We all don’t live on a yellow submarine or a yellow home or even have a room with yellow, but some of us might want to. I particularly like yellow in interior design. I also love yellow (soft) as a home exterior with white trim. I like a softer yellow such as Macaroon in the color chart below.
Of course, you can go overboard, but it can be a good option for an accent wall if you like a bright home (like I do). You can implement a Mediterranean design with a mustard or earth tone yellow such as Biscotti or Granola shades (see chart below).
Related: Yellow Foyer Ideas | Yellow Shipping Container House | Yellow Living Room Ideas | Yellow Dining Room Ideas | Yellow Primary Bedroom Ideas | Yellow Exterior House Ideas | Yellow Primary Bathroom Ideas
Yellow Color Chart
Like all colors, yellow has a wide spectrum of shades for very, very light to very, very bright. It also veers toward brown/beige. Here’s a simplified yellow color chart to give you an idea of the various shades of yellow.
Yellow Trend in Design
As you can see yellow isn’t terribly popular as a color scheme in interior design. It’s pretty flat since 2004 across all main rooms of a home.
Yellow Interior Color Examples
1. Yellow Living Rooms
Yellow represents joy, happiness, hope, and mental clarity. Although the color yellow also has negative associations, such as jealousy or warning, yellow has positive associations in interior design. Using yellow all over your living room can look sophisticated with designs such as the Victorian design or relaxed with designs like Country. If you’re not ready to paint your walls yellow, you can incorporate the bright and cheery hue throughout your living room with accent pieces. Yellow table lamps, a painted coffee table, or a large painting with yellow as a prominent color are great uses of yellow.
A yellow living room featuring brown couches and hardwood flooring, along with a TV in front.
Spacious living room with yellow walls and hardwood floors, along with a stone fireplace.
A small living room featuring classy seats and a rug along with a fireplace surrounded by yellow walls.
This living space features yellow carpet flooring matching the yellow walls. It offers comfy seats and a fireplace as well.
Large living room featuring a large area rug covering the hardwood flooring. The room offers a nice set of seats, a fireplace and a piano on the side near the windows.
A large sunroom with beautiful seats and a glass top dining table set for four. The walls are painted in bright yellow.
A living room featuring carpet flooring and yellow walls. The area offers elegant seats along with a large TV in front.
This living room boasts a beautiful set of seats, carpet flooring and yellow walls. The room is lighted by table lamps.
This living room features a large stone fireplace with a large widescreen TV on top. The coffered ceiling is lighted by a glamorous chandelier.
See all yellow living rooms here.
2. Yellow Dining Rooms
A yellow dining room makes a statement. It symbolizes energy and sunshine. It’s an uplifting shade that has a friendly, welcoming feel. It can work across a myriad of styles depending on its saturation. Rich hues will feel right at home with Mediterranean, Southwestern, and tropical spaces. The bright color fits in well with the setting they create. Yellow can serve a broad range of roles. It’s unappreciated for what it can do, finding a home in less than 2 percent of dining rooms. It can act as a subtle backdrop for contrasting colors like violet. It’ll gladly play the role of supporting actress to bolder shades like eggplant. But that’s just one of its many uses.
A glamorous dining room featuring a large area rug where the wooden dining table set for 10 is situated. The room is lighted by an elegant chandelier hanging from the decorated ceiling.
This dining room boasts classy yellow carpet flooring along with the yellow walls. The room is lighted by a gorgeous chandelier.
A yellow kitchen with white accent. It has an elegant oval dining table set lighted by a glamorous chandelier hanging from the coffered ceiling.
This dining room features classy flooring and elegant dining table set lighted by a grand chandelier hanging from the tall and decorated vaulted ceiling.
A minimalist dining area featuring hardwood flooring and yellow walls. The room offers a classy dining table set lighted by a fancy chandelier.
A dining room featuring an elegant dining table set on top of the hardwood flooring and surrounded by yellow walls, lighted by a beautiful chandelier.
This dining room features a large area rug where the dining table and chairs are situated. The room has light yellow walls surrounding the area.
This dining room boasts an elegant dining table set with a handsome-looking area rug and a decorated ceiling lighted by a fancy chandelier.
This dining room offers a rustic table and colorful chairs, along with yellow walls surrounding the area.
See all yellow dining rooms here.
3. Yellow Primary Bathroom
A sunny yellow primary bathroom can be a good way to bring the outdoors into your home. Yellow works well with multiple interior design styles, and it can pair well with several other colors, from white to gray to brown, making it one of the more versatile colors for the primary bathroom. With varying shades of the color, from golden-yellow to bright, sunflower-inspired yellow, you can likely find one that can meet the needs of your bathroom size, décor, and design.
Yellow primary bathroom with carpet flooring and a corner bathtub, along with a small powder desk in the corner.
A spacious primary bathroom featuring a freestanding tub set on the gray tiles flooring along with two sinks.
This primary bathroom boasts marble tiles flooring matching the marble walls in the corner walk-in shower and the marble platform of the deep soaking tub.
Spacious primary bathroom featuring a nice drop-in tub along with a single sink and a powder desk.
A yellow primary bathroom featuring a nice sink and a deep soaking tub with a marble tiles platform. It has a fireplace near the tub as well.
Large primary bathroom featuring classy tiles flooring, two sinks, a large deep soaking tub, and a walk-in shower room.
This primary bathroom boasts elegant walls lighted by gorgeous chandeliers. The room offers a drop-in tub and a walk-in shower room.
This primary bathroom features a stylish sink counter and a powder desk along with a drop-in tub. The room is surrounded by yellow walls.
Surrounded by yellow walls, this primary bathroom looks handsome with its black accent. The room offers a drop-in tub, two sinks, and a powder desk.
This primary bathroom boasts classy tiles flooring and an elegant drop-in tub with a nice tiles platform.
See all yellow primary bathrooms here.
4. Yellow Primary Bedroom
Yellow as a primary bedroom color can easily fail if it is outrageously overdone. Before you begin decorating with yellow, you must consider the level of detail you are after. Too much yellow can spoil the design. If yellow is your dominant color, you should use it to paint an accent wall. Yellow as an accent will play nice with grays or muted colors. Table lamps, curtains, and bedding will tie in nicely with a yellow accent wall or a yellow border strip around the crown molding. The accent limits are virtually endless. Art, rugs, and even desktop decorations in yellow will always work.
This primary bedroom boasts an attractive yellow wall along with two built-in shelves on the side.
A classy primary bedroom with stylish seats and a centerpiece table. The bed set also looks handsome, lighted by two table lamps on both sides.
Large primary bedroom featuring a large area rug covering the hardwood flooring. The room offers a nice bed and a fireplace lighted by two wall lights.
A primary bedroom boasting a cozy bed set surrounded by yellow walls and carpet flooring.
A primary bedroom featuring stylish seats and a centerpiece table. The cozy bed looks perfect together with the yellow walls.
Small primary bedroom featuring two side tables and a nice bed set surrounded by yellow walls and carpet flooring.
Medium-sized primary bedroom featuring hardwood flooring topped by a rug. The room offers a rattan bed frame and a comfy bed set.
Spacious primary bedroom featuring yellow walls and carpet flooring. The room offers a large bed and a fireplace.
A yellow primary bedroom featuring yellow walls, yellow bed set and a pair of yellow chairs with a yellow ottoman.
A primary bedroom featuring yellow walls and hardwood flooring. The room is lighted by a gorgeous chandelier.
See all yellow primary bedrooms here.
5. Yellow Kitchen
Almost any kitchen style works well with a yellow hue. Spanish or Mediterranean kitchen styles often incorporate yellow in them. Of course, kitchen styles that incorporate wood in them may also lean toward yellow undertones. If you have a kitchen facing west or that doesn’t get a lot of sunlight because it may only have one window, then painting the room a bright yellow and installing white cabinets can help lighten it.
Spacious kitchen featuring light yellow walls and hardwood flooring. The area features a breakfast bar island with a granite countertop.
A modish kitchen boasting yellow cabinetry and kitchen counters. The narrow center island also features a yellow waterfall-style countertop.
Mediterranean-style kitchen featuring a small center island and a round dining nook, both lighted by a pair of chandeliers.
This kitchen features hardwood flooring, yellow walls, and a tall ceiling. The room offers a small center island with a black granite countertop along with a small dining nook by the window.
A narrow kitchen featuring two kitchen counters with wooden cabinetry along with a modish L-shaped dining nook.
Large dine-in kitchen featuring a large center island with space for a breakfast bar. There’s a dining nook by the window as well.
This kitchen features light yellow walls, along with brown cabinetry and kitchen counters. There’s a stylish and large center island as well.
Spacious kitchen with black tiles flooring and white kitchen counters and cabinetry. There’s a large white center island with space for a breakfast bar.
A modish kitchen style featuring black tiles flooring and black countertops. There’s a bar area as well with modern bar stools.
