Front and Center Color: When to Paint Your Door Black
Love the idea of a black front door? Here are 8 exterior palettes to make it work
Black can make a front door elegant and dramatic. It works well with any and every other color, making it extremely versatile. It can also toss a challenge your way. If you don't have enough contrasting colors as a backdrop, black can hide the entry or make it feel too dark — not very good for your home's curb appeal. Here are examples of black front doors done beautifully right, along with sample palettes of complementary exterior colors.
More: 5 Bright Palettes for Bold Front Doors
More: 5 Bright Palettes for Bold Front Doors
Example palette: Get a similar look with (clockwise from top left, all from Glidden): Onyx Black GLN62, White On White GLC26, Wood Smoke GLN40, and Crisp Linen White GLC13.
2. Black Door With Warm, Bold Exterior
The black garage doors on this house are stunning against the warm, gold-hued stone and deep, rich red siding. Nothing is unwelcoming about this palette.
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The black garage doors on this house are stunning against the warm, gold-hued stone and deep, rich red siding. Nothing is unwelcoming about this palette.
Find a garage door pro near you
Example palette: Get a similar look with (clockwise from top left, all from Martha Stewart Living): Weathervane MSL196, Whetsone Gray MSL258, and Barn MSL026.
3. Black Door With Dark, Neutral Exterior
If you’re considering a black front door on a house that’s painted a dark hue, you might want to paint the door trim white, or another light neutral. This helps the door pop out from the background color of the house, making your entry more obvious and welcoming.
Shop black front doors on Houzz
If you’re considering a black front door on a house that’s painted a dark hue, you might want to paint the door trim white, or another light neutral. This helps the door pop out from the background color of the house, making your entry more obvious and welcoming.
Shop black front doors on Houzz
Example palette: Get a similar look with (clockwise from top left, all from Mythic Paint): Big Ben 135-6, Covered in Darkness 132-1, and Blooming Berry 157-4.
4. Black Door With Shades of Another Color
This pair of black-painted garage doors provides an eye-catching contrast to the lighter house color. The darker accent color on the gables helps balance out the large chunks of black at ground level. You could create this fetching ombré effect with almost any color, such as shades of blue, yellow or any neutral hue.
This pair of black-painted garage doors provides an eye-catching contrast to the lighter house color. The darker accent color on the gables helps balance out the large chunks of black at ground level. You could create this fetching ombré effect with almost any color, such as shades of blue, yellow or any neutral hue.
Example palette: Get a similar look with (clockwise from top left, all from Dunn Edwards): Dark Engine DE6350, Whisper DEW340, Sea Turtle DEA170, and Tinted Mint DES540.
5. Black Door With Light, Cool Exterior
Here’s an example of a black door paired with a more neutral sage green on the house. This popular exterior color palette creates a nice backdrop for your landscaping.
Hire a professional painter to get this look
Here’s an example of a black door paired with a more neutral sage green on the house. This popular exterior color palette creates a nice backdrop for your landscaping.
Hire a professional painter to get this look
Example palette: A black door and white or light-colored trim look fantastic against a soft sage background. Here are some great sage greens to try: Comfort Gray SW6205 (siding A) from Sherwin-Williams, Aganthus Green 472 (siding B) from Benjamin Moore, and Steel City D63-3 (siding C) from Olympic Paint.
6. Black Door With Red Brick
Don't feel limited in your choice of exterior colors just because you need to work with red brick. A black front door pairs extremely well with red brick, especially if there are bits of black in the brick. In fact, a good tip for picking out a siding color that complements your brick or stone is to pull a color you like out of the brick/stone.
This handsome house features an interesting palette of black and a steely blue-green along with the red brick. The blue-green and red brick are complementary (opposite each other on the color wheel), so they offer maximum contrast from one another, each intensifying the other. A bold and beautiful palette.
Don't feel limited in your choice of exterior colors just because you need to work with red brick. A black front door pairs extremely well with red brick, especially if there are bits of black in the brick. In fact, a good tip for picking out a siding color that complements your brick or stone is to pull a color you like out of the brick/stone.
This handsome house features an interesting palette of black and a steely blue-green along with the red brick. The blue-green and red brick are complementary (opposite each other on the color wheel), so they offer maximum contrast from one another, each intensifying the other. A bold and beautiful palette.
Example palette: If you are working with red brick siding, try painting your front door black and then choosing a gray-blue or blue-green color for the rest of the house, such as Heather Gray 2139-49 (siding A), Intrigue 1580 (siding B), or Galapagos Green 475 (Siding C), all from Benjamin Moore.
7. Black Door With Classic Yellow
Yellow is a happy, welcoming hue — no wonder it's such a popular house color. Give it a dash of drama and elegance with a black door and contrasting dark and light accents.
Yellow is a happy, welcoming hue — no wonder it's such a popular house color. Give it a dash of drama and elegance with a black door and contrasting dark and light accents.
Example palette: Get a similar look with (clockwise from top left, all from Sherwin-Williams): Greenblack SW6994, Alabaster SW7008, Roycroft Bronze Green SW2846, and Classical Yellow SW2865.
8. Black Door With Medium Gray
There appears to be no letting up on gray as a popular neutral color. On this house, it anchors a clean, modern and super-sophisticated palette.
There appears to be no letting up on gray as a popular neutral color. On this house, it anchors a clean, modern and super-sophisticated palette.
Example palette: Black, white and gray comprise a modern classic exterior color scheme. You can use any shade of gray you like; shown here is a warmer tone (siding A) versus a cooler blue-gray (siding B). Clockwise from top left (all from Kelly-Moore Paints): Kitty Kitty KM3792-5, Calcium KM3769-1, Dolphin Dance KM3788-1, and Sterling Water KM3780-2.
When You Want Just a Touch of Black
If you like the look of a black-hued front door but are worried about the entry of your home appearing too dark, consider installing a "full light" glass door (with one big panel of glass). This limits the black to the narrow frame only.
If you like the look of a black-hued front door but are worried about the entry of your home appearing too dark, consider installing a "full light" glass door (with one big panel of glass). This limits the black to the narrow frame only.
When You Want to Pull It All Together
As I said in the introduction, black goes with everything. If you have a house clad in two or more different materials that you would never want to paint, such as on this charming multi-gabled bungalow, black may be a good option for your door and trim. A white or vibrantly hued front door might contrast too much or appear too busy against the surrounding brick, stone and siding. The black front door completes the look nicely.
Have a black door? Share a photo below!
More: 5 Bright Palettes for Bold Front Doors
The Case for Black Interior Doors
As I said in the introduction, black goes with everything. If you have a house clad in two or more different materials that you would never want to paint, such as on this charming multi-gabled bungalow, black may be a good option for your door and trim. A white or vibrantly hued front door might contrast too much or appear too busy against the surrounding brick, stone and siding. The black front door completes the look nicely.
Have a black door? Share a photo below!
More: 5 Bright Palettes for Bold Front Doors
The Case for Black Interior Doors
This is a terrific example of how to incorporate a black door on a more traditional-style home. The siding, trim and garage door are painted in soft, light, warmish hues that contrast nicely with the bold splash of black on the front door. The stunning architecture is allowed to take center stage. (You don’t need vibrant colors to get attention here.) This is an elegant palette for an elegant home.