Samplize American Paint Color Report 2026
America's new favorite color isn't a color — it's a temperature.
A first-of-its-kind analysis of millions of paint samples ordered across three years reveals a big shift in American color preference: warm tones grew nearly three times faster than cool ones.
About Samplize
Samplize, a Material Bank company, helps homeowners and designers find the right paint color before committing to a can. Our peel-and-stick samples—featuring BEHR, Benjamin Moore, Farrow & Ball, and Sherwin-Williams—ship straight to your door for true-to-color, mess-free testing.
A few of the colors driving the shift
Sample the colors in this report69.4%
↑ +5.1 pts vs. 2 years agoof everything Americans are testing right now on their walls is a warm tone.
50%
of shortlists contain no cool color at all, up from 43%
13.4%
of shortlists include brown shades, up from 9.2% — the fastest-rising family
34.6%
of shortlists include green — stepped up two years ago and held since.
30.9%
of shortlists include gray, down from 35.9% two years ago
Key Findings
The palette changed temperature
Six findings from three years of American shortlists. Every one points the same direction: not lighter, not darker — warmer.
America is warming up
Warm tones grew nearly three times faster than cool ones, rising consistently across three years and across Benjamin Moore, Farrow & Ball, and Sherwin-Williams — not a single-season spike.
Earth tones are surging
Colors are grouped by undertone—a warm grey or greige can register as an earth tone even as the broader grey category pulls back. Greiges, warm greys, and soft stones are the fastest-rising family — led by Sherwin-Williams' Warm Stone and Urbane Bronze, and Farrow & Ball's London Clay.
Green has held its ground
Sage, moss, and deeper botanical greens now read as a settled fixture of the American palette.
Cool neutrals are stepping back
Gray and blue — two long-standing defaults — lost meaningful share, accounting for most of the ground warmth has picked up elsewhere.
Warmth at every depth
Warm colors outpaced cool at every depth — warm deep tones grew roughly six times faster than cool deep ones.
2026 Colors of the Year Move the Market
Benjamin Moore's Silhouette and Sherwin-Williams' Universal Khaki — both warm — each saw shortlist appearances grow sevenfold after being named.
The Shift, Visualized
Where color is moving
Warm and earth tones are the clearest risers; gray, blue and deep cool tones are pulling back.
Share of shortlists, 2024 vs. 2026.
Jan-Jun 2024 vs Jan-Jun 2026
69.4%
50%
13.4%
35.9%
38.7%
The Announcement Effect
Naming a color changes what people test next
Benjamin Moore's and Sherwin-Williams' 2026 Color of the Year selections were both warm tones — and both saw a sharp jump in testing right after being named.
2026 Color of the Year
Benjamin Moore
Silhouette
2026 Color of the Year
Sherwin-Williams
Universal Khaki
Both saw 6–7x growth in shortlist appearances after being named.
Perspective
What it means
“Color decisions usually get explained after the fact — beige because of minimalism, greige because of resale value. This one is different: people are living with warm tones for days before deciding, which suggests they're not chasing a look. They're testing whether a color makes a room feel like somewhere they want to be.”
“Color right now is moving toward warmth rather than coolness — and it's happening at every depth, from soft plasters to deep burgundies. That's not a small shift, and it says something real about what people want their homes to feel like.”
Methodology
This report is based on an analysis of millions of Samplize paint samples ordered in the U.S. during the first half of 2024, 2025, and 2026 (January–June each year), a matched calendar window used to hold seasonality constant. Colors are classified using each manufacturer's own published color data — family, temperature, tone, and hex values — as published by Benjamin Moore, Farrow & Ball, and Sherwin-Williams. All figures represent percentage growth, share of shortlists, and directional change; underlying figures reflect real ordering behavior at the sample stage.
For Media
Everything you need to cover this story
Samplize American Paint Color Report 2026
Full report · PDF · 4 pages
Official press release
PDF · ready to run
Media contact
Makenna Lutz
prteam@samplize.comInterview requests, embargoed data, and custom cuts of the analysis available on request.
