60-30-10 Color Rule Palette Builder

The 60-30-10 rule is a guideline for spreading color through a room: about 60% in a dominant color, 30% in a secondary color and 10% in an accent. The 60 usually goes on walls and the largest surfaces, the 30 on upholstery and window treatments, and the 10 on pillows, art and accessories. The result is one clear main color, a supporting color and a small dose of contrast.

Pick the dominant color first, because it covers the most area. Then choose a secondary that is clearly lighter or darker, and an accent that stands out from both. Assign them by surface: walls 60, furniture and fabrics 30, decor 10. The percentages are visual shares, not measurements, so judge them by eye from the doorway, or try them on the room preview above.

A warm greige living room uses #E8DFD2 walls (60), a taupe #8C7B6B sofa and rug (30) and terracotta #B5603C cushions (10). A Japandi room pairs cream walls, taupe fabrics and charcoal accents; a coastal bathroom pairs white tile, sand towels and a soft blue. These palettes are illustrative, built from the colors style guides name. Load any of them in the builder to see it in a room.

Yes. The usual way is to add a neutral, such as white trim, wood or black metal, that sits inside the 60 or the 30 so it doesn't compete with the accent. You can also split the 10 into two related accents, for example two shades of one hue. Keep one color clearly dominant: four colors of equal weight lose the balance the rule is meant to give.

Yes, neutrals count as one of the three colors, and they often take the 60. A white, greige or soft gray wall is the most common dominant color, which leaves a bolder secondary and accent to carry the personality. An all-neutral palette also works if the three tones differ clearly in lightness, as in the monochrome bathroom example: off-white walls, mid-gray towels and charcoal accessories.

No. Design guides describe it as a guideline rather than a strict rule, and nobody measures the percentages. Rooms rarely split exactly, because floors, wood and windows add their own colors. Use the rule to check balance instead: one color should clearly lead, one should support it, and one should appear only in small doses around the room.

A good bedroom palette puts a calm, low-saturation color on the walls and base bedding (60), a deeper or contrasting color on the headboard, curtains and throw (30), and the accent on lamp shades, art and a few pillows (10). The Scandi example uses off-white, warm gray and sage. Switch the builder's preview to the bedroom to see your own palette on a bed wall.

Choose an accent that stands out from both the walls and the 30, through lightness, hue or both. A complementary hue, opposite on the color wheel, gives the most contrast; an analogous hue is gentler. The builder checks the accent against the walls using WCAG's 3:1 contrast ratio for graphics. Below that, the accent reads as a quiet note rather than a pop of color.

Yes. This free 60-30-10 palette builder takes any hex codes, for example from a paint brand's website, and shows them as walls, furniture and decor in five room types, with contrast checks and a PNG to save. To see colors on a photo of your own room instead, AI Room Designer's Colors & Finishes Swap workflow recolors walls and finishes from a reference image.

Yes. Keep the 60 the same across the connected spaces so the walls read as one room, and change the 30 or the 10 from zone to zone: a different rug and cushions in the living area, different stools in the kitchen. Changing the dominant wall color partway through an open plan tends to make the space feel chopped up.