13 Best Farmhouse Paint Colors

Let’s look at the best farmhouse paint colors for a more modern farmhouse look.

The farmhouse style expresses our yearning for a simpler, more practical lifestyle centered around family, comfort, and old-fashioned coziness.

Whether you live in a farmhouse (lucky you!) or want to include elements of the farmhouse aesthetic, there are many gorgeous colors to help you decorate. What are the best farmhouse paint colors?

The best farmhouse paint colors are neutrals, punctuated by pops of color. White, gray, and greige are essential base colors for interiors and exteriors. Shades of blue remain popular, while green and red are trending colors for contemporary farmhouse aesthetics.

One of the most searched interior styles in 2022, the farmhouse aesthetic is here to stay. However, the decor style is moving away from shabby chic towards a more minimalist, Scandi-inspired look. Colors change with the style.

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What are the Best Farmhouse Paint Colors?

With environmental concerns influencing home styles, the farmhouse aesthetic has embraced natural and neutral shades, along with the traditional rich, weathered colors of country barns and farmhouses.

You’ll find paint ranges specifically for the farmhouse look. Here are the best farmhouse paint colors and how you can use them.

Farmhouse Whites

White is an essential neutral shade for any farmhouse look, both for exteriors and interiors. You can use white as a base color in any room’s palette.

Best for Kitchens: Bright White

If you don’t live in a nineteenth-century farmhouse, the kitchen is a popular space for exploring the farmhouse look. Start with a bright white for the walls, choosing a color with high reflectivity: this room is where you need to see what you’re doing.

Bright whites contrast beautifully with other colors, so introduce another color for your cabinetry and trim (e.g., duck egg blue or slate gray).

Here are some great choices for bright white paints:

• High Reflective White by Sherwin Williams
• Simply White by Benjamin Moore
• Ultra Pure White by Behr

Best for Bedrooms: Soft White

A clean, white bedroom is a hallmark of the farmhouse style, especially if you incorporate elements like exposed wooden beams and vintage brass furniture. Choose a softer white for your sleeping and relaxing space, a crisp color with warm undertones to prevent the space from becoming stark.

The combination of white and gray is still on-trend, but I am tempted by a delicate lavender to create a soothing atmosphere with the softest white.

These are the most popular soft white shades:

• Alabaster by Sherwin Williams
• White Dove by Benjamin Moore
• Polar Bear by Behr

Farmhouse Grays

Gray continues to reign supreme on the decorating front, ranging from a dark slate to the softest cloudy hues.

Best for Exteriors: Charcoal

This gorgeous dark gray is the ultimate neutral for dark, moody spaces or a dramatic, barn-like exterior. The color makes me think of weathered wood on a stormy day, so it is perfect for your exterior walls.

Because charcoal paints often have a low LRV (light reflective value), they absorb rather than reflect light, so take care when using them in small interiors. Use charcoal for cabinetry or shelves, for example, in a laundry room or bathroom with industrial elements, like galvanized steel.

I love these charcoal paint colors:

• Kendall Charcoal by Benjamin Moore
• Soot by Benjamin Moore
• Onyx by PPG

Best for Dining Rooms: Mushroom

This delicious neutral is a warm grey with a slight brown undertone. Mushroom’s medium-gray shade is elegant enough for a formal dining room, with velvet chairs and antique silver fixtures. It’s also warm enough for a family room, with a table of reclaimed wood and sturdy linen furnishings.

Combine mushroom with taupe, tan, brown, and green, mountain cabin colors. I love these mushroom shades:

• Pashmina by Benjamin Moore
• Plymouth Rock by Benjamin Moore
• Anew Grey by Sherwin Williams

Best for Bathrooms: Light Gray

Gray is a wonderful shade for bathrooms, as it can form the backdrop for many aesthetics. When combined with white and silver, a soft, cool gray can be sharp, masculine, and modern. Or paint the bathroom shiplap gray to combine with blush pink for an exquisitely feminine look.

There are many light grays around, ranging from blueish to greenish, depending on the light. My favorites are:

• Silverplate by Sherwin Williams
• Moth Gray by PPG
• Wish by Benjamin Moore

Farmhouse Greiges

Greige is a beautiful neutral combining the best of beige and grey, creating a warm, soothing tone that works well with the farmhouse aesthetic.

The magic of greige is that it can appear different depending on the light, so it will change color in a north or south-facing room. Greige looks beautiful throughout the house if you want to keep your palette neutral.

Choose a rich greige with a warm, beige undertone for a sunny family living room to enhance the natural light.

This is an excellent choice if you have terracotta or honey-wooded floors and want to update the look from a traditional country to a more contemporary farmhouse feel.

This greige works well with cool blues and grays without looking flat in a more formal seating area. Combine it with white for a crisp, uncluttered space in a functional room like a laundry or home office.

Greige is also beautiful with glossy black trim if you have an industrial farmhouse combination. I dream of a kitchen with stainless steel appliances, solid greige cabinets, and exposed beams. A polished concrete floor would look incredible.

The best greige farmhouse paints are:

• Repose Gray by Sherwin Williams
• Mindful Gray by Sherwin Williams
• Balanced Beige by Sherwin Williams

Farmhouse Blues

Blue is a classic farmhouse shade for exteriors and interiors. Blues also form the cusp between the farmhouse and coastal styles, which intersect and overlap. Use this soothing color to add interest to a neutral palette.

Best for Exteriors: Royal Blue

Not quite as dark as navy nor as bright as cobalt, royal blue is a deeper, earthier shade that looks wonderful on exteriors, particularly doors, and shutters. It is a warm, comfortable color, rather than overly imposing, and stands out against warm white or pale blue trim.

This is not the ideal color for whole indoor rooms, as it can be dark and absorb light. Instead, use it for an accent wall or an eye-catching piece of furniture.

The best royal blue farmhouse paints are:

• Kensington Blue by Benjamin Moore
• Waterloo by Sherwin Williams
• Andes Summit by Benjamin Moore

Best for Bedrooms: Blue-Gray

This color is best described as the shade of storm clouds as they build. The color has a lot of grays, but it has a cool blue undertone that reflects light well.

Choose this soothing, smokey blue for a peaceful bedroom, combined with jewel shades of blue for a luxurious feel. This farmhouse belongs to the lord of the manor! It also goes well with other gray shades if you love neutrals.

I recommend these blue-gray farmhouse shades:

• Puritan Gray by Benjamin Moore
• Storm Cloud by Sherwin Williams
• Manor House Gray by Farrow and Ball

Best for Kitchens: Duck-Egg Blue

I still haven’t fallen out of love with duck-egg blue since the French Provencal interiors trend. This beautiful blue-green has revived with a gray (of course) undertone. Its fresh, modern interpretation is as appealing as ever.

The palest duck-egg blue is still my first choice for either walls or cabinets in a farmhouse kitchen. In full sun, the color’s blue and green shine and pair beautifully with teal and turquoise. Keep the look grounded with a dark wood floor.

A richer duck-egg blue is also ideal for bathrooms, where the color remains muted under artificial lights. Create an elegant, nostalgic farmhouse bathroom with shiplap and an old-fashioned sink. Brass fittings still look beautiful with this combination.

This season’s best duck-egg blues are:

• Wythe Blue by Benjamin Moore
• Brook Green by Behr
• Pale Jade by PPG

Farmhouse Greens

The rising star of the farmhouse aesthetic is green, in all gorgeous natural shades from mint to moss. With the growth of the eco-chic trend, I see green everywhere in interiors, and it’s beautiful.

Best for Bathrooms: Sea Green

The gentlest blue-green is perfect for a farmhouse bathroom, especially if your room is bathed in natural light. Paint the walls and watch them change from green to blue to gray as you lie in a morning bath.

Choose sea green if you want a coastal aesthetic elsewhere in the house. It is a welcoming color for an entrance hall, especially with white trim.

I love these sea green shades:

• Sea Salt by Sherwin Williams
• Sea Green by Benjamin Moore
• Whirlybird by Farrow and Ball

Best for Dining Room: Bright Green

If a neutral palette is a little dull for your liking, this vibrant leaf green is the ideal addition. It’s beautiful as an accent wall in a dining room, picked up by soft furnishings and paintings. Add black accents for impact.

Green is also perfect for children’s and playrooms. If you prefer a mostly white palette, use it for trim or to paint reclaimed furniture. Include plants as accents.

Try one of these vivid greens:

• Irish Clover by Benjamin Moore
• Green Pear by PPG

Best for Living Rooms: Moss Green

Earthy moss shades of green range from dark emerald to a leafy brown. This shade goes perfectly with contemporary farmhouse palettes of gray and white, especially in a comfortable living room with lots of sun.

Moss also straddles farmhouse and mid century style. Add a Bohemian touch to a room painted in moss green, with leather furniture, sheepskin, woven rugs, baskets, and wooden shelving filled with pottery, books, and plants.

I’m considering one of these greens for my living room this year:

• Avon Green by Benjamin Moore
• Weathered Moss by Behr
• Oakmoss by Sherwin Williams

Farmhouse Reds

Glorious reds are eye-catching amongst the gentle neutrals of contemporary farmhouse chic and add some Scandi elegance.

In a traditional farmhouse look, reds give an otherwise very adult interior a playful touch, making a room more inviting, comfortable, and family-friendly. Plaid elements in a throw or cuddly cushion pick up the red accent wall.

Best for Doors and Trim: Bright Red

This dramatic shade is perfect for accents on a fresh white or stark gray home, like an exterior door, shutters, and trim.

Indoors, it is best for an accent wall or a small bathroom or to bring interest into a home office when paired with neutrals.

I love these gorgeous, edible reds:

• Million Dollar Red by Benjamin Moore
• Tomato Tango by Benjamin Moore
• Red Licorice by PPG

Final Thoughts

The contemporary farmhouse style is influenced by Scandi minimalism, with gentle neutral shades anchoring a palette, with interest added by blues, greens, and reds.