Guest Blog: Why Blue is the Best Color for Your Home’s Interior

Let’s be clear: there is no concrete set of rules for interior design. If there were, every home would look the same and every one of those homes would be “the best”.

However, there are some things that just work. Symmetry, space and cohesion are sure bets to amplify the impact of your home. However, there’s another pillar of great interior design that is far more specific: the color blue.

It seems bizarre to suggest that one color could work for every home, and of course, personal preference could lead you away from something as inoffensive as blue. However, there are tangible benefits to painting your home blue and these exist for a reason.

First, Let’s Look at the Stats

It would be preposterous to claim that one color is the “best” for your home’s interior without having some solid evidence to back that up. America’s obsession with blue is very real, and it can actually impact the value of your home.

In 2017, Zillow did a study examining the relationship between interior paint colors and home value. While some colors proved to be detrimental, the study found that the decision to paint your kitchen, bedroom, dining room or bathroom blue can bump up the value of your home by a substantial amount.

How much? Blue kitchens had an average effect of $1,809. Blue bedrooms spiked value up by $1,856 while blue dining rooms added $1,926 in value. Blue bathrooms elevated the value of a home by a whopping $5,440 which was, by far, the most of any room-color combo examined.

Look at it this way. If someone went up to you and offered you $11,031 to paint these four rooms blue, would you do it? Unless you have a special aversion to the color, it is probably an offer you can’t refuse.

The Right Shade of Blue

Now, there are many shades of blue and not all shades are created equally. However, the right color really depends on the room.

Bathrooms lend themselves well to a light powder blue or periwinkle; bedrooms were best in light cerulean; kitchens in soft gray-blue; and dining rooms in a pale-gray-blue. 

This is a wide range of the blue spectrum, but notice that most of these colors err on the side of lightness. Dark blue doesn’t come with the same sense of calm that light blue is known for, so when applying the “blue rule” to your interior design endeavors, stay away from blues of the more ominous persuasion.

Blue Avoids Controversy

The last thing you want to do when painting your home is offend. If words like “garish”, “tacky” or -- heaven forbid -- “putrid” can be thrown at your paint job, you might want to think again.

This rules out a few colors right off the bat. Anything neon will hurt people’s eyes and will likely distract from whatever else is in the room. Yellow, brown and some greens have connotations too closely linked to certain bodily functions to be colors you want dominating your space. And of course, red is known to provoke intense reactions in people meaning that it puts the atmosphere of your room at risk.

Blue, on the other hand, has never been known to put people off. After all, blue is the color of the daytime sky, so anyone who is offended by it already has trouble going outside (so your home shouldn’t be too much of a challenge). It is a safe color, but also one that you can do quite a bit with, which leads us to our next point.

Blue is the Right Kind of Neutral

With blue, you’re getting a color that steers clear of controversy without lacking character. It’s very neutral without being institutional, which is a rare find.

Take white, for example. It’s the epitome of neutrality and certainly not a controversial color, at least in the traditional sense. However, it appears so frequently in work spaces, doctor’s offices--places that serve as the antithesis to creativity. Black is also “neutral”, but if it’s too prominent in your home’s interior, it can turn your space into something sinister.

Blue is an example of a color that doesn’t jump out at you, but it can demonstrate nuance if it catches someone’s eye. You don’t want anyone to feel like they’re in a waiting room when they’re in your home.

Blue is for a Serene Life

The appeal of blue doesn’t only come into play when selling your house. It’s a color that looks so calm when it’s painted anywhere, giving your home a fresh and elegant feel that never goes away.

Blue is also a color that works well combined with other less somber colors, giving your home plenty of potential to use colorful decorations to break out of the sadder ambience of an “all blue everything” scheme. In lending itself well to contrast, blue projects a serene sophistication in almost any context, while bolder and brighter colors need to be complemented in order to thrive.

Of course, we’re not saying blue is the only color that can adorn any home’s interior, nor do we envision a utopia where everyone’s home is painted blue (that sounds a bit scary, to be honest). However, blue is the answer when the answer isn’t obvious. When in doubt, go blue.

About the Author:

Megan Beth is a writer based in Chicago. She enjoys creating useful, informative stories to help people succeed. When not writing, Megan enjoys watching shows and movies and exploring the city.