Paint Your Home These Colors Before You Sell, Says Zillow

Once you own a home, it’s up to you to make it your own. But any homeowner with quirky or unique tastes is also likely to know the feeling of sticking swatches on their walls only to wonder if their personal preference will please a future buyer, too. Or, if you’re lucky, you might find your design eye naturally drifts toward the timeless or the trendy, increasing the odds of broad appeal. And according to real estate resource Zillow’s 2025 paint color survey, making bolder choices in the paint aisle might actually pay off.

Zillow surveyed 4,200 recent and prospective homebuyers, randomly assigning them “images of a home with interior spaces painted in one of 10 colors.” Then, those colors were scored on “how much buyers liked a home, how interested they were in buying the home, their likelihood of touring the home and the price they would be willing to pay for the home.”

Perhaps surprisingly, the tamest colors weren’t the most enticing. It used to be that, in order to be as inoffensive as possible, homeowners would err on the side of light, bright, and, often, boring old white color schemes. But Zillow’s analysis challenges that notion, finding that “today’s buyers are drawn to bold, personalized hues that make a home feel like a sanctuary.”

When it comes to kitchens, buyers chose dark olive green as the most enticing, while bedrooms appeared coziest in navy blue. They were also willing to pay $1,597 more for those muted green kitchens, and $1,815 more for calming blue bedrooms, too. Even more impressive, last year’s top choice, charcoal gray, continues to be desirable as a living room color, with a potential $2,593 boost in value. (It was also well-received in kitchens and bedrooms, too.) Finally, for bathrooms, Zillow says the best results came from “a mid-tone brown, similar to the 2025 Pantone Color of the Year” which was Mocha Mousse.

On the other side of the equation, Zillow also highlighted some of the colors that won’t help your home sale price. “Recent and prospective buyers would pay nearly $4,000 less for a home with a daisy yellow kitchen ($3,915 less) or living room ($3,891 less),” Zillow’s report says. “They would pay nearly $2,000 less for a home with a fire hydrant red living room ($1,820 less) or bedroom ($1,987 less).”

According to Zillow, about one third of sellers repaint before listing their home for sale. But before you head straight for the olive green and navy blue paint, Zillow also advises it’s a good idea to consult with a local real estate professional to determine what’s “in” in your neighborhood.