Long gone are the days where the only acceptable paint to use for kitchen cabinets was white or off-white. Gray is now just as much as a staple in the kitchen, and I’m here for it! Here are my favorite trusted colors for gray kitchen cabinets.
Gray (and now greige) paint colors have long been must-haves for kitchens. While they look great on walls, they can REALLY make a terrific visual impact on kitchen cabinets!
These neutral cabinet colors are classic, and you can use them to make a bold statement (ex: dark gray kitchen cabinets) or to quietly fade into the background while other decor items take center stage (ex: light gray kitchen cabinets).
With colors that have special powers like that, how can you go wrong?
The bad news is…gray is ANYTHING but simple.
Due to its undertones and how outside forces (lighting and decor) influence it, gray is surprisingly complex.
If you’re thinking about painting your kitchen cabinets and are searching for just the right shade, have you considered going with gray kitchen cabinets?
Are you ready to take your kitchen from blah to va-va-voom? Forget about buying new cabinets. It’s time-consuming and crazy expensive. Instead, update your existing cabinets with a paint “facelift” to quickly (and affordably) transform your kitchen into a dream space!
My Favorite Shades For Gray Kitchen Cabinets
There are dozens, if not hundreds, of gray paint colors to choose from. No wonder the term “shades of gray” was born!
With so many options, picking just one can seem overwhelming, so I’ve done the heavy lifting for you.
Here are my favorite tried and true shades for gray kitchen cabinets together in one post so you can see just how amazing they look.
1. Sherwin Williams Mindful Gray
Mindful Gray is a warm greige that fluctuates between appearing gray and taupe. It has an LRV of 48, so it’s neither too light nor too dark, which is just one of many reasons why I included it on my list of favorite cabinet colors.
It does have green undertones that make this color look taupe at times. While it’s essential to keep that in mind, you can rely on Mindful Gray to be beautiful and just bold enough and an all-around fantastic accent color (which is why it’s so great on cabinets!).
Since this color falls just about exactly in the middle of the LRV range, Mindful Gray pairs as well with light colors such as Alabaster and Pearly White as it does with dark, moody colors such as Iron Ore and Naval.
Elegant (Or Cozy) Stunner
This large galley kitchen from 2 Cabinet Girls shines with Mindful Gray cabinets! The room has bright light which brings out the warm taupe qualities of this color.
And it manages to contrast well against both lighter and darker colors. It fits right in with traditional, transitional, farmhouse, and other styles of homes.
This is one color that has the rare ability to look both elegant and comfortable, depending on the space where you use it. How many colors can you say that same thing about?
NOTE: Mindful Gray can seem to appear very different in various situations, so make sure you check it in your own home using Samplize before you commit to it!
2. Edgecomb Gray From Benjamin Moore
Mindful Gray is lovely in many spaces. However, it’s not a great fit everywhere. If you want something a little brighter, timeless, or more balanced, look no further than Edgecomb Gray!
With an LRV of 63.88, this color finds that sweet spot between light and medium, and its balanced undertones make it appear warm and creamy. It’s dark enough to contrast against white in a bright room, but it’s also light enough that it won’t read too dark in a room with low light.
I want you to be aware that Edgecomb Gray has faint pink and green undertones that sometimes appear. They aren’t overt, but they are there just enough to help this shade look incredible when paired with Saybrook Sage or Kendall Charcoal.
Add Warmth With Edgecomb Gray
This amazing kitchen makeover from Kelley Nan shows how warm and creamy Edgecomb Gray can look. If you have a room that can lean cool, try using a naturally warm color like this one to brighten and warm it up.
3. Benjamin Moore Kendall Charcoal
If you’re craving a darker gray (that perhaps leans a little brown), Kendall Charcoal is my favorite tried and true shade. With an LRV of 12.96 and slight green undertones, it’ll give you that deep moody, grounded vibe that stuns in a bright room.
Great For Two-Toned Cabinets
One design element that’s been gaining traction over the last few years is having a kitchen with two-toned cabinets. There are several ways of doing this, but the most common are painting light upper cabinets and dark lower cabinets or painting the island a different color.
Kendall Charcoal is a terrific color for the lower cabinets or kitchen island. It pairs well with white and off-white as well as light brown. So if you have oak floors, consider using this shade in your kitchen. This kitchen from Mia Mia Mine shows just a little bit of the range that Kendall Charcoal can span.
4. Repose Gray From Sherwin Williams
Repose Gray is my go-to for a medium-range, warm-leaning, unoffensive greige that looks great with almost anything. With its LRV of 58 and beige undertones, it’s light and bright and popular for good reason. With Repose Gray, your kitchen will look anything but ho-hum!
Warm And Inviting Color To Go With Everything
Can you imagine a better color than Repose Gray on these cabinets? I can’t, which is why it’s one of five colors on this list.
This rockstar shade manages to bring together marble counters, brass pulls, wood accents, and dark wood floors together into a cohesive design in this kitchen from Finding Lovely.
5. Dorian Gray From Sherwin Williams
Are you looking for something darker but not too dark? If you find that you want a more robust color that isn’t as rich and deep as Kendall Charcoal, then Dorian Gray just might be the right fit. Its LRV of 39 means this warm-leaning gray will be the bold focal centerpiece in your kitchen.
Cool And Chic
While Dorian Gray is a warm gray, it can cool down in the right lighting. This kitchen from Nomadic Vintage has lots of natural light that make this shade read more neutral than warm. But it perfectly complements the stone counters to create a modern-looking kitchen.
Which Option Is A Good Fit For Your Gray Kitchen Cabinets?
“Fifty shades of gray” (hah) may sound like a lot, but I’m sure there are many more shades than that due to the large color shifts that undertones can cause. That’s why I created an easy reference list of tried and true shades that I’ve found universally looks amazing.
Just make sure you use Samplize to check out your favorite shades for unexpected undertones before you purchase your paint!
You Can Paint Your Cabinets Yourself
Let’s face it. Kitchen remodels are pricey adventures, and new cabinets will eat up a huge chunk of your remodel budget. However, they also make one of the biggest impacts on your design.
Keep your costs down and love your new kitchen by painting your kitchen cabinets!
Unfortunately, the job of painting kitchen cabinets has a reputation of being super hard which makes a lot of people nervous about painting their kitchen cabinets. I’m happy to say that reputation is only true if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Know what your doing before you take on the job with my DIY Cabinet Painting 101 class. It will show the entire process step-by-step and give you essential tips for success so that you can pride yourself on a professional finish at a small portion of the cost of new cabinets.
Leave a Reply