The Best (and Most Original) Paint Colors for Your Kitchen

While it's true that pearly whites seem to be the look du jour when it comes to picking out paint chips for the kitchen, there are still plenty of varying shades designers and homeowners alike love slather on their walls to transform their space. You can punch up cabinets with dreamy blues or dramatic charcoals, bring interest to a island by carving it out with a bold green, or add some personality to the room by going with a vintage-inspired mint. Below are some examples of the best, most original paint choices for your kitchen—get ready to be inspired.

1. Mint Green

In Hayley Francis' Seattle craftsman above, the kitchen is one of the most show stopping rooms in the house. From black and white checkered floor tiles to its minty green cabinet and trim color (Benjamin Moore's Southfield Green), it was a memorable design. Although it is bold, a crisp white backdrop balances out the punchy mint, making it still an accessible (albeit really fun) kitchen hue.

. Grey

Take a page out of Emily Henderson's playbook and try out Wolf Gray from Benjamin Moore for your kitchen. A bluish grey hue brings your cabinets to life without making the space feel too dark. It looks especially beautiful contrasted against gold hardware accents and white countertops, which brighten up the deep color. It's also a great hue to contrast patterns against, whether that be on your kitchen floor or backsplash.

3. Deep Green

Don't be afraid of dark colors. If your kitchen is airy with a lot of white accents then you can paint the bottom half of your cabinets a dark hue without feeling like the room is closing in on you. As Studio McGee proves, deep green is a beautiful color to experiment with, especially when paired with butcher block shelving and brass accents. This particular green is Benjamin Moore's Forest Green.

(Image credit: Jessica Glynn/Blair Harris)

4. Black

Painting your cabinets black can sound daunting at first, but when it's offset with natural wood countertops and open shelving, it begins to feel more like a blend between rustic-chic and minimalism. Blair Harris painted both the top and bottom cabinets black and coupled them with brass hardware, and you can achieve a similar outcome using Space Black from Benjamin Moore.

(Image credit: Lauren Hufnagl)

5. Robin's Egg Blue

For those who have a more vintage aesthetic, painting your cabinets a Robin's egg shade is a playful way to give it a pop of color, as A Lovely Lark proved. This particular shade is Smokey Slate from Behr.

(Image credit: Donna Griffith/House & Home)

6. Charcoal

Dabble with a greyscale by painting the bottom cabinets in your kitchen charcoal, like this space from House & Home. The granite counters flow seamlessly into the dark cabinets, and the marble chevron backsplash pops against the smoky color. The exact shade used here was Wrought Iron by Benjamin Moore.

(Image credit: Orsi Panos Interiors)

7. Blue-Grey

Bring some interest to white cabinetry by adding a bold hue to your island or peninsula. Not only is it subtle, but a vibrant color against an all-white kitchen helps carve out the space from the living room in an open floor plan. The designer, Orsi Panos Interiors, used Lead Grey from Benjamin Moore.

(Image credit: Three Birds Renovations)

8. Light Grey

Light grey cabinets give off a country kitchen vibe, creating warmth in the room while still keeping the space light and airy. Three Birds Renovationenlivened the quiet color with black cabinet knobs, white countertops, and a light grey granite on the island. You can find a similar shade using Cascade White from Benjamin Moore.

(Image credit: Design Sponge)

9. Hunter Green

Design details like a waterfall marble countertop, hexagon tiles, brass handles, globe pendants and open shelving, are all offset by an unexpected splash of green in this airy kitchen. Follow in Annabode + Co's footsteps and paint your peninsula a bold shade of hunter green to give your kitchen some personality, and simultaneously help you pull off an organic/industrial design scheme. They landed on this color by taking Benjamin Moore's Cushing Green and lightening it with the brand's Simply White.

(Image credit: Jerrelle Guy/Design Sponge)

10. Chalkboard Finish

Chalkboard walls are still very much in, and they're a great asset if you want to add a quirky touch to your kitchen. Not only can you jot down recipes and grocery lists directly onto your wall, but you can also helpfully label where everything is in the kitchen (like this cheeky "booze" moniker pointing down at the bar cart). This kitchen (photographed for Design Sponge) belongs to Jerrelle Guy, the woman behind cooking blog Chocolate Basil. She used the dark chalkboard paint to carve out the kitchen from the rest of her open loft. You can pull off this same look by using Flat Black Chalkboard Paint from Rust-Oleum.