What Colors Go With Yellow? (11 Great Ideas)
Yellow is a bright and bold color that instantly captures attention and makes a loud statement.
No matter which variation of yellow is used, this color speaks volumes. It exudes positive energy, liveliness, happiness, and warmth.
Since this color illuminates radiance, it’s best to pair it with more subtle colors to help tone down the intensity. But you can also pair it with colors that create that consistent vibrant color scheme.
The best colors that go with yellow are pastel colors such as sky blue, mint green, and salmon pink, or colors like cream, brown, pink, teal, white, black, grey, red, orange, and lilac for a dynamic and interesting color combination.
Yellow is a color that is mostly used to add a fun and creative aesthetic to a room and with the following color palette ideas, you can definitely achieve a gorgeous decor without it being overwhelming.
Here are all the colors that tend to go well with yellow:
Table of Contents
Best Colors That Go With Yellow
1. Pastel Colors
For colors that will create a balanced and harmonious decor, pastel colors used along with bright yellow will look aesthetically pleasing and satisfying.
Match an intense yellow like lemon yellow or cadmium yellow with sky blue, mint green, or salmon pink for a beautiful and refreshing look.
These pastel colors help tone down but also emphasize that vivid yellow by making it pop.
To illustrate, if you use a pastel shade such as sky blue as the wall color and have yellow sofas in the living room, this will achieve this effect.
For a light and soothing color that adds a subtle effect to a loud and highly saturated color scheme, pastel colors work great!
2. Cream
You will never go wrong with a cream and yellow color combination. These two colors are quite popular in creating a beautiful, expensive, and luxurious space that works well to balance each other out.
This is a fantastic way to add warmth to a space while having the perfect combination between a light and intense color that still keeps its vibrancy intact.
Cream on its own is a rich color but when you pair it with a bright yellow, this adds an interesting accent that becomes the highlight of the room.
3. Brown
The next color that pairs perfectly with yellow is brown. These two colors also create a warm, cozy, and comfortable space that also complements each other.
The moodiness and richness of a dark or muted brown paired with a bright yellow can create an interesting contrast.
When used in a decor, the brown can help make the yellow stand out more.
Adding white or gold accessories to this color scheme with green plants is a recipe for a successful yellow color palette that looks tasteful and elegant.
Related Post: 15 Striking Colors That Go With Gold
4. Pink/Peach
For a bright and pleasant color combination that has a lovely and beautiful aesthetic, pink or peach matches really well with yellow.
It’s an ideal combination for any room in your home where you’d like to add some positivity and charm.
The great thing about these two colors is that you can pair them with additional colors like white, brown, green, orange, teal, black, or even grey for a unique and attractive feature.
5. Teal
Add a cool color to a warm color like yellow for a refreshing and fun color scheme using a light or dark shade of teal.
This is perfect if you’d like to create a unique element in a space with these two colors.
It doesn’t have to be an equal amount of these two colors but one of them can be used as an accent color instead. For instance, placing teal pillows on a yellow sofa or vice versa.
Pair this color scheme with an additional color like white to help balance the look.
Since both these colors can be intense, try to have one of those colors in a lighter more subdued shade but both of them can be used together at their full intensity if you’re okay with a loud and bold style.
6. White
White and yellow have always been a popular color combination so it goes without saying. The white will also add brightness to the room making this color scheme full of warmth and light.
These two colors go perfectly together but if you’d like to add another color to add an interesting feature, consider placing a few green plants in the space for a refreshing look.
7. Black
For an interesting and contrasting color scheme, make use of a powerful and intense color such as black with the complete opposite, a bright and cheerful yellow.
This color palette will surely exude confidence, elegance, and strength that will also achieve a loud statement.
8. Grey
Yellow and grey do go together and can be used in most spaces. Since grey is a subtle, muted color, adding a bright and intense color like yellow can easily create a statement piece.
This is best used as an accent color but a decor with a yellow and grey color scheme can be a striking combination.
9. Red
It’s no surprise that the biggest fast-food restaurant uses a red and yellow color scheme as this is a loud, attractive, and stimulating color combination.
When used in a decor, this color pairing is intense and energetic so if your intention is to feel calm and relaxed, it’s best to avoid this pairing as it tends to lean towards making you feel alert, energetic, and happy.
10. Orange
The next color that goes well with yellow is orange. Since they’re next to each other on the color wheel, they tend to complement each other.
Both colors exude vibrance and energy but it does add a fun and creative charm to a space. You can pair these colors with others like pink, green, brown, grey, or even black which will make this color combination more appealing.
11. Lilac
Lastly, lilac paired with a soft yellow looks absolutely gorgeous. These two colors create a decor that is relaxing, and soothing, but also happy and pleasing.
It’s best used for the bedroom or living room in some cases but adding a touch of yellow to a lilac room will add that highlight that draws it out whereas a yellow dominant room can easily profit from the subtle and calming elegance that lilac offers.
Conclusion
It’s a bit tricky with darker yellow hues as this strong and powerful color needs a complementary color to help soften, tone down, and make the space look cohesive.
Too much of the yellow color can easily be overwhelming and may overpower certain features in the room.
Lighter, softer shades of yellow or an appropriate amount of a darker yellow are more appreciated when it comes to decorating.
The color combinations listed above work well together with yellow to still create a fun, bright, and interesting decor.
If you’d like to see more ideas like this, be sure to check out the following posts:
What Colors Go With Orange? (Best Combinations)
