Behr Paint announces the color of the year 2025: Rumors Red

Behr Paint presents the color of the year 2025 in large sizes!

On August 21, the company announced “Rumors” as next year’s color, a reinterpreted deep ruby ​​red that “adds warmth and rich appeal both inside and outside the home.”

“Red is just a timeless color,” Erika Woelfel, vice president of color and creative services, tells PEOPLE. “We’ve talked about it. It’s been around for a long time. Artists have used it. Designers have used it.”

“It just feels right, it feels sophisticated. It feels bold, but still approachable. It draws us in and is really captivating,” adds Woefel, who is also a color expert and leads a team of nearly 30 creatives in graphic design, color services, website development, photography and visual merchandising materials.

Sold exclusively at Home Depot, “Rumors” is part of Behr’s larger 2025 Color Trend Palette, an annual selection of trend-setting colors ranging from alluring warm tones to stunning cooler hues to help DIYers, designers and painting professionals make color selection easier.

While the color represents a dramatic departure from previous years, which featured soft black in 2024 and warm white in 2023, research shows shoppers are ready for more color.

According to a press release from Behr, “more than three-quarters (76%) of Americans would consider painting a room or wall a shade of red,” while “about three-quarters (73%) believe that using the color red can add depth and character to living spaces, and more than half (61%) agree that bold red walls have a warm and engaging effect.”

If you have concerns about integrating the color into your home, Woelfel recommends starting small.

“You can place Rumors around a fireplace to create a really beautiful moment in the living room. If you’re just looking for a small option, if you live in an apartment or a room where you can’t change much, you can paint a piece of furniture. You can upgrade a found piece and make a really beautiful statement with a piece of furniture, a chair, a table or a dresser,” she says.

“You can also go big. That’s what you can really do when you immerse a dining room or living room in color, or put an accent wall in a bedroom to highlight the headboard and create a beautiful focal point. It grabs your attention and is really, really captivating.”

Selecting the next Color of the Year is a lengthy process that begins almost immediately after the previous winner is announced.

“It will probably take us a year to put together the color of the year, the trend palette and all the content that goes with it,” says Woelfel, adding that the team is considering a “wide range of influences” when weighing options.

“We look at what’s happening in fashion, interior design and lifestyle. What people are doing. Hobbies. What they’re eating. Where they’re going. What they’re talking about. What’s really resonating. There are all these different factors. One of the things we noticed in our research for this year is that people are really interested in engaging with color. I think they’ve been living in the neutral zone for quite a while.”

When Rumors emerged as the top candidate, Behr knew it was the perfect choice.

“This red has been one of those colors that is becoming increasingly popular. It has a very nostalgic association. In the ’90s there was that vintage vibe, but it’s not your grandmother’s red. It’s really been reinvented for 2025. It’s a reimagined red that makes a luxurious statement anywhere in your home. Whether you use it big or small, it’s just very versatile on so many different levels.”