile and paint (Sherwin Williams Passive and Storm Cloud). Is this a situation where you go ahead with more gray paint because it’s traditional and thus timeless for a lake house or would it be better to go with greige (or white) walls to avoid a dying trend? Thank you!
Okay, SO funny that you ask this Pamela. We’re actually building a lake home and what am I doing? Almost ALLL WHITE – which is another ‘trend’ right now. I think there will always be some homes that can pull of trends, when the trends really do suit the TYPE of home they are (ie. homes in the country will suit a modern farmhouse style longer than ones in the City!). Sometimes it’s just about HOW MUCH of it you use. I don’t see a problem using any colour in moderation, as long as the surface you use it on doesn’t limit you down the road should you want to change things up. LONG story short (as usual), I think you’re totally safe, especially since it’s a bathroom not an entire home 🙂
Hi Kylie, I used Edgecomb Grey in a sunny guest bedroom however in summer it reflects green which looks muddy. I like the photo above of Edgecomb “lightened.” Would that be lightened by 25 or 50% to get that look? I think it looks great – clean, a touch of warmth. Might be just the trick! Unless you think even lightened it would reflect green from outside?
Hi Carolyn, i THINK that’s when I had the walls Edgecomb 75% lighter! 25% would be more subtle. However, the lighter a colour goes, the HIGHER its LRV will be (light reflectance value, so it will reflect MORE light) and the more green you might see!
Hi Kylie, do you still have your home painted BM Edgecomb gray? I am thinking about using this color or an off white. I currently have SW agreeable grey as the main color in my home. Are these two colors considered to be in the gray trend that is heading out? I need to sign up for another e design:)
This blog post definitely has given me anxiety! March of 2019, We painted our kitchen cabinets Gauntlet Gray! Not moving anytime soon and I will be hard pressed to convince my husband to paint again for a few years, if ever! 😩
You know, I think these darker grays will have MORE longevity than the light cool ones. AND it’s a warm gray, which means it will be MUCH MORE FLEXIBLE when it comes to humouring the coming trends – I wouldn’t worry at all :).
I love this! I’ve been considering using a grey to paint the cabinets in my kitchen and after seeing your photos, I definitely think I’ll be doing it. Thanks for sharing it!
I have an open floor plan kitchen, dining and living room and my family was so opposed to a greige paint color (it was Benjamin Moore Classic Gray and when they saw it they called it “beige”) that we ended up painting the space Sherwin Wiliams Agreeable Gray, a green gray that I carefully selected to match my Black Pearl granite after determining from the two samples I purchased and researching what color they described it online. We purchased our kitchen on March 1st, 2021, and it has been nothing short of a nightmare with covid and bad cabinet paint jobs and endless replacements for our cabinets. I chose white shaker cabinets which match Benjamin Moore Oxford White. I know a lot of people don’t care for granite but I personally love it and think it can be stylish and updated if done right. TEN months later and we’re on the home stretch. Next Monday my granite will be installed and I’m nervous as hell over it wondering if I indeed paint matched the undertone of the granite correctly. Because of Covid and the fact that we live in New York and the granite is coming from Canada, we couldn’t pick our slab as they said Black Pearl doesn’t have veining and it’s pretty uniform so there’s no need for an internet viewing. I painted the rooms in the rest of my house Benjamin Moore Glass Slipper, Sherwin Willimas Sea salt and Benjamin Moore Classic Gray (I love it and if I wouldn’t have listened to anyone else’s opinion i would’ve done my entire house that color)! We installed medium brown LVP throughout. I’m hoping I didn’t place my home inside the gray trend but there is no way in hell after almost 29 years of golden oak windows, doors and trim and being stuck with warm or beige paint colors that I was going anywhere near those colors again. I sanded and painted all my trim and Doors Benjamin Moore Oxford White to match my new kitchen Cabinets and we are thrilled with the results! I think it’s the situation that you’ve had to live with that determines the paint colors you go for when you renovate and the Tuscan Trend to me is like looking into Medusa’s eyes. Noooooo! and I can’t go beige for a while, or ever, unless it’s a really fresh take on things.
Oh Holly, it sounds like you’ve had a HECK of a time. I hear you, we’re trying to build a home and in our 9th month, we still don’t have drywall or siding – I feel your pain, but at least I don’t have to LIVE in it like you!
And I’m just a BIG fan of the warm grays, in fact, I have a room in Classic Gray, one in Balboa Mist and another in Gauntlet Gray – and I have gray cabinets too! And while I want to update to white cabinets in the near future, I just LOVE my gray rooms. Sometimes it just comes down to HOW MUCH of something there is and i see NO problem with soft warm gray walls at all, especially if YOU love them 🙂
Hello! I’ve lived in my house going on 5 years now and before we moved in the home was completely updated from oak to painted white cabinets (SW Snowbound), grey walls throughout the main living areas (SW Passive), and blue paint in the dining, bathrooms and bedrooms (dining room and half bath are SW Indigo Batik, Bedrooms are SW Dustblu and master bath is SW Gibraltar). We plan on moving in the next few years and I would love to paint to update some things but am nervous that I have to follow the cooler theme of the home. The colors that they picked feel on the cooler side to me so I feel like I have to stay with that trend, is that correct? I would love to paint my kids bathroom SW Sea Salt and my master bedroom an off white maybe Nebulous White or Olympus White? I feel like BM White Dove is too warm/yellow tones for my house. Also, i’ve been reading about sun exposure. My master faces the North (two windows) so the Dustblu just seems so dark. What do you think I should do? I want to do some updates as i’ve been staring at these same walls for so long (thanks covid) and want to do something new but don’t want to change the flow of the house decor too much if we sell and make it look out of place if that makes sense. Don’t have the budget to paint all the Passive walls off-white 🙂 Thank you!
Hi Kylie! I have a question about E-design packages – looking for paint advice for my open concept kitchen / tv room / entryway mudroom area. I need one paint color for walls + advice on the island, entryway built-ins and TV room built-ins (currently 3 different colors). I know I need to select the open concept option, then do I simply add on the built-ins option? $275+200? Thanks!
Hi Kelly, thanks for asking!
If you’d like the island/built-ins/tv room all the SAME colour then just choose one add-on. If you’d like them 3 separate colours, hmmmm. I would say get two of the built-in options and that I’ll cover all three for that 🙂
Ok. Thinking 2 of the 3 (of the island, entryway built-ins and TV room built-ins) should be the SAME color, but I’ve made the paint choices in isolation instead of looking at the full picture. Which is why I need help 🙂
Hi Kylie,
Are you familiar with KitchenMaid factory painted colors. We just ordered kitchen cabinets in “moonshine”. It looks like a warm grey/greige to me. How would you classify it?
Been gray before it became popular (and likely before your time). But ok, you’ve convinced us to upgrade from gray to BM Edgecomb Gray. But struggling with the trim. We have vinyl windows which, to my eye, are really close to Simply White (based on Samplize paint samples, which are fantastic, by the way). Will you ban me if we go with Simply White for the trim/doors/ceiling instead of White Dove?
I will forgive you ;).
So, if we are staying away from painting cabinets grey, but we have warm grey countertops and black appliances what color do you put on the cabinets?
Hi Piper! What about white??? I haven’t seen your home, but SW Pure White is usually pretty flexible! Or maybe a darker gray on the island for a bit of that interest you might like?
SOOOO, you wouldn’t paint your cabinets gray today, but what about your island? My house and style are very similar to yours (except less amazingly decorated!) and I am in the middle of planning a total from-scratch kitchen gut job. (bye bye dark orange oak and green laminate!) I have warmy warm natural red oak floors. Planning for white permitter cabinets and a big ol’ focal point island. If you had to repaint your island with your cabinets white, what would you pick today? I’m considering a natural quarter sawn white oak island? Too much oak? Woods are hard to blend. Gauntlet paint and onyx stained oak are also on my list to try, but now I have to know what you are dreaming up for your next island color! Give me your secrets!!
P.S. my walls are agreeable gray. Gray overload is a true threat, but maybe not with all that warm oak.
Oooo, that is a GOOD QUESTION! I would DEFINITELY be doing quarter sawn white oak. Some people get a slightly whitewash on it, but I wouldn’t do that, I would keep it natural.
This is totally my instinct. DH is worried about it not matching or being slightly off from our floors and looking awkward since one is red oak and the other white, but that seems like not too huge a deal to me. Thanks for the backup!
Is BM Kingsport Gray considered too dark for the current trend? I’ve gutted and rebuilt my 150 SF bathroom and was going to paint the 10′ vanity Kingsport Gray with a Miami Vena quartz countertop. The floor is Daltile Florentine 24×24. I am seeking a timeless, warmer, brighter, lighter feel in the bathroom. The north-facing window gets no natural light. The south-facing window gets a whole two hours of light and mostly just in the commode room. We’ll probably be in the house for at least another five years.
Hi Kylie! How are you feeling about Agreeable Gray in general for walls (open concept, so lots of walls). We are painting ALL of our honey oak! Planning for Pure White on cabinets/trim/built ins and I am aiming for carrara marble for countertops. Does Pure White work with carrara and what about that Agreeable Gray? I don’t want my home feeling cool or icy, and I think marble is timeless, but would AG work on the walls with a carrara marble? A million thanks for your insight!!
Hi Kylie,
I am having some barn doors built similar to the ones you show leading into this office picture above. What color is this? We absolutely love it. Trade wind from SW?
Thanks
Ahhhh, that’s actually Magnolia Day to Day with Teak Cups on the cabinets within the office :).
We have an open floor plan home that we are planning to sell soon. It’s a large home with some warmer / red wood in places that can’t be changed for now.
I was about to pull the trigger on classic gray throughout — but had started thinking about moving away from that (too gray) and towards a creamier white (like sw alabaster)
Classic Gray is still reasonably popular, as long as you have some warm light (not all north-facing). If a warmer white suits your home, BM White Dove is great too.