
Walnut cabinets are known for their warm, rich color and texture along with smooth, fine, straight wood grains.
Walnut wood generally features deep chocolate to light reddish-gray brown colors. And the good thing is it accepts a variety of different finishes very well.
Pairing walnut cabinets with the right countertop, walls, floors, appliance and hardware colors make them look even more beautiful and desirable.
If you are wondering what colors you should use while refinishing, here we break down some of the best options to pick that would really compliment your dark walnut cabinets.
So, let’s get into them right here…
Paint Colors That Go Well with Walnut Cabinets
Walnut cabinets are available with medium to dark brown undertones for you to work with.
And for this reason, you can offset the overall mood of the walnut colors with different colors.
Generally speaking, no matter the lightness or darkness of the walnut color, earthy and neutral hues are a superb choice.
Since walnut cabinets are mostly darker-toned and have a warmer color, paint colors that have neutral tones and light hues, look best with them.
Light gray paint is an excellent choice for walnut cabinetry that can go along with gray-blue, sage green, off-white, vanilla cream, and French vanilla shades on walls.
Choosing gray or subtle blues will work best on walls with medium-toned walnut cabinets.
On the other hand, darker walnut cabinets will look nice with blue-gray, mint, or other shades of green.
If a darker aesthetic is your thing, you will need to make sure the area is well lit in order to provide a balance with the darkness.
Flooring that Goes Beautifully with Walnut Cabinets
As for flooring, the timeless look of walnut cabinets is not only responsible for its popularity, but it pretty much goes with anything.
The best floor colors are those that fall in the spectrum of gray, white, blonde, and honey colors.
Light- and dark-patterned hardwood floors with walnut cabinets are both trending.
To elaborate further, light-colored flooring is ideal with both light and dark walnut cabinets.
Especially for dark walnut cabinets, it is recommended that you use light-colored floorings, such as maple or various brown tones.
This color of floor looks great with walnut cabinets, as do grays and whites.
Many people choose to pair walnut cabinets with soothing, neutral floor colors to create a warmer look.
But, IMO, it’s best to avoid any bold colors for your hardwood floors so you don’t accidentally create a space that clashes with itself.
If you want a look that is more industrial-modern, you could choose a darker floor, but be sure to have a floor-to-ceiling window that will lighten up the room, or else you will be stuck with an overly dark color scheme that will make the room feel small and cramped.
Instead of matching a dark floor with dark cabinetry, making the space look bland, you could pair dark walnut cabinets with light honey brown floors.

What Color Kitchen Countertop Goes Well with Walnut Cabinets?
For kitchen countertops, light hues like gray look marvelous with walnut cabinets.
Beige, gold, brown, and white are other popular countertop choices for pairing with dark and medium brown walnut cabinets.
Much like with the floor, pairing a countertop with the same color of walnut as the cabinets can make it look quite bland.
Instead, light-colored countertops are your best bet since they will brighten up the kitchen, all the while blending in well with other dark and light shades of walnut.
If you want to pair darker walnut cabinets with your countertops, opt for colors such as:
- Creamy white
- Crisp white
- Beige
- Golden shades that have brown undertones
White with undertones of gray and generally cooler shades of gray complement medium-toned walnut cabinets beautifully.
You could choose a colorful backsplash to tie it all together.
What Color Hardware is Best Suited for My Walnut Wood Cabinets?
There are many different options available when it comes to choosing hardware and fixture colors for walnut cabinets.
Some of the most popular ones include:
a) Gold
Gold hardware is one of the most common since the color is so bold and rich.
Gold looks beautiful with the undertones of walnut, creating an elegant and bright look.
b) Tan-Colored
Walnut and tan have similar undertones, so when paired together, they can be monochrome and cohesive in appearance.
Tan will give a slight contrast to walnut wood cabinets without seeming too bold of a contrast.
This color can even change depending on the kitchen’s light at any time.
For instance, this kind of hardware tends to look black in rooms with bright light, but in dark ambient lighting, it has a glossy appearance.
c) Polished Silver
A neutral and crisp color, silver is an excellent choice for making a kitchen look polished and refined.
It looks beautiful with waxed or lacquered walnut especially, creating a Scandinavian-inspired kitchen.
Silver is a superb choice for cabinet handles and pulls on their own, but when you use silver knobs with glass tops, it can make a kitchen look even more luxurious and modern.
d) Black
Black is one of the most common, timeless colors, as its neutrality makes it versatile enough to go with anything.
The neutral color works with walnut because it balances out the tones of the walnut wood and looks perfect with any kind of countertop.
You won’t have to worry about your choice of hardware clashing with one or the other.
The Bottom Line
Walnut cabinets are growing increasingly popular, leaving many to wonder how to incorporate them into their own kitchens.
This concludes the question of which colors would go best with walnut cabinetry.
Some of the most popular colors for walnut cabinets include earthy shades of green and blue, like light blue and sage green, as well as dove white, vanilla, and soft gray hues.
Above, we’ve outlined some other color options for various aspects of your kitchen to get you started. Hopefully, those will help you decorate your space better.
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Jack Luis is a semi-retired painter who loved painting his clients’ ideas on their walls.
He had worked as a painter for more than a decade to serve the customers in areas such as Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Beaufort, Georgetown, SC (South Carolina). Today in his free time, he likes to read and write about the newer techniques that are being implemented in his profession. You may read more about him here or get in touch with him here.
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