If you’re choosing new wood flooring as part of an interior project, you may feel daunted at the decisions ahead of you. Knowing how to match your beautiful new wood floor with your walls is just one of them.
As with all design projects, it pays to plan ahead. The combined effect of the color combinations can create a stunning harmony and end result. In this article, we show you how to match wall color with a wood floor. The right color combinations on how to match wall color with a wood floor will create an interior space that complements your style and feels like home.
This article is packed with tips and tricks, so by the time you’ve read it, you’ll be confident about choosing the right wall color combination with wooden floors.
Paint colors are relatively easy to change, but that doesn’t mean you can rush into a decision. Plus, if you’re taking on a more involved wall project, like wallpaper or color washing, you definitely won’t want to have to redo it later.
Our first tip is to start with the choice of floor and work your way up. Because there are literally thousands of paint shades to choose from, it makes sense to select the color of the floor first (Don't worry if this doesn't apply to you. We also cover the opposite scenario if you already have the floor in place below.) This enables you to match your wall color with the tones in your flooring for a harmonized end result.
Undertones in the wood refer to hues that you can pull out from the overtones to use with the rest of your design palette. You’ll notice them immediately, even if you can’t always find the words to describe what you’re seeing.
If you’re catching colors like red, orange, or yellow, those are said to be warm undertones. Blues, greys, purples, or greens would be considered cool undertones. For instance, you’ll find warm golden undertones in cherry or red oak flooring and cool, silvery tones in lighter woods like white oak or ash. There are also neutral undertones, which incorporate a mix of both warm and cool tones.
Here are a few things to think about if you're asking yourself how to match wall color with wood floor:
A good wall color combination with a wooden floor creates the mood of the place. Cooler floor tones with lighter walls tend to work for those who want a minimalist space. Dark wood floors, like ebony, paired with light green walls can create more of a natural feel, much like you might find in that of a cabin in the woods.
A wall color combination with a wooden floor should also take into account the rest of the home. There are rooms that can (and should) have their own flair, but ultimately, you should have some cohesion between colors and decor that tie the residence together.
There is no hard-and-fast rule for making the walls darker or lighter than your choice of wood color. Some of the most popular trends in hardwood floor and wall color combinations capture these tones perfectly.
Think of the beautiful, clean, and calming space you get when you match light hardwood floors with an off-white wall. Modern styles would embrace the opposite color combination, pairing dark floors with light colors for a stark contrast.
If you prefer darker floors, you can also tap into the dark hardwood and subtle green walls trend. Lighter shades of sage and olive pair perfectly with dark oak flooring, creating a cozy, rustic feel that makes you just want to curl up and relax.
If you're wondering how to match wall color with a wood floor, there's no reason to box yourself in. If you want a versatile look that’s somewhere in between these two trends, try a mid-toned flooring choice based on wood like European white oak. This creates a neutral base that allows you to experiment with the wall color, matching it to your exact taste.
There’s a lot to be said for these so-called muted colors, especially because they may not seem to have much personality at first glance. The right color palette on the walls can dramatically alter how the wood appears and will give you more design choices if you’re used to switching things up on a regular basis.
For instance, a pale slate color will make the room a relaxing haven, but recoating the walls with a rich yellow will brighten it all up and give it a much warmer feel.
If you opt for a light wood floor, you’ve made a practical yet beautiful choice. Typically used for airy spots in the home, light wood has gained a lot of traction over the years for its ability to make smaller rooms look bigger than they are. Light flooring won’t show every speck of dust or dirt like a darker color may. It opens your interior to create a feeling of space and brightness.
Choose wall colors for light wood floors from the neutral palette if you want to continue this effect. White is a good place to start. It’s bright and makes the perfect backdrop to any other colors you wish to introduce into the room.
If you find white a little stark for your taste, pick out an off-white shade that will instill a feeling of airiness with a slightly warmer feel. You can find shades of white with a hint of another color like yellow or pink to give it a soft and feminine edge if that’s your vibe.
Or go grey for a timeless neutral that’s fast becoming the latest modern classic. For a calming effect, choose a grey with green or blue undertones, or opt for a shade with yellow undertones to introduce warmth. The right wall colorl combination with wooden floor is one that you'll want to look at day in and day out.
If these neutrals aren’t quite what you had in mind, a rich cream, peach, or light yellow are bolder alternatives that won’t clash with your overall vision. We recommend going at least a few shades off from the tone of the floor. In other words, you don’t want to pick grey paint that is indistinguishable from your grey floors.
Dark hardwood floors lend a feeling of drama to your interior, making a statement as soon as you step inside. You can match them with rich-colored soft furnishing and a spectrum of wall colors, depending on your taste.
Dark hardwoods from Southern Luxe are a good choice as they don’t fade easily in sunlight, retaining their good looks year after year. (Durability is a huge consideration when it comes to your hardwood floors. These investments are meant to last for decades, so you’ll need something that can stand up to everything from the summer rays to furniture scratches to food/beverage spills.)
One of the most attractive combinations you’ll find is dark hardwood floors with grey walls. Grey will build on the sophisticated feel of your dark floor, adding an extra layer of chic to your interior. Have fun selecting the right tone of grey to match.
If the wood has cool undertones, you can pair it with grey with blue or silvery tones. This offers a sleek and modern effect and works well with minimalist interior styles. Color combinations to match wall color with wood floor can give spaces or even entire homes a new look and feel. So if you've been dying to declutter the home a little and give your eyes a break, we highly recommend this option.
If the wood has warm undertones, find grey paint with mauve or pink undertones. This will add warmth to your room and provide the perfect base for your soft furnishing and accent choices. You can keep the look sophisticated by opting for a pale pink color palette for the rest of the room. Or if you love a pop of color, choose vibrant pink and purple items.
Grey looks great with dark hardwood, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Just remember that the most important element here is balance. In general, a light wall shade, like light blue or off-white, will give the room a sense of balance.
If you’re going to choose a less traditional color for dark floors, like navy, you’ll have to rely on the furniture to provide the contrast. This will not only break up the room in terms of color, it will also highlight the walls and floors as focal points.
Painting a room black if it has dark hardwood floors is typically not recommended, though there are ways to pull off this color combination if you can add enough warm elements (e.g., a red rug, bright wood trim, etc.) to the rest of the room.
Gold is one of the more attractive elements of design, and there’s a reason why it’s enjoyed this reputation for centuries. The brightness and beauty are evident from first glance, but its distinctive qualities also make it challenging to complement. If you’re wondering how to match wall color with wood floors, consider the following:
If you’re just going for a partial makeover of a room, you’ll want to know about matching wall colors to either existing flooring or finding new wall colors to complement your new flooring.
If you’re choosing new wood flooring to match with the existing paint color, you’ll need to be careful.
The easiest way to do this is to ask for flooring samples to see how they measure up against your wall color. This is the easiest way to see how wall and floor colors compare in different lights and at various times of the day, which you won’t be able to do online.
If you’re keeping your floors and sprucing up the interior with a fresh wall color. Grab some paint strips to see which colors and shades work well with your flooring. Once you’ve narrowed it down to a few color choices, you can get the sample pots of paint and try out a small patch on your wall. Take your time to see how the paint looks and try to imagine the finished room, complete with your furniture, drapes, and other soft furnishings.
Keep working with samples as a starting point as you judge the overall effect. You can even paint a small swath of the bottom part of the wall to compare against your existing flooring.
If you’re ready for a full revamp, try floor and paint samples together in varying combinations until you hit the perfect match for your interior. This can be a painstaking process, so make sure you schedule plenty of time to consider the possibilities.
For those feeling overwhelmed, start with the colors you’re naturally drawn to. Look at a few of the countless design photos out there, pick your favorite color and take it from there. Experiment with shades that will naturally harmonize or contrast with them. This is as much about your personal preferences as it is about the rules of design. After all, you’re the one who has to live with it.
It's easy to find inspiration on social media sites like Instagram and Pinterest. These real-life interiors can be the seed of your creative inspiration. Save pictures into a folder or on a board until you’ve built up a picture of what you want your interior to look like.
Use a color wheel to understand how colors work together and against each other. With a turn of the wheel, you can find the perfect shades to complement your dominant color and also know which tones clash and should be avoided.
Or do you have a favorite piece of artwork that you find instantly uplifting and inspiring? Pick out its dominant colors for your wall or flooring, or add some contrasting shades to create vibrancy.
If your chosen paint or floor samples don’t turn out how you expected, don’t give up yet. Try a lighter or darker shade of the same color. It’s surprising how a slight tweak to your color can make a difference!
Another consideration to think about is that different rooms in your house will require the flooring to match their unique function and features. For example, you will most definitely need to think about the bigger picture when it comes to choosing the flooring for your kitchen. Factor in the type of wood or finish used for your kitchen cabinets, as well as your backsplash to find the perfect flooring to tie all these elements together.
Going for a modern yet rustic style with shaker cabinets? Try a grey flooring with white walls. This wall color combination with wooden floor will also give you more options when it comes to the rest of the accessories and colors in the kitchen.
If you want to go full-rustic only, opt for a warm-colored hardwood floor to match your cabinets and choose from shades like warm sage green or ochre for the walls to create a cozy vibe.
The same goes for bedrooms. Of all the rooms in the house, your bedroom is your sanctuary. So if your idea of heaven is a light and airy room that calms the body and mind, try a lighter wood flooring matched with neutral walls.
With so many people transitioning to working from home permanently, a bedroom may often double up as an office space too with the challenge of creating a space that’s multipurpose, functional and relaxing.
To avoid your bedroom resembling an office, step away from harsh color choices like stark white. Soften the feel while still retaining vibrancy with wall and floor tones in between dark and light. So try a hardwood floor with shades of grey and brown, like Bella Driftwood or Olde Charlestown, with a pastel blue paint. This will create the right balance for both work and relaxation.
For high traffic areas like the living room, you may wish to opt for a lighter-colored wood that won’t show every little piece of dust or dirt. You may also find that a lighter or mid-colored choice offers more possibilities in terms of matching the wall color, ideal if you want to refresh the look of your room by switching up the paint choice.
Did you know that engineered hardwood is also suitable for bathrooms? It comprises a top layer or veneer that offers resistance to moisture, humidity and temperature. Match the look of your bathroom to your wood flooring, and for an ultra-luxe feel, choose dark hardwood. Or keep it bright and breezy with a light grey or brown colored wood.
Finding the right wall color combination with a wooden floor isn’t so daunting when you know how! Simply follow our guide to how to match wall color with your wood floor for a result that’s not only just right for your unique style and taste but bang on trend too!
Remember that there’s a wooden floor type for every personality, style, and taste, so you’ll be sure to find something that reflects your unique look.
The key is to keep it simple. Start with your chosen wood floor and work your way up, taking into consideration the undertones of wood and wall color and how they can combine together to create a coordinated effect.
Take inspiration from things you love, whether that’s a piece of art or a pop of color in a shade you find irresistible.
Building up the layers of your interior décor in this way will create your own distinctive style, making your house or interior project feel like a true home.
Can’t wait to get started? Take your pick from the Southern Luxe flooring collection, where you’ll find a total of five distinct ranges drawing on a variety of colors and materials to match any interior project.
Choose from engineered hardwood and solid hardwood, both choices offering a quality, durable and stunning floor that comprises the base and focal point of your interior.
The first step to finding the perfect match for your home is to request a sample on our individual product pages. This will give you an idea of how our beautiful wooden hardwood flooring will look in your home, complementing your envisaged décor scheme.
When embarking on any interior project, you’ll be sure to have questions. Benefit from the expertise of the Southern Luxe team, whose combined experience can guide you to finding the right flooring for your home.