When you hear the word "khaki," you may think slacks, school uniforms — utilitarian.
Well, you may find that muted tan on a wall near you soon.
Sherwin-Williams, a Cleveland-based paint company, has ushered Universal Khaki forward as its 2026 color of the year, plucking it from a 48-color forecast published in August. The sandy color “captures the essence of life’s bare essentials,” according to a press release from the company. Sherwin-Williams also frames the color as exuding “understated elegance and everyday versatility,” while encouraging “slowing down, resetting and designing with purpose.”
Although the choice also elicited a little snark, with some commenters calling for bolder selections, the reviews on social media were mostly positive: "Sorry to tell you people but Boring Beige is Always In!!!!," Pelar Fullilove of 37th Burleigh Interior Design posted on Instagram.
Categorizing the color as a "boring beige" was a bit of a satire, chuckled the Atlanta-based designer. She actually loved the selection for color of the year, seeing it as something subtle enough to layer in a design but "rich enough to stand on its own."
"It's timeless," Fullilove told Homes.com. "You can use it any time of the year and in any space."
Even though khaki might be more readily linked to clothing than interiors, it's "a color that mimics a natural stone," she pointed out. "Something from a quarry that's been cut. This could be used in so many different ways because colors in our homes should almost be a reflection of nature in a sense."
The understated option came as a surprise for some design obsessives increasingly accustomed to bold color usage and maximalist interiors. Some companies that have already settled on a color of the year selected greens (deep and eucalyptus) or pastels. Dutch Boy, however, also favored a neutral ivory, citing its comforting aura and association with nostalgia.
Sherwin-Williams also had nostalgia on the mind when pinpointing its 2026 color, explained Ashley Banbury, color marketing manager at HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams, a specific brand within the paint company. Specifically, nostalgia for a decade that’s held notable cultural cache over the past few years.
“With consumer and cultural trends drawing from the nostalgia and minimalism of the 1990s, khaki stood out as a way to bring forward the simplicity and comfort in design that homeowners have been missing, replacing starkness with warmth and purpose,” Banbury said over email.
The color also pairs well with other earthen hues HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams sees as trending, Banbury noted, pointing toward brownish-reds and blue-greens.
Khaki offers an easy neutral alternative to the much-maligned white wall, she said.
“We’ve been watching the steady rise of sanded beiges in both design forecasting and consumer choices,” Banbury detailed. Khaki has subtle olive undertones that offer some warmth and emphasize the “ongoing shift away from cooler grays toward warmer, more restorative tones.”
That soothing quality holds sway for Fullilove, too.
"I love that the color brings a sense of almost like peace and serenity to your space," she said. "You can honestly paint a whole home Universal Khaki and it would certainly not go out of style within a matter of years."