27+ Fresh Two-Tone Kitchen Cabinet Ideas for 2022 (With Pictures

Let’s take a look at some classic color schemes, popular trends, and a few off beat options, as we explore two toned cabinets in all kinds of real homes. Should you choose to make a purchase through one of my links, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you. If you want to do white two-toned cabinets in your kitchen, but are finding the second color hard to choose, why not let nature do it? Both have all white perimeter cabinets and a light wood island with stunning waterfall countertop.

Here is a more traditional kitchen with white upper cabinets and light maple lowers. The lower cabinets in this kitchen are the same color as the white on everything else: Sherwin Williams Greek Villa.

The bold matched-up grain on these next wood cabinets makes them the showstopper in an otherwise simple kitchen: Bespoke Redesign used this same Semihandmade wood style for a retro inspired two tone kitchen: The avocado green tile is a bold choice, but the vertical stacking keeps it modern. If you haven’t heard of Semihandmade, they offer a huge variety of cabinet doors that allow you to get a custom look from an Ikea kitchen! Here is another white kitchen, but this time the dark wood is featured only on the island: Riemer Kitchens used a contrasting stone and different hardware on the island to create this unique look.

Moving on, if I was to describe to you a kitchen that has white lower cabinets, a combination of white with wood and glass uppers, and a wood island, that would sound pretty darn busy. The perfectly spaced glass front cabinets add some eye-catching symmetry to this spacious kitchen. For something traditional and timeless, you might be considering a mid-toned wood to pair with white cabinets.

This birch island is stained to mirror the floor, and the custom hood vent features a nice accent of the same wood.

Simple black hardware and white countertops complete the look. Also by Cripps and Sons, this kitchen features a similar mid-toned wood, but this time it’s on all of the lower cabinets, with white for the uppers.

I don’t know if you spotted the trend, but there were a few kitchens with gold hardware amongst these white and wood variations. The cabinets here are Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace, and the the wall color is Simply White.

I kept this classically chic kitchen to its own category because the upper cabinets are decidedly cream and not white.

Kristin (@Kristinmacchia_homeinprogress) refinished her dark espresso oak cabinets into this cream and walnut dream. After stripping the original finish (she used Jasco but I couldn’t find a link for it, so you could try Smart Strip), Kristin rough sanded with a palm sander and finished with 180 sanding sponge. She applied Varathane Wood Stain in the color “Flagstone” but that doesn’t seem to be available on Amazon.

Marissa from @in_vest_homes, managed to create the taupe color on these lower cabinets with stain! Marissa used a Sherwin Williams exterior stain, in the color Mountain Ash (SW 3540).

The cabinets here are custom made in birch, so you may want to spot test on your own wood to get the right shade. If Mountain Ash isn’t going to work with your wood, try a whitewash stain and add a couple drops of one with a purple tone. Jessica (@thehouse_on2060) mixed black cabinets with light natural wood. Initially, these were the only wood and black two-tone cabinets that I found when I was gathering inspo for this post.

If you are considering doing two tone black and white cabinets, this is a more unique take on a traditional look! If you are drawn to the charcoal tone that the cabinets have in the light, you will like Sherwin Williams Iron Ore.

This next look is pretty specific, but if you like a western inspired vibe with a masculine feel, you may like it.

The team at Residence Design chose a sage green color for most of this galley kitchen, and manufactured the look of an island, by doing the peninsula in the warm wood tone. Now the color here is Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog, but you would never guess because it looks super bright in this kitchen. If you like the color as it appears in these pictures, take a look at Sherwin Williams Clary Sage.

Rachelle used natural wood-toned shelving in place of upper cabinets, and duplicated the same color on the island. If you do too, you will enjoy my post: Trend-Setting Green Kitchen Cabinet Ideas (Plus: 22 Paint Colors to Use!) The perimeter cabinets are in a medium walnut color, and the island is slightly lighter. White countertops, marble backsplash, and gold hardware complete the look. I had to pair down these kitchens to just my most favorite, because I could do a five mile long post on just black and white two tone cabinets! In this kitchen, Meridith (@lexstyleanddesign) not only chose two different cabinet colors, she maxed the contrast by choosing different hardware too!

Get this look with the Benjamin Moore colors Simply White and Onyx: I just wanted to show it, because I think many of us have pokey little kitchens like this, and it looks very chic and crisp.

Just like her walls, the upper cabinets are Sherwin Williams Extra White and the lowers are Tricorn Black:

Sure there’s shiplap, wooden shelves, and an apron sink, but Bailey’s (@clarkansaslove) addition of the quirky garage door and the brick wall take it somewhere new.

“Our marble countertops extend outside to create bar seating on the back porch. I love having gatherings and opening this bad boy up- it really extends our entertaining space!”

Bailey’s two tone kitchen colors are Sherwin Williams perennial favorites Pure White and Tricorn Black: The white here is quite creamy, but the contrast is bumped up by also using black countertops on the island. For a similar creamy white to the wall cabinets, try Sherwin Williams Whitetail:

There are all shades of white, but these cabinets are definitely cream, so I thought I would show them as another option. Alisa (@theholley_home) used two shades of Valspar paint for her two tone cabinets: Cracked Pepper and Thistle Seed. The easiest way to choose a paint color would be to order peel and stick samples!

In other parts of your house, a painted poster board leaned against the wall might suffice, but nothing beats physically putting the color on your cabinets. The fastest, easiest, and most affordable way to test your paint colors, is by ordering a peel-and-stick sample!

Vanessa (@rustic.charm.in.the.valley) chose Sherwin Williams Sea Salt, a soft green for her island, and complimented the rest of her white kitchen with black hardware and wood details.

This next kitchen by Heritage Cabinets has a similar color scheme, but this time the green is a little smokier:

I love the use of gold hardware in this first kitchen by Alicia Hewitt Interiors: I’m actually pretty sure that the upper cabinets are stock, but they look just like Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace to me, so I’m swatching that anyways!

For the upper cabinets, Oak Story chose Sherwin Williams Shoji White: No matter what you call it, Rosemary is a great color for a two tone cabinet moment! Nicole (@basicbluehouse) has since swapped out that standard door for this wood and glass number:

At first glance you might think this next picture is the same kitchen, but this one by Jen Dulac (@jendulacdesign) just has a similar layout! Jen used Sherwin Williams White Flour on the perimeter cabinets, and Rosemary on the island. Sherwin Williams Greenblack is a super dark green that can be used like a black, and that’s exactly what Jake and Candi (@bridlewoodacres) did!

Benjamin Moore Classic Gray is a super light gray on the verge of an off-white, and Sherwin Williams Sea Salt is a pretty close match to the color on the island: Here GR Fine Finishes (@grcabinetpainting) paired it with Sherwin Williams Extra White. This next navy and white kitchen features yet another waterfall countertop, but this time in the peninsula. Get the look with Benjamin Moore Simply White and Hale Navy: Sherwin Williams Cyberspace is the color on this next set of lower cabinets and island, but it’s a bit of a tricky one to categorize! This is a fun choice if you are using real wood and are hesitant to paint and lose the grain entirely.

If Marie Antoinette had a southern inspired kitchen, I imagine it would look something like this: On the opposite end of the spectrum, I love the clean simplicity of this white and blue kitchen by Tracy (@tracyelaineirwin) :

The white on the ceiling, floor, upper cabinets, and subway tile, are all slightly different shades and textures to keep things interesting.

This blue is Benjamin Moore Colorado Gray, which is actually on the same color strip as Aegean Teal, which we will see in just a minute.

For this look, try Behr Ultra Pure White with Benjamin Moore Silver Gray: For more of this delicious hue, check out my post: Benjamin Moore Aegean Teal Review and Dupes

Finally in the teal and white category is this gorgeous kitchen by Oak Story Design: Here is a kitchen with white upper and lower cabinets and an antique turquoise island.

Get the look with Country Chic Chalk Paint in the color Tropical Cocktail.

The nice thing about a colorful island, is that you can be as bold as you want to be, and it’s not nearly as much work to change later!

The mushroom color on this island looks great with the grays and browns in the stone countertop, which the owners imported from Brazil! A popular choice for two toned kitchens, is to choose a different countertop for the island, and we can see that done particularly well here.

Dupe the look of this two toned kitchen (perhaps sans Brazilian stone) with Sherwin Williams Snowbound and Polished Concrete: You might not be able to dupe the look of a foil cabinet with your remodel, but you can play twinsies with the color by using Benjamin Moore Sandlot Gray:

Get this look with a classic neutral white like Behr Diamonds Therapy, and the age old favorite: Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter.

Can you still make an impact with two tone cabinets if you choose lower contrast colors? This cream and putty color scheme provides just the right amount of contrast while still keeping things light and bright. These cabinets can be duped by using Benjamin Moore Soft Chamois and London Fog:

From silver to charcoal, here are some two tone kitchen cabinets featuring white and gray. For the lightest silvery gray option, check out this kitchen which features a subtle accent island:

Get the look of this kitchen by using Sherwin Williams Ice Cube as your second tone:

To mimic the blue gray lower cabinets in this kitchen, try Behr Nor’Wester: Dorian Gray can look pretty dark in a kitchen with less natural light, so it’s the perfect candidate to use with white upper cabinets. Okay so the “white” here is actually Sherwin Williams Creamy, but I won’t tell if you don’t!

The designers at The Finishing Room (@thefinishingroommke) chose Sherwin Williams Iron Ore for the island, which is probably the most popular charcoal color on the market! I’m cheating somewhat with this next kitchen, because Bespoke Redesign actually used Iron Ore on the island here. The thing to know about Iron Ore, is that while it can look black in low light, it really isn’t. (I talk a lot more about this in my post: Sherwin Williams Iron Ore vs Peppercorn) The island actually is a charcoal color: Sherwin Williams Iron Ore (yet again!). That’s actually not a bad shot of Iron Ore, but the green cabinets are Sherwin Williams Clary Sage, and they are less minty in real life.

(Make sure you get a small spackling tool that actually fits in the container, and a sanding sponge.) For choosing the perfect white paint color, check out these posts: