What Color Bed Sheets Should I Get

All 44 sheet colors

Whites, grays and neutrals 12

Black Bold with a black metal frame and white bedding; it shows lint more than marks.
Charcoal Sharp under a white or pale gray comforter; pale lint and pet hair show on it.
Cream Warm against a navy comforter and gentle beside an oak or pine frame.
Crisp white Goes with any comforter, wall or frame, and shows when it needs a wash.
Heathered gray Flecked like a T-shirt, so creases and small marks disappear into it.
Ivory A softer white that suits cream walls and warm wood better than bright white.
Mushroom A brown-gray that sits easily between a white duvet and a dark wood frame.
Oatmeal A flecked beige that looks like linen and hides the odd mark.
Pale gray Cool and quiet; it picks up a gray wall and sharpens a blue comforter.
Pewter A mid gray with no warmth in it, at home with steel and gray walls.
Sand A beach tan under blue: together they look like shore and sea.
Silver gray A touch darker than pale gray; cool beside chrome, steel and white.

Blues and greens 8

Chambray blue The blue of a worn work shirt; easy with white, tan and a navy comforter.
Forest green Dark and rich with oak or walnut; turn a white duvet down over it.
Indigo A blue-black, like new jeans; deep under a pale blue or white comforter.
Navy Deep and tidy under a white comforter; hides marks, and can fade with many washes.
Pale blue A lighter step of a blue comforter, so the whole bed reads as one family.
Sage A gray-green that is calm beside wood, white and warm gray.
Seaglass A pale blue-green that freshens white bedding and softens a deep blue comforter.
Teal A strong blue-green; let it be the one color on a bed of white or gray.

Warm colors and purples 10

Blush pink Soft against gray walls and a white duvet, and pretty beside navy.
Burgundy A deep wine red, rich against gray walls or an iron frame.
Butter yellow Pale and sunny under a blue or white comforter.
Caramel A warm brown that flatters a navy comforter and a walnut frame.
Coral A lively warm color against navy or teal bedding.
Eggplant A purple so dark it reads nearly black; rich against pale gray walls.
Golden yellow A warm yellow against a blue or gray comforter makes both look brighter.
Lavender A pale purple that cools a white bed and suits gray walls.
Rust Burnt orange against navy is a strong pair, and it hides marks well.
Terracotta A clay color that warms a white room; good with rattan and oak.

Stripes and patterns 14

Black and white check Big black and white squares; bold on an iron bed with a plain white cover.
Blue gingham Small blue and white checks, cottage style, under a plain white or cream quilt.
Blue ticking stripe Thin blue lines on white; ties white sheets to a plain blue comforter.
Gray pinstripe Fine gray lines on white, neat with a gray comforter or a metal frame.
Mustard stripe Yellow and white stripes that wake up a plain navy comforter.
Navy with white dots Small white dots on dark blue; playful under a plain white comforter.
Red plaid flannel A winter set for a cabin bed or a wood frame; marks vanish into the check.
Sage stripe Green and white stripes, fresh with a white duvet and a pale wood frame.
Tan stripe Sandy stripes on white, soft beside pine and under a blue comforter.
Tiny floral on cream A small flower print for under a plain quilt, so the top of the bed stays calm.
White with a navy border Hotel style: plain white with one dark line along the hem and the pillowcase edge.
White-on-white stripe A woven stripe you see only up close: pattern without a second color.
Wide gray stripe Broad bands of gray and white that hide creases; keep the comforter plain.
Windowpane check Thin dark lines in big squares on white, sharp with a black or iron frame.

How it works

For many people the answer stops at white. The rest of the list is for a bed that wants more: plain colors from ivory to eggplant, and stripes, checks and a small floral shown in both their colors.

Read the full guide

Start with what is already there

Sheets show at the pillows and where the bed is turned down, so they only have to get along with three things: the comforter, the wall behind the bed and the frame. Go close to the palest of the three for a calm bed, or warm against a cool comforter for a bed that stands out.

What each color shows

White shows every mark, which tells you when to wash it. Dark sheets hide marks but show lint and pale pet hair. Mid-tones, flecks and small patterns hide the most.

One pattern at a time

A striped or checked sheet wants a plain comforter, and a patterned comforter wants plain sheets in one of its own colors.

Buy two sets in the same color, so a pillowcase lost in the wash does not end a set.

Questions and answers

What color bed sheets should I get with a blue comforter?

White for a crisp bed, pale gray to cool it, sand or cream to warm it. For contrast go golden yellow, coral or rust. A blue ticking stripe ties sheets and comforter together.

What color sheets should I get for a guest room?

White. A guest can see at a glance that it is clean, it suits whatever comforter ends up on the bed, and a second white set bought later will match the first.

What color sheets go with gray walls?

White, blush pink, lavender, teal or burgundy against a cool gray; sage or golden yellow against a warm one. Gray on gray works when one of the two is a stripe or a flecked heather.

Should sheets be lighter or darker than the comforter?

Either, as long as there is a clear step between them. Light sheets under a dark comforter look crisp where the bed is turned down, and dark sheets under a pale comforter give the bed an edge.