Designers Share the Best Kitchen Cabinet Colors for 2023

Trends might come and go, but one thing’s for sure: “In 2023, neutral color palettes in the kitchen are here to stay,” designer Noelle Isbell explains. “A neutral background is versatile and acts as a grounding palette within the space.”

The catch? In the new year, designers will be trading in their paper-bright shades in favor of richer, more nuanced tones. According to Houzz’s 2023 Home Design Trend Predications, greiges and off-whites will take center stage—not to mention they’ll look spectacular with light wood grains, muted tiles, and subdued patterns.

Behr might’ve dubbed Blank Canvas as its go-to white—and the company’s 2023 Color of the Year—but designer Erin Sander prefers a shade with a subtle yellow undertone. Her choice? Benjamin Moore’s Simply White, which “marries the juxtaposition of bright and soft while contrasting wood accents perfectly.”

Meanwhile, Indigomaven Interiors’ Monica Guarnaschelli credits Sherwin-Williams’s Gossamer Veil for its chameleonlike color. “Throughout the day it dances between beige to gray to white, with just enough saturation to be interesting,” she explains. “Yet [it] remains a calming neutral, even in the most chaotic kitchens.”

Though warm neutrals are in play for 2023, stark all-white kitchens are not. To shake up the status quo, many designers are looking to the opposite end of the color spectrum. “Kitchens are increasingly becoming extensions of entertaining spaces,” New York City–based designer Phillip Thomas points out. “They need a glam backdrop!”

For the perfect dose of goes-with-anything-glamour, Thomas reaches for black, a shade that’s equal parts practical and pretty. “[It’s] particularly fabulous in a smaller kitchen, and while most people would shy away from a dark color in a smaller space, I find it tricks the eye into making the space feel larger,” he shares.

The key to this color is finding a shade that’s not too harsh. That’s exactly why designer David Frazier considers Benjamin Moore’s Mopboard Black a mainstay. “It’s neutral and goes well with any style kitchen but creates a depth and richness that is hard to achieve with lighter colors,” he says.

Known f0r its serene vibe and endless versatility, blue is a famously failsafe color for any room of the house. But come 2023, inky navy and vibrant cobalt will be traded in for a lighter, refreshing tone. Or, as Chairish calls it in its annual trend report, French Blue. “It’s a sophisticated but often subtle way to make a color statement without shouting,” the brand says.

So how does one bring that colorful je ne sais quoi to their kitchen? Designer Robin Gannon reaches for Selvedge from Farrow & Ball. “We love moody gray-blues that cast brighter and bolder in the day and then change to a stormy gray blue in the evening amid the artificial light,” she explains. “It is a perfect blue that reads as a sophisticated neutral.”

For a “sexy contrast,” Gannon painted the upper cabinets in this Boston home a refreshing white. The result? A color take on a minimalist’s comfort zone.