With thousands of paint colors at our fingertips, choosing the perfect pain color can be quite a daunting task. (This may be why designers recommend starting with stylistic components OTHER than paint colors when embarking on your interior design journey – there are so many paint colors to choose from but fewer options for other physical décor pieces.) Here is a roundup of 10popular paint colors for this year…with a few extras thrown in.

Note: Although the article is about paint colors, the photos don’t necessarily showcase the colors via paint.

Olympic’s Cloudberry.

A light greyish shade of violet is right in line with the trending vogue of lighter purples. Seen as a perfect blend of old and young, masculine and feminine, and work and play, this color (and similar lighter violet paint colors) find the middle ground in nearly any intended décor style. In fact, a variety of prominent paint companies have chosen similar light violet shades as their color of the year for similar reasons. In décor, it provides a beautiful way to be colorful and true while remaining tolerant and neutral.

Sherwin-Williams’ Poised Taupe

A warm brown-grey that is predicted to herald the shift from cool greys as neutral to softer, warmer greys. Taupe color itself is showing up more and more in interior design, so it is no surprised that this hue would be chosen as SW’s 2017 Color of the Year. The color “parents” of taupe (brown and grey) give the color its versatility – from brown, taupe gets its warm approachability, organic earthiness, and honesty; from grey, taupe color gleams its shy sophistication, multi-style applicability, and modern vibe.

Similarly, Benjamin Moore’s Night Shade is a dark cousin to taupe, perhaps slightly browner in cast but equally as complex and delicious to the eyes. Greyer and deeper than mocha color but warmer than contemporary greys, this shade is actually a sort of concentrated, richly packed purple. As Benjamin Moore puts it, “Like the impenetrable darkness in the middle of the night, it feels both weighty and surprisingly exhilarating”.

Farrow & Ball’s Stony Ground.

A cool beige that is a perfectly inviting neutral that mimics mushroom hues. In fact, mushroom is predicted by some to be the next hottest neutral of choice. Whether in a peaceful zen retreat or a fast-paced urban living space, mushroom color has a visual effect that is therapeutically calming. This color steps up the chic factor (and contemporary aesthetic) of a traditional beige but maintains that soft warmth that helps to create a feeling of home in nearly any circumstance.

Fine Paints of Europe’s Windsor Pink.

A millennial pink that is neither juvenile nor sticky sweet. This isn’t a pink that leans toward peach color; rather, its grey undertones make it much duskier, more mature, and appropriate for use as a neutral. Like the trend toward lighter shades of greyish violet that we’ve already discussed, this ballet slipper-y pink is a popular paint color that adroitly blurs the line between masculine and feminine, friendly and poised.

Pantone’s Autumn Maple.

A burnt orange that provides an instantaneous fresh pop of salsa-inspired color, not just in autumn but actually anytime of year. A gorgeous, inviting hue that rests somewhere in the blend between a rich cognac color and brick red, rust color exudes characteristics of orange that we know and love (joy, confidence, warmth, energy, and creativity, among others), balanced with gravity and earthy common sense.

Benjamin Moore’s Fiesta Yellow

A sunny yellow that combines bold lemons and genuine smiles in a trending shift toward yellow that has been absent in recent years. In fact, a variety of yellow paint colors are popular right now, from pale buttery yellows to deep mustards. Use this popular paint color on walls, floors, or even furniture to provide an instant pick-me-up in an otherwise neutral or even dark space, but keep in mind proportion (the darker the space, the less yellow is needed, or should be used, for impact).

Benjamin Moore’s Courtyard Green.

An emerald green (which was a recent color of the year) that is sticking around as the life of many décor parties. It’s a color that is both contemporary and historic, which strikes a perfect chord for nearly any style of interior décor. Deep enough to command respect, organic enough to encourage broad-mindedness, and green enough to feel welcoming and warm and friendly, this hue appears to have it all as far as popular paint colors go.

Sherwin-Williams’ Gentle Aquamarine

A baby blue color that simultaneously feels airily summery and grounded in timelessness. Of course, its classic sophistication is enhanced when the color is gilded with golden metallic accents and grounded by dark details. When paired with plenty of white, the hue takes on a spacious, almost coastal feel, although this can be instantly modernized with clean lines and non-traditional applications. Baby blue and aqua are feel-good blues that bring happiness and a certain carefree attitude wherever they go.

Farrow & Ball’s Oval Room Blue.

A grey blue that is a soft by darkened historic shade of blue. It is because of its deep undertones (keeping in mind that tones and shades refer to adding grey/black to a color, while tint is added white) that the blue feels so aged and classically timeless. It pairs beautifully with popular modern greys and creates a deep, cozy ambiance, yet the color provides a lovely, stable background against which vibrant accent colors can pop.

Similarly, Restoration Hardware’s Dusk is a muted, sophisticated grey-blue that leans just slightly heavier toward the blue spectrum than other grey blues. The shade is soft enough that it can work almost as a neutral. Almost. But when paired with other neutrals, the color becomes a lovely harmonious thread that brings everything together. It is fresh without feeling zesty, delightful without overdoing.

Clark+Kensington’s Black Chiffon and Behr’s Shades On.

Soft blacks that are deep yet greyish and that hover somewhere between shadow and moonlit horizon. Soft black amps up traditional style, and the trim and mouldings typically present in traditional style provide texture to soften the color’s solemnity. The black aspect of these paint colors lends them significant bouts of masculinity, but the potential cave-like feeling is abated with subtle tinting and softening of the paint colors themselves.

Similarly, Benjamin Moore’s Shadow is a marriage between soft black and plum; a deep, dark, and elegantly sophisticated tone that lends a luxe appeal to interiors. It’s no wonder that this color is BM’s 2017 Color of the Year. In the bedroom, a deep and intimate color like this makes for a cozy, serene, and romantic retreat from the rest of the world.