Steer Clear Of These Bathroom Paint Colors Deemed As Past Their Prime For 2025
Your bathroom might be the smallest room in the house, but it's one of the best places to get creative — a blank slate where your favorite design choices can shine. But as trends shift, some once-popular bathroom paint colors are starting to feel outdated, and what was trendy a few years ago might now make your space look stuck in the past. There are plenty of tips for perfectly painting your bathroom, one of the most important being to choose your paint wisely, as the wrong formula and color choice can derail your entire vision. When picking your color palette for your next bathroom renovation, you'll want to steer clear of the outdated paint shades for 2025 — cool-toned neutrals, like vivid white and gray tones.
While neutral tones will always have their place in design trends, cool-tones specifically are making their way out, especially in the bathroom. If you want your space to feel current and inviting, embracing color and warm tones is the way forward. The trends are veering away from those minimalist colors that have dominated for years and moving towards more exciting colors that will breathe new life into tired spaces while reflecting a more fun, inviting personality. Find out why these colors are out of style and some examples of better shades to choose.
White and gray bathroom paint has lost its appeal
Cold neutrals like bright white and cool gray are quickly becoming relics of the past when it comes to bathroom design. As once-trendy paint colors that will make your home look dated, these shades are being phased out in favor of richer, warmer, and more vibrant options. Designers are in agreement that the crisp white and gray palettes that once felt modern and sleek now read as cold, sterile, and overdone. As owner of an antique showroom Debbie Mathews says, "I think that after years of sterile white and gray minimalist interiors, we are yearning for warmth and coziness that these colors cannot provide," per Homes & Gardens. What was once a safe, minimalist choice is now considered to make your bathroom feel more like a doctor's office than a relaxing retreat.
Most bathrooms tend to have bright, intense lighting, and adding to the abrasiveness with vivid whites and grays can start to make the space feel cold. We're seeing a bigger shift towards warmer palettes that help welcome personality and comfort into bathroom designs, leaving white and gray in the past. If your bathroom walls are still sporting icy neutrals, it might be time for a refresh. Moving away from these stark shades opens the door for creativity and color — because who doesn't want their bathroom to feel a little more fun and inviting?
Embrace vibrant colors in your bathroom design
If you want your bathroom to feel fresh and stylish in 2025, consider swapping out cold neutral tones for vibrant, playful colors. The latest trends are all about embracing color and making bold design choices that infuse personality into your space. Bathrooms are the perfect place to experiment — they aren't the main focal point of your house, but they offer the ideal canvas to surprise guests with a bit of flair. There are tons of stylish bathroom paint colors that you'll love, like playful pinks or statement greens that are now popular choices to bring life into this often-overlooked space.
Designers are also leaning into rich, saturated tones to add depth and character to bathrooms. Instead of flat, cold neutrals, people are opting for jewel tones and warm, earthy shades that create a cozy and chic environment. From deep reds to cheeky oranges, these expressive shades can help make your bathroom feel fun and refreshing. The trends are starting to sway towards color for a reason — these shades make your space feel dynamic and your design more exciting. To take it up a notch, try color drenching your bathroom in a bold hue. Alternatively, if you really want to stick with neutrals, try choosing shades with warmth, like a white with yellow undertones or a greige. With so many options to explore, there's no need to stick by those bland, colder neutrals in the new year.