26 grey bedroom ideas to inspire your next makeover (2024)

If you want a grey bedroom scheme but don't want to live with dark walls, paint doors and windows instead. It has a wonderful framing effect in a room, and your eye is drawn to the view outside as soon as you walk in.

Pictured: Amazonia Toile Duvet Cover, Farrah Palm Pendant Light, and Matilda Dove Grey Bed, all at Dunelm

This is a great example of how greys can be warming. An elegant grey bed like this one would usually be paired with a white wall, but using a limewash finish instead has a really warming effect. The chalky texture on limewash will soften underlying colour and create something quite cocooning.

Pictured: House Beautiful Grove Bed and Blanket Box at Dreams

'In the bedroom grey is a particularly versatile shade – something that is especially important if you are investing in larger pieces of bedroom furniture like a bed frame or fitted furniture,' says Megan Baker, head of design at My Fitted Bedroom. 'From soft dove to charcoal to granite, grey provides a warming and more modern alternative to white or wood effect furniture.'

Pictured: Sophia fitted wardrobes in Pewter, My Fitted Bedroom

This cosy bedroom is a great example of how to use a beige-toned greige. 'Choosing greige paint in your bedroom is a great option to create a relaxing environment to retreat to each night,' says Sarah Lloyd, interiors and paint expert at Valspar Paint. 'Having beige undertones in a bedroom will offer a warmer twist on a classic grey paint, while the grey elements offer something a little more modern and fresher than a classic beige would.'

Pictured: Cassis Upholstered Bed and all accessories, Marks & Spencer

To recreate this clever yet simple grey faux headboard, use masking tape to mark your outline and paint an exaggerated silhouette, continuing the line down onto the skirting board. Build up a tonal grey bedroom scheme with a paler grey on the rest of the walls.

Pictured: Headboard painted in Sharkskin Pure Matt Emulsion at Paint & Paper Library

Greys that take from nature – charcoals, stone and slate shades – work wonderfully with other earthy accents. 'Darker shades of grey look fab with muted sludgy pale accents – a pink that has brown base notes will really warm up a dark grey room,' says Amy Wilson, interior designer at 247 Curtains.

Pictured: Mid-Century Sweep Upholstered Bed Frame and all accessories, John Lewis

'Green and grey are a powerful duo that look effortlessly contemporary,' says Vicki Foster, interiors stylist at ScS. 'Both light and dark grey go with varying shades of green so the flexibility here is huge; from a bright, edgy pairing of light grey and neon green to a more refined dark grey and forest shade, you can strike a number of powerful looks by combining these two colours.'

Pictured: House Beautiful Super Sublime Saxony Carpet in Midnight Tonal at Carpetright

If you want some simple grey bedroom inspiration, the Scandis are hard to beat. The warming jute rug is an important element here to mitigate the cooler grey bedlinen and clean white walls, and the relaxed, undone styling is inviting rather than overly pristine.

Pictured: Bedlinen at Bed Threads

For a dramatic grey bedroom, paint panelling in deep charcoal to create a warm and cocooning feel. The striking lamp and brass details on the black metal bed set it off perfectly and add shine. Painting the picture frame in the same colour as the wall is a nice effect that makes the image stand out.

Top Tip: Recreate the panelled look with wallpaper. For example, try the Contemporary Wood Panel Wallpaper from I Love Wallpaper or this beautiful Marble Wood Panel Effect Wallpaper from World of Wallpaper.

Pictured: Railings Modern Eggshell, Farrow & Ball

If you go for a strong architectural grey, like Farrow & Ball's Plummett, which offers an industrial, modern feel, balance with some crisp contrasts like a plain white or a buttercup yellow.

Pictured: Plummett No.272, Farrow & Ball

A shaker wardrobe does really well in a dark grey – its traditional silhouette can take quite strong shades, even a deep navy or rich burgundy. The brass handles on this Realm wardrobe are the perfect foil for the charcoal finish.

Pictured: House Beautiful Realm Fitted Wardrobes at Homebase

Pale grey shutters look so elegant in this bedroom, filtering the light beautifully. 'Your bedroom is a space you want to feel calm and safe, and grey is a neutral shade which can offer this. Any window covering is an investment, especially shutters, so make the right decision with colour and how it complements your colour scheme,' says Victoria Walker, product manager at Hillarys.

Pictured: House Beautiful Storm Grey full height shutters at Hillarys

As this fabulous bedroom shows, grey needn't be reserved for contemporary or minimal spaces. There is always a case for embracing soft grey, and matching with equally pale soft furnishings. As you can see here, it creates a really serene spot. The green tree is an important styling element here, as it prevents the living room from looking washed out.

Pictured: Litcham Bed at DFS

'Grey is a timeless colour but there are many tones to choose from. Lighter shades offer a cooler, fresher space whereas darker greys and charcoal tones can do the opposite,' says Victoria. 'Choosing the right shade also depends if you want your window covering to blend in or become a feature in the room.'

Pictured: House Beautiful Matchsticks Mono Blinds at Hillarys

One of the joys of grey is the way it changes when placed next to other colours – use grey against an intense purple for instance, and it will bring out lilac tones. Consider this if you're after a soft and feminine space, and sit your greys next to pinks or buttery yellows.

Pictured: Hoxton Grey No.72 (Walls) at Mylands

Grey is a brilliant choice for vintage details like ruffles, scallops or bobbins where pastels or primary colours might look a little too pretty or whimsical for a grown up space.

Pictured: Bobbin 2 Drawer Bedside Table, John Lewis

Use black and white images and place the frames together in a gallery wall above the bed, choose different sizes and you could even mix up the frames – black, white and natural – for an eclectic look. Make sure the spacing between the frames is uneven for a relaxed look, but not too far apart, 4-5cm is a good gap.

Pictured: Lexington Bed at Furniture and Choice

We really love the simplicity of this bedroom, and the choice of a slate grey door where white would have sufficed. And look closely at the skirting boards too that have been painted in a matching shade. It's another great example of how well grey and yellow sit together.

Pictured: Door painted in Lock Keeper No. 22 and walls painted in Kensington Rose, both at Mylands

'Blush pink in particular goes exceptionally well with light and dark grey,' says Vicki. 'You could potentially paint your walls crisp white and introduce flashes of blush in the form of chunky cushions, a feature wall and blush-themed table accessories. Don’t overdo the pink though, you just need an injection of it here and there.'

Pictured: Vintage Rose Brushed Cotton Bed Linen at The Secret Linen Store

You can double down on a dark grey by adding black accents. Look to Scandi design influences in this instance that really lend themselves to a monochromatic palette. Here, the wall and ceiling lights punctuate the space with a shot of jet black – while light wood acts as a softening element.

Read more: How to use black accents in every room in your home