Best Paint Colors to Sell a House for More Money in 2025

When you’re selling your house, the color you paint your walls could not only affect a buyer’s initial interest in your home, but how much they are willing to pay for it. And buyers may offer as much as $2,590 more for homes with the right interior paint colors, according to new research. 

Zillow surveyed thousands of home buyers to determine colors that are the most desirable in the kitchen, bedroom, living room and bathroom, and the results may seem surprising if you’ve ever toured a house for sale: Traditional all-white walls have given way to bold hues found in nature, like deep greens and blues.

“We've seen a clear shift toward nature-inspired tones that add cozy, organic warmth,” says Christie Cannon, a real estate agent with The Cannon Team at Keller Williams in Frisco, Texas. “This trend is ideal for selling, because when a home feels warm and inviting, it’s easier for buyers to imagine it as their own.”

Choosing the right paint color in any circumstance can feel overwhelming, but it can be especially so when you’re tackling an already long seller to-do list. That’s why we teamed up with Sherwin-Williams to bring you this year’s tried-and-true paint colors buyers are loving. Here’s what we found.

Top colors to boost your sale price

The color of your walls is going to be one of the first things buyers notice when they walk into your home. It sets the tone for the furnishings and fixtures and how a shopper feels. “Certain colors work better because they evoke emotion without being distracting,” says Cannon. “Buyers today are more cautious and intentional; they want a home that feels well-cared for, updated, and easy to make their own.” 

Here’s which colors buyers like the best for each space in a home.

Kitchen: Olive green

Homes with an olive green kitchen attract more buyer interest than any other color. A kitchen with cabinets in this shade could increase a home’s sale price by about $1,600, according to the Zillow analysis. “​​Olive green is a timeless, grounding color that evokes a sense of calm and sophistication,” says Sue Wadden, Director of Color Marketing for Sherwin-Williams.

Looking for some colors to get started? Wadden recommends Sherwin-Williams Ripe Olive, Secret Garden, or Succulent (pictured above) to bring a touch of nature to the heart of the home.

Ripe Olive SW 6209, Secret Garden SW 6181, Succulent SW 9650

Green isn’t the only color that engages buyers for this space. Zillow’s research found that homes with a dark gray kitchen can sell for an estimated $2,400 more. However, the study showed that not as many buyers are interested in a dark gray kitchen, so while you may get higher offers, you may also get fewer of them.

Bedroom: Navy blue

Want to repaint your bedroom before listing your home for sale? Go for blue — specifically navy blue. Zillow research found that buyers liked blue for the bedroom more than any other color. They were willing to offer the most for a navy blue bedroom, too, meaning the color could boost a sale price by an estimated $1,815.

“Navy blue is a classic that adds depth and elegance,” says Wadden. “It works well in both traditional and modern spaces and can act as a neutral when styled correctly.”

If you’re looking for a navy blue, you can turn to Sherwin-Williams Naval (pictured above), In the Navy, or After the Storm — all deep shades of this moody hue.

Naval SW 6244, In the Navy SW 9178, After the Storm SW 9685

After repainting your bedroom, you can take things a step further by staging your bedroom; declutter, depersonalize, make the bed with crisp white linens, and incorporate throw pillows before listing your home for sale.

Bathroom: Mid-tone brown

A bathroom painted in a mid-tone brown, like Sherwin-Williams Java pictured above, could help a home sell for $680 more than similar homes. Cannon says browns can work great, especially for accent walls, because of their warmer tone. “These colors can create a richness and sophistication that are very appealing to buyers,” she says.

Mid-tone browns can come in various forms, like the previously mentioned Java, as well as shades from Sherwin-Williams like Tavern Taupe and Homestead Brown.

Java SW 6090, Tavern Taupe SW 7508, Homestead Brown SW 7515

Living room: Dark gray

The living room is your place to unwind and feel cozy, and while you might be inclined to gravitate towards something like a light beige, dark gray can actually be a crowd pleaser — specifically dark neutrals like Sherwin-Williams Cyberspace, Iron Ore, or Peppercorn. According to Zillow research, a dark gray living room (pictured above in Cyberspace) has remained popular since our previous paint color analysis and has the potential to boost a buyer’s offer price by nearly $2,600.

Cyberspace SW 7076, Iron Ore SW 7069, Peppercorn SW 7674

Buyers also appreciate mid-tone brown for the living room, (though not as much as gray), which could bring the second-highest estimated boost to the offer price of $1,389.

What colors should sellers avoid?

Bright, trendy, playful colors may be fun, but if you’re preparing to sell your home, know that having them appear in your listing photos may narrow your pool of buyers. Such is the case for a bright yellow kitchen and bright red bedroom, which, for buyers in the Zillow study, had the potential to actually shrink a home’s sale price by as much as $3,915 and $1,987 respectively. 

Cannon says colors like these may be a bigger deal to buyers than sellers realize. A potential buyer needs to be able to imagine their furniture and décor in your home. And if each room is painted in a highly personal hue, it could be tougher for them to do that.

“While some sellers feel that repainting is easy and assume buyers will simply change the color if they don’t like it, most buyers don’t see it that way,” she says.

Of course, these particular colors have other advantages not associated with selling a house for more money — for example, red and yellow can have energetic effects, especially if used in spaces like the kitchen, according to color psychology. “If a bright yellow kitchen brings you joy, embrace it!” says Amanda Pendleton, Zillow’s home trends expert. “The best part of homeownership is the ability to customize your space in whatever way makes you happy. There will be some buyers who will love your yellow kitchen as much as you do.

"But getting top dollar for your home is all about appealing to the most potential buyers," Pendleton adds. "So enjoy your bright yellow kitchen and when it’s time to sell, paint it olive green.”

Finish matters as well as color

Once you’ve chosen the right paint colors for your home, Wadden suggests paying attention to the paint’s finish, also called its sheen. “Sheen matters,” she says. “Matte, satin, and semi-gloss finishes reflect light differently, which can alter the perception of color.”

A paint with a matte finish does an excellent job of hiding imperfections in walls — the dings, scuffs and waves that are normal in any house that’s not brand new. Walls painted in a matte finish look smooth and new. For ceilings, use a flat white paint to hide imperfections and reflect light, making the room look bigger and brighter.

A semi-gloss paint is great for trim, molding, and door jambs. That shiny paint can make the room look more modern, clean, and even larger. Eggshell or satin finish paints tend to have a different effect on walls, highlighting every flaw and making them look older and more worn.

Should I paint my house before selling it?

Yes, you may have to paint your walls before you list your home. New paint is a fast and affordable way to make your place look newer, cleaner, and better maintained. Dirty or scuffed paint on the walls or trim may hurt your home’s resale value.

“Buyers fall in love with how a home makes them feel,” Cannon says. “So creating a space that not only looks good, but makes a buyer get warm and fuzzy right when they enter is what helps get homes sold.”

It’s not just the condition of the paint on your walls that affects your home value. Even if your painted surfaces are in pristine condition, you should consider repainting the walls before putting your house on the market. Nearly one-third of all homeowners paint their home before listing it for sale, according to the Zillow Consumer Housing Trends Report.

Does painting increase home value?

Yes, painting can increase your home’s value. Painting a home is one of the many things you can do to make it more appealing to prospective buyers — especially if you use the right colors.

Wadden says the color you ultimately select for your space can depend on several factors. “For instance — lighting. North-facing rooms tend to be cooler, so warm tones can balance that,” she says. “South-facing rooms can handle cooler tones.” She recommends that if you want to test a color in your home before you commit, you can order Peel & Stick samples or free color chips from Sherwin-Williams at swsamples.com so you can find the perfect shade to sell your home.

The bottom line: choosing the right paint colors for each room is a strategic step in the home sale process. Cannon suggests setting your personal opinion on paint colors aside while you prepare to sell, at least if you want to maximize your sale potential. “I always remind sellers that while this may not reflect your personal style, the goal is to market the home, not decorate it for yourself,” Cannon said.