What paint color goes with my couch?

Estimated Completion Time
2 min
What paint color goes with my couch?
Image: Paul Bradbury/Caiaimage/Getty Images

About This Quiz

Couches are major players in home habitats -- often, they're the largest piece of furniture in a room. As such, they're definitely worth considering when you start revamping interior paint schemes. But how can you tell if you're on the right track in picking out the best shades of paint to accent your couch? Try this quiz to find out if you can trust your inner designer.
When considering couch and wall color combinations, what should you use to guide your initial approach?
The desired mood for the room.
Other furniture in the room.
The overall size of the space.
The texture of the walls in the room.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

All of these elements might eventually come into play depending on your particular situation. But if possible, it's best to start out by figuring out what kind of look and feel you ideally want for the room -- whether that's modern, eclectic, traditional or something else. Not only will this help point you in the right color combination direction, it should also help to ensure that you're satisfied with the end result.

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TRUE OR FALSE: A neutral colored sofa goes great with any paint color on the walls.
TRUE
FALSE
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

A neutral couch goes well with almost any paint color -- except another neutral close to its own color. If the wall color is an exact match, you run the risk of having your sofa "get lost" in its surroundings. If you really want to stay in the neutral family of colors, try to go at least two or three shades darker than the couch fabric. Otherwise, you could use this as an opportunity to incorporate some warmth by painting the wall a vibrant orange, or create a cool effect by choosing a blue or green hue.

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If using a traditional color wheel to narrow down couch and paint color combinations, which of the following methods is best?
Pick a paint color on the wheel that's opposite from your couch color.
Pick a paint color on the wheel adjacent to your couch color.
Choose three colors that live an equal distance apart from each other on the wheel to use for couch, wall and accents.
All of the above.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Known as complementary, adjacent and triad approaches, respectively, all three of these methods are regularly used by professional interior designers in the color selection process. Do-it-yourself enthusiasts can easily use them as well.

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Patterned couches should be set against a wall that's painted what color?
White
Beige
One of the colors found within the pattern
Any color NOT found within the pattern
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

If you have a patterned piece of furniture anchoring a space, interior designers often recommend choosing three colors from the print to use as your overall scheme for the room. Any one of these colors could be used for the wall, depending on your personal preference.

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Couches in cool tones, such as light blue or silver, can give a room an airy feeling if paired with which of the following wall colors?
White
Cream
Pale Gray
All of the above
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

According to the experts at Better Homes and Gardens, choosing any of these paint colors should help keep the temperature of the room feeling fresh as opposed to chilly and sterile.

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Which of the following is typically NOT a good match for a sofa made from a textured material, such as leather?
Dark paint tones
Medium paint tones
Light paint tones
Neutral paint tones
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

As leather couches are often come in dark colors, such as deep brown or black, setting them against dark hues can give a room a cave-like feeling and make the space feel smaller. You can get away with a darker wall, however, if your textured couch is a lighter color, such as creamy white or beige.

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TRUE OR FALSE: Red sofas should be avoided, because they are difficult to integrate into any room, regardless of the paint scheme.
TRUE
FALSE
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Red is a certainly strong color choice for a couch, but it's by no means an impossible one. Just allow it to play center stage and choose a more neutral backdrop for the walls, such as a taupe, gray or even light yellow.

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Which of the following pairs are NOT complementary colors?
Red and green
Orange and purple
Blue and orange
Yellow and purple
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

With the exception of orange and purple, all of these combinations are considered to be complementary, because they're opposite each other on the color wheel, and they comprise both a cool and warm shade. Complementary colors can be a helpful guide when you're picking a paint color to go with your couch. For example, if you have a deep violet sofa, you can make it pop by painting the walls a soft, buttery yellow.

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Painting just one wall of a room -- such as the wall behind your couch -- in a certain color creates which of the following?
A distraction
A rustic look
A focal point for the room
A modern look
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

This approach can work especially well if your couch is a neutral color (such as beige or cream) and you choose a bold paint color for the single wall, then set the couch in front of it. If you're starting with a couch that's a bright color, such as royal blue or kelly green, take the opposite approach and keep the accent wall color neutral to achieve the same framing effect.

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TRUE OR FALSE: A good approach to picking a paint color is looking for the closest match to your couch color on a paint chip that comes in a strip, then choosing one of the tones above or below it as your wall color.
TRUE
FALSE
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Known as a monochromatic approach, doing this can give your room the illusion of more light, if you choose a tint that's from the same color family as your sofa but slightly paler. You can also leverage a space that already has a lot of windows by opting for a darker shade on the spectrum for the walls, which should draw attention to the source letting in the natural light. To take this approach a step further, choose accent pieces, such as throw pillows or framed art, that include patterns containing the main wall color.

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You Got:
/10
Paul Bradbury/Caiaimage/Getty Images