The color you paint your bedroom can set the tone for your mood at the start and the end of your day. That’s why the stakes can feel especially high for nailing the color in this room.
“Paint color has many factors that determine its livability in a space,” says designer and color expert Susan M. Jamieson. “The undertones, saturation, and temperature of a hue can completely alter its appearance and emotional impact.”
We asked a handful of designers to share which bedroom paint colors are an immediate no for them, and they really didn’t hold back on which hues they don’t want to bring into 2026.
Bubblegum Pink
Designer Dana Small isn’t completely against painting a bedroom pink, but the type of pink matters. The last version of it that she wants to see on bedroom walls is bubblegum pink.
“It can be a nightmare in a bedroom, because all the walls reflect that gleaming shade of pink,” she says. “It would be way too much.”
Instead of bubblegum pink, she suggests going with a soft shade of pink with some depth, like a mix between blush pink and soft coral.
Cool-Toned Green
Mike Shively and Lucas Goldbach co-own En Masse Architecture and Design. While you will find warm green in some of the bedrooms they design, you won’t find any cool-toned greens in there. According to them, blue-greens are moody, but not in a way that supports calmness.
“Green has almost become neutral at this point, and we use it often, but warmth within the green spectrum matters,” Goldbach says. “We tend to lean more toward olive tones. They carry more warmth and integrate beautifully with cognac, richer woods, and the natural materials that make a bedroom feel grounded.”
Chartreuse
And while we’re on the topic of greens, chartreuse is one shade Jamieson says isn’t a good choice for your bedroom walls.
“Chartreuse is one of my favorite accent colors, but for bedroom walls, not so much,” she says. “As a tertiary hue made from pure yellow and green, chartreuse carries high intensity and can feel overstimulating.”
Like Shively and Goldbach, Jamieson says olive green is an earthy, peaceful alternative for bedroom walls.
Burgundy
Bold, moody colors are definitely in for bedroom walls, but Small says burgundy is not a good option for trying out this trend.
“It is a really tough color for bedrooms because it can appear too blood-like and not serene,” she says. “I would gravitate towards an eggplant color where it is richer and provides a shade that can mix well with navy and dark greens.”
Bright, Cool-Toned White
A warm, off white is always a timeless and safe choice for a bedroom. But a bright, cool-toned white is an entirely different story, according to Shively.
“After a strong decade of very cool greys and crisp whites, those shades are starting to feel less inviting, especially in bedrooms,” he says. “We’re intentionally minimizing the use of true white walls. Not that white disappears entirely, but shifting even slightly toward an off-white or a toned white makes a world of difference.”
Bright Red
Red is a notoriously bold choice for a bedroom. Jamieson is surprisingly in favor of using red as the main color in a bedroom, but says there’s certainly such a thing as going too bold.
“In general, one might say red is too much for a bedroom,” she says. “Yet while a racing-car red would certainly be too intense and excitable for restful sleep, a soft coral red can be wonderfully calming and flattering in a bedroom.”