The All-Time Best Green Kitchen Cabinet Colors, According to Designers
Choosing the right paint color for your kitchen cabinets can be polarizing. Some designers prefer to ignore trends, sticking to tried-and-true cream or white cabinetry for a space that feels timeless; others look to incorporate a daring dose of drama with of-the-moment colors as bold as they are gutsy. It’s rare to find a hue that pleases everyone. But if you were to narrow it down to one color family, it’s probably green.
Shades right off of nature’s own paint deck have been perennially popular for decades, but there’s no denying green has had an enthusiastic renaissance in the past few years. Many designers have been turning to this hue for cabinetry to bring an extra touch of liveliness to the hub of the home.
“Green is wonderfully versatile in a kitchen because it pairs so beautifully with other fixtures and finishes,” says designer Bethany Adams. Think warm brass or classic polished nickel faucets, stainless steel or matte black appliances, and striking natural stone countertops — these all play well with shades of green.
A color that bridges the gap between form and function and unites a room’s scheme under one very stylish umbrella, “green” can still encompass a lot of shades. And the last thing I want to do is send you into a panic in the paint aisle. So to get a sense of the exact shades perfect for your kitchen cabinets, I tapped seven in-demand designers to give me their favorite hues. Spoiler alert: The most popular pick is inspired by a common herb — very Nancy Meyers-coded, no?
The Best Green Paint Color for Kitchen Cabinets
When you consider just how many paint shades are on the market in a single color category, having pros recommend the same hue (more than once, in fact!) is a sure sign you’re onto something good. The celebrated color in question? Sage green.
“For a kitchen that feels light and airy, I love to opt for sage-toned greens for the cabinets,” says designer David Quarles IV, who is currently designing a kitchen with Benjamin Moore’s Land of Liberty (440) paint for the cabinetry. “Sage is versatile enough to complement both dark and light flooring while allowing more detailed veining in marble or similar countertops to stand out without making the space feel heavy.”
Often referred to as a muddy or putty version of green, sage has a softer feel than some of the color family’s bolder hues (I’m looking at you, emerald), allowing it to lend a chameleon-like quality to a room as the light changes throughout the day. “I love a putty sage green tone and think it is pretty timeless,” says designer Meghan Shadrick. “It tends to work with nearly everything and stands the test of time whether trends sway warmer or cooler.”
Shadrick’s favorite sage green hue? Well, it’s not even named “green” at all. “I love using Sherwin-Williams’ Roycroft Mist Gray (SW 2844) — bright morning light tends to show the grayer tones, and evening light allows it to read warmer and brings out the green,” she says. Shadrick also named Farrow & Ball’s Eddy (No.301) as another sage hue she loves.
Other designers I tapped were also “Team Sage,” including designer Nureed Saeed of NU Interiors, who loves Sherwin-Williams’ Cascade Green (SW 0066) for its “universal appeal and natural vibes.” Adams agrees, naming Farrow and Ball’s Cromarty (No.285) as a favorite for any project where she just wants a hint of color. And that’s the thing about sage; its beauty lies in its subtlety; the color-cautious can dip their toes into pigment without feeling like they’re suddenly living in a technicolor rainbow. Sage is quiet, calming, and timeless — just the way nature intended, and if you want something a little bit more on the bold side, you can just choose a saturated version of sage.
4 Other Great Green Kitchen Cabinet Colors
There’s no denying sage green is an MVP (that’s most valuable paint) in many designer’s arsenals, but plenty of votes came in for other shades in the green family as well. These will look equally as beautiful in the heart of your home.
Olive Green
If dark and moody is more your vibe, you can’t go wrong with a more serious green, like an earthy olive hue. “When it comes to cabinetry, choosing a family of green will depend on the feel you are going for and the other finishes in the space,” says designer Caroline Kopp. “Olive greens are a favorite of mine because they have that warmth and depth that straight green does not have.”
Kopp recommends Benjamin Mooe’s Colonial Verdigris (CW-530) to anyone gravitating toward something in the olive green neighborhood for kitchen cabinetry. “I get asked about it a lot, and it looks perfect with a mid-tone wood floor,” she says.
Basil Green
Another plucked-from-the-garden hue, basil green has a vibrancy and energy that suits the vibe of a lively cookspace well. “There’s something very historical and royal about basil green shades,” says designer Dijana Savic-Jambert of MAREDI Design. “They tend to go perfectly in historic homes to capture a sort of vintage vibe, yet, they’ll always be relevant — after all, they come directly from nature’s color palette.”
Noting that “there’s nothing artificial about them,” Savic-Jambert suggests starting your search for the perfect basil green with Benjamin Moore’s Gothic Green (637), which you can see in the kitchen she designed just above here. She’s partial to this exact shade, especially in the Eco Spec line, which has zero VOCs.
Forest Green
If your kitchen boasts a ton of natural light, you can feel free to experiment with even darker shades of green, which are great for cozying up a large space or grounding an open-floor plan. “I love the look of a deep forest green that complements the natural tones often found in kitchens, like a wood island or soapstone countertop,” says designer Marcella Domonkos of MD Design Co. “Some of my favorite forest greens colors are Sherwin-Williams’ Pewter Green (SW 6208) and Benjamin Moore’s Vintage Vogue (462). These colors are a great way to ground the space and act as a neutral when paired with wood tones — just with a bit of an edge.”
Emerald Green
A chameleon hue because it can read more teal or blue depending on the application, emerald toes the line between edgy and classic and is a great way to widen your palette slightly to incorporate cooler tones. “Our favorite colors are the green hues that hover somewhere between green and blue,” says designer Jenna Schnabel Wedemeyer of Schnabel Interiors. “One of our favorite, go-to green paints that has a blue undertone and bridges the gap between blue and green is Benjamin Moore’s Goodwin Green (CW-555).” You could also try Benjamin Moore’s Calico Blue (707), another popular emerald-inspired hue.
The Best Color Palette for Green Kitchen Cabinets
It goes without saying that kitchen cabinets are just one part of the equation when it comes to designing a standout cook space. Now that you have a bevy of green cabinet colors to choose from, it’s time to flesh out the rest of your palette. Check out the pro-loved materials, textures, and finishes that will help your kitchen come alive.
Natural Wood Tones
With the rise of dual-toned cabinetry, chances are good that you may want to mix, say, sage green cabinetry with something a bit different on your island. One material you should definitely consider, according to experts? Natural wood.
“In a kitchen, wood looks really nice as a counterpart to green,” says Kopp. “I like mixing cabinet finishes in a kitchen, and this is a nice pairing that gives you a lot of flexibility on exact tones, whether that’s a mid-toned oak or a dark walnut.”
Living Metal Finishes
Some colors just sing when paired with metal finishes, and green is one of them. Play up the timeless, natural appeal of green by teaming it with a metal that ages over time, like unlacquered brass, or one that holds a bit of inherent warmth, like polished nickel. “We find that shades of darker green pair well with brass and or polished nickel hardware and plumbing fixtures,” adds Domonkos, who likes these combinations for their understated beauty.
Taupe and Warm White
Avoid pairing green cabinetry with a white that’s too crisp, unless your goal is a modern look. If you’re hoping to skew calming and timeless, off-white shades like taupe or a warm white (like Swiss Coffee by Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee(OC-55) add the perfect soft touch without taking away from your star hue.
“For kitchens, we are fans of taupey-whites for the majority of cabinetry but love to add pops of greens on accent cabinetry or islands,” Schnabel says. “We recently completed a kitchen where most cabinets are in Bruton White (CW-710), with two recessed cabinets painted Salisbury Green (HC-139) — both are from Benjamin Moore’s historical collection.”
Terracotta
When working with a nature-derived color star such as green, it’s smart to look at other natural finishes as accents. To add a dose of warmth and patina, pros love the unexpected combination of terracotta and green.
“Terracotta flooring further enhances the warmth of green, helping honor the character of a home while introducing a light, airy modernism that doesn’t compromise its traditional details,” Quarles says. If you’d rather paint on your pop or terracotta, try a shade like Backdrop Home’s 36 Hours in Marrakesh.
Further Reading
We Tested (and Rated!) Every Sofa at West Elm — Here Are the Best for Every Type of Need
I Just Discovered the Smartest Way to Store Paper Towels in Your Kitchen (It’s a Game-Changer!)
See How a Stager Used Paint to Transform a 1950s Living Room
