Exterior Paint Color Trends 2026: Moving Beyond Black and White Homes

Angela Johnson
Apr 23
2 min read

Over the past few years, black-and-white home exteriors have dominated the design landscape, largely popularized by home flippers and widely replicated across neighborhoods. Trends pop up everywhere, even in home exteriors! While the look is undeniably crisp and modern, it’s also become a bit predictable. Lately, we’re seeing a shift. Homeowners are starting to lean into subtle, thoughtful use of color to create exteriors that feel warmer, more personal, and quietly distinctive. Instead of stark contrast, the focus is on nuanced tones that add depth, character, and a sense of home.

Here are a few of our favorite palettes, and why we love them!

Muted Blues with Green Undertones

From light robins egg blue to deeper gray/green options, this is our current favorite new color to see on homes, we've seen it popping up on new listings a lot lately. The green undertones work well with plants, and compliment brick, wood, stone and terracotta very well. This color palette also works well on a wide variety of architectural styles, just be sure to choose a greyed out/toned down version...no need to compete with the sky!

Go Dark or Go Home

Often balanced out with lighter toned trim, deep rich colors give your home a sense of grandeur and sophistication. Use sparingly in hot climates though, as darker paint colors can affect the heat absorption for your home. Best used for properties with some shade from trees!

Rich Neutrals

Still scared of color, but wanting to try something a bit different than black, white, gray or cream? Deep beiges, fawns and camels now feel fresh again! Deeper, richer tones than what we saw in the 1990s/2000s beiges, these colors have a quiet sophistication. The best versions incorporate a bit of color in the trim, front door, shutters, etc.

Peaches, Pinks and Rusts

Particularly well suited for Southern California, our region has a long history of embracing sunset tones. From pale pink, to deep rusty clays, these colors work particularly well on Spanish and Mediterranean architecture, and pair well with terracotta, ironwork and wood details. That being said, a pale pink on a storybook cottage has endless charm and will be sure to make your neighbors smile as they pass you by!

Color Pops

For those of you who are absolutely sure you want to stick with white/creams, why not add a little color in a low commitment way? Painting your front door, shutters or even trim can add major impact while still keeping the majority of your home neutral. Color can even be added through the garden, with bold plantings adding pops of purple, orange, pink, red, or yellow in bold graphic clusters for maximum impact.