My wife is a great interior designer, and from her I’ve learned that getting your color combinations right with different pieces of furniture can make or break a room. So in this article, we’ll consider what color rugs go with different color couches.
Color theory governs how complementary colors are used in combination, and this can have a huge impact on the use and feel of your interior spaces. Complementary rug and couch colors are no exception.
There’s a lot of color combinations to go through when it comes to matching rugs and couches for the living room, so let’s dive in…
What Color Rug Goes With a Grey Couch?
A grey couch is very versatile – because grey is a neutral color that goes with so many other colors. A solid grey couch can be paired with a black, white or a black and white patterned rug. A grey couch can go with a multi-colored rug or with many solid-colored rugs.
Grey goes with black, white, taupe, plum, aubergine, deep blue, navy blue, watery blue, denim blue, sage green, teal, earthy reds, burgundy, dark green, darker grey, light yellow, mustard yellow, dusky pink, mustard yellow, burnt orange and construction orange.
Want some ideas for area rugs that go with grey couches? Check out this video with 25 great ideas.
What Color Rug Goes With a Beige Couch?
Beige is a popular color because it can coordinate with many other colors. Beige is described as a greyish tan, fawn color. It is lighter and greyer than its cousin – tan.
Try your beige couch next to black, any brown, deep red, sage green, dark green, dark grey, denim blue or navy blue. Beige can also be paired with light colors like white or off-white for a very neutral room.
What Color Rug Goes With a Brown Couch?
If you have a warm, earthy brown couch, choose rug colors that are warm too. Check out burnt or bright orange, brick red, butter yellow, deep red, beige, and tan. Beige and white will be classic pairings with earthy brown. Deep forest greens will be perfect.
If your brown couch looks a little grey, then try the cooler colors instead. Light and dark grey, navy blue, watery blue, denim blue, sage green, lime green, burgundy and coral will complement a greyish-brown couch.
What Color Rug Goes With a Burgundy Couch?
Burgundy has a surprising amount of blueish-purple in it. Burgundy and maroon are often confused, but burgundy is the one that is almost purple. Maroon is a dark brownish-red. And yes, the color burgundy is also known as “wine”.
Choose cool colored rugs to coordinate with a burgundy couch. Taupe, gold, black, blue, forest green or sage green. Browns go well with burgundy as well as cool grey. For a bold choice, try mustard yellow, burnt orange, navy or royal blue.
Of course, burgundy and white or burgundy and beige will be classy choices.
What Color Rug Goes With a Green Couch?
Green is a super popular color these days. Green is the color of nature, and we all need a little more nature. Particularly if we live in a high rise in the middle of a city.
If you have a warm green couch, like forest or lime green, it will coordinate with other warm colors. Try a warm grey or cream. Earthy brown, mustard yellow, brick red, beige and black will go beautifully. A bold choice may be hot pink, teal, bright yellow or in-your-face orange for a retro look.
If your green couch has dashes of grey or blue, like emerald green, try pairing it with cream, white, tan or light grey. A greyish green couch will look great with black, dark green, dusty violet, steely blue, denim blue, navy blue, dusty rose, or dusty lilac.
What Color Rug Goes With a Blue Couch?
If your couch is pale or watery blue, then beige, white and cream are classic partners. Light or chocolate brown will also complement a watery blue couch. Deep purple, peach, mint green or sage green goes well with a light blue.
If your couch is denim blue, you know that denim goes with lots of colors. For a bold look, try pairing denim blue with construction orange or hot pink.
If your couch is a deep, navy blue, then sure, white and grey will be beautiful. For more color, try a deep green, lime green, light turquoise, deep burgundy, bright purple, gold, earthy red, or an in-your-face orange.
What Color Rug Goes With a Tan Couch?
The color tan is defined as a light brown, a little darker than beige – think tanned leather. A tan couch can look classy with white and black.
But tan is also a warm, natural color that goes with other earthy colors. Dusky pink, lavender, dark gold, light yellow, teal, all browns, navy blue, watery blue, sage green and dark green.
A tan couch will go perfectly with “desert-chic” colors like sandy brown, dark brick red, dusty violet, sagebrush green, burnt orange, peach and dark brown.
What Color Rug Goes With a Teal Couch?
Teal is described as a medium to deep green-blue color. Teal gets its name from a type of small, freshwater duck that has a deep greenish-blue color around its eyes. It is also described as dark cyan.
Obvious pairing colors are white, and cream. Medium grey, dark grey, warm brown or tan, navy blue, silver, earthy brown, gold, royal blue, deep red and deep purple.
Surprising – and bold – pairings with teal are hot pink, coral, dusty pink, mustard yellow, pale yellow, orange and lime green.
What Color Rug Goes With a Taupe Couch?
Taupe is a color halfway between brown and grey. It’s a very neutral color and goes with many other colors. Taupe isn’t either warm or cool, so it goes well with both palettes.
Pair a taupe couch with pastel colors like sky blue, teal, lavender, light grey, pink, rose, butter yellow and olive green. Or, you can go darker with navy blue, deep purple, black or deep red. Taupe also goes with white, beige and cream.
Taupe works with warm browns and dark grey. And, of course, black and taupe are a classic pair. For a bold look, try mustard yellow or aubergine.
What Color Rug Goes With a White Couch?
A white couch in another super neutral color that’s easy to coordinate a rug with. Choose any color of the rainbow or all of them in a mix. White also goes well with beige or – white!
A solid white couch can be paired with other solid colors or a wide range of patterns. Pair a white couch with a zebra striped rug or a bold geometric pattern. Picture a white couch with a colorful, flower-filled rug.
White goes with both pastel colors or bold jewel colors. If you find pastels soothing, try shades of light yellow, peach, green or light blue. If your thing is jewel colors, then try navy blue, emerald or deep purple.
What Color Rug Goes With a Black Couch?
Yup, black goes with – everything! Choose any solid color and pair the rug color with some pillows or throws that have that color in them. Or choose a multicolor rug with some black in the background.
Popular colors to pair with black are bright red, dusty rose, warm brown, emerald green, sage green, butter yellow, denim blue or deep lilac.
What Color Rug Goes With an Orange Couch?
Orange is a bold, warm color that doesn’t go with everything. An orange couch is definitely a statement piece and you may not want to overshadow it with an equally bright rug.
For neutral choices, an orange couch will coordinate with cream, tan, white and brown. For bolder choices, orange goes with denim blue, dark blue, teal, dark sage green, lime green, dark red or brick red. It also goes with some purples, like aubergine.
What Color Rug Goes With an Ivory Couch?
Ivory is described as a white with just a touch of yellow. It is a warm, gentle, neutral color.
The obvious choice – ebony and ivory, right? But if you don’t want a black rug, consider the many other colors that will go with ivory.
An ivory couch will go with lots of other warm colors, like rich brown, taupe, sage green, black, deep red, burgundy, navy blue, dusky pink, coral, turquoise, teal, grey and lilac. Try a warm beige, tan, tangerine, burnt orange or sagebrush green. Bright grass green, forest green and avocado will all go with ivory.
What Color Rug Goes With a Yellow Couch?
Wow! You have a yellow couch? Good for you! Yellow is a bold but happy color. If you have a yellow couch, then try pairing it with grey, white, taupe, green (of course), black, brown, denim blue, deep red and brick red.
Boldly retro pairings would be light purple, hot pink, orange, navy blue, royal blue, and teal.
If you think that yellow is a design disaster color, check out this great article with tons of photos to prove you wrong.
What Color Rug Goes With a Zebra Couch?
Zebra couches are basically black and white, but waaaay more interesting. Pair a zebra couch with a solid rug of black, white, medium red, pink, yellow, green, teal, dusky blue, light grey, lilac, brick red, or grass green.
Just can’t picture it? Check out this website on how to decorate with zebra prints.
Summary
Color pairings are completely fascinating, and I know me and my wife (plus many friends and family members) spend far too long poring over what shade goes with what.
But color theory is important, and the way we process color in our environment can impact our mood, mental health and productivity.
Ultimately, we all know when colors go together well as it ‘feels’ natural to us. However, when colors clash it can create a really strong feeling of something being ‘off’ in our surroundings.
And we certainly don’t want that in our living room. 🙂
Homeowner and property investor Larry James started Castle of Mine to bring you the best articles on home improvement, based on his years of experience in homemaking projects. Read more >
