Think about when you use the room
Most bedrooms are used early in the morning and at night, so lamplight matters as much as daylight. Warm bulbs push colors toward yellow: cool blues and grays can look duller or slightly green, while warm neutrals and clays glow.
If you fall in love with a color in the store’s bright light, check it under a warm bulb before you buy. That is the light you will mostly see it in. With blackout curtains, morning daylight matters even less, and the lamp-lit version of the room is the one to judge.
Calm bedroom colors: blue, green and soft neutrals
Grayed-down, dusty versions of a color tend to feel calmer than clear, bright ones. A soft blue-gray, a muted sage or a warm mushroom will sit quietly behind white bedding and wood furniture.
Very pale colors can look almost white on a sunny wall and noticeably colored on the shaded wall beside it. That is normal, and a reason to sample on more than one wall.
Dark wood furniture is worth planning around. Against a very pale wall, a walnut wardrobe or a dark headboard can look like a heavy block; a mid-tone wall softens the contrast so the furniture sits in the room.
Should you paint a bedroom a dark color?
Dark bedrooms work well, especially if you mostly use the room at night. Deep navy, charcoal or dark green make a small room feel enclosed in a good way, and warm lamps and white bedding keep them from feeling heavy.
If painting every wall dark feels like a lot, start with the wall behind the bed. Our guide to choosing an accent wall covers which wall to pick and how to test it.
Sage green bedroom walls
Sage is a popular bedroom color, and it is easy to live with: green enough to feel restful, gray enough not to be loud. Warm lamps can push it toward olive, so test it at night. There is more on choosing the right sage in our sage green walls guide.
Paint for a small or dark bedroom
A light color helps a small bedroom that has a decent window, because there is light to bounce around. A small room with very little daylight won’t get much brighter however pale you go, so a warm mid-tone that looks deliberate is often the better choice.
Preview bedroom colors before you sample
Take two photos of the bedroom wall: one in daylight and one in the evening with the lamps on. Open both in PaintTry and try the same colors on each. Airy blue, Soft sage and Mushroom are good calm starting points, and Deep navy shows you the dark option. Save the ones you like and compare them before you buy sample pots.
Common questions
Should the bedroom ceiling be the same color as the walls?
It can be. Carrying a soft wall color onto the ceiling, or a lighter version of it, hides the line where wall meets ceiling and makes the room feel cocooned. A plain white ceiling is the simpler choice in low rooms.
Is blue a good color for a bedroom?
Soft blue is one of the most common bedroom choices because it reads as calm and pairs easily with white bedding and wood. Choose a grayed or dusty blue over a bright one, and check it under warm bedside lamps, which can make some blues look gray or green.
