Cherry cabinets are a popular choice in kitchens due to the warm energy they provide and their rich tone, which creates a homely and welcoming feeling. Solid cherry cabinets are sought after because they have a very good natural resistance to rot and decay, and they are strong and durable.
Kitchen cabinets that have been stained to look like cherry wood are an equally popular option that provides the warmth of cherry wood without the high price tag.
Cherry cabinets have an obvious red or orange hue, which is appealing, but it can be difficult to coordinate other aspects of the kitchen with. Here we look at the colors for flooring that will work well with cherry cabinets.
Tiled or Vinyl Flooring
If you have wooden cherry kitchen cabinets, then it can be a struggle to choose a wooden flooring color that compliments it. A cherry wooden floor may be too matchy or overwhelming, but a different color of wood could clash. For this reason, tile flooring or vinyl flooring presents a good option so that you can choose a floor surface in a color further removed from wood tones.
White
White is a neutral color that can really help bring out the vibrancy in cherry cabinets. The eye is naturally drawn to the more heavily saturated color, which in this case is the color of the cherry wood. This ensures that your kitchen cabinets remain the center of attention, lifting the focus away from the flooring.
White flooring, whether that be achieved with white tiles or white vinyl, presents a clean and fresh surface that is popular in kitchens. White flooring can also help to visually extend the look of the room and make the space feel bigger than it actually is.
White floors will reflect light, which helps to make the kitchen feel open and airy. This is a great benefit because cherry cabinets can sometimes make a kitchen feel dark and heavy.
The drawback of white floors is that they can be difficult to keep clean because they show dirt more easily compared with darker floor colors.
Beige
Beige is another neutral color that would work really well as a floor surface color with cherry cabinets. Beige has soft and subtle tones that give it a very soothing and calming feel.
This is a color that has a natural vibe, most likely because it is often seen outside in natural environments, for example, on sandy beaches, fields of wheat crops, straw bales, and tree trunks. This natural theme helps the energy of cherry cabinets and beige work well together, creating an earthy atmosphere in a room.
There are many variations on the color beige, from pale ivory tones to darker camel shades. The lighter color of beige you opt for, the more intense the contrast will be with the cherry cabinets. Darker shades of beige will result in a lower contrast between the two colors and create a more harmonious atmosphere.
Either of these options would work well, depending on the look you are trying to achieve. The texture of your beige flooring will also have an effect on the final style of the room. Glossy beige marble tiles will look sleek and modern, while matte beige stone tiles will have a more rustic vibe.
Gray
If you have moved into a home with cherry cabinets that you don’t love, then there are ways you can detract from the red tones and balance out their intense warmth by using cool colors. Gray is a neutral shade, but there are many cool gray shades that would work to minimize the impact of the cherry cabinets and level out their energy.
Choose gray flooring that has cool blue or green undertones to level out the richness in the cherry cabinets.
If you have a large kitchen, then a dark gray flooring can be a really good way to ground the space and detract from the cherry cabinets, while a mid to light gray floor would work better in a small kitchen to prevent it from becoming too dark and dingy.
Gray flooring can also compliment cherry wood cabinets if you select a warm shade of gray. This is a gray which has orange or yellow undertones, or a gray which appears to be crossed with beige (known as greige).
Tile or vinyl flooring in this color will add a modern twist to a traditional cherry wood kitchen while keeping the feel of the room warm and homely.
Black
Black is considered to be a neutral color despite being bold and intense. It works well as a flooring color because it helps to ground a space, it hides dirt, and it goes easily with any other color you choose to put with it. Black is neither warm nor cool, and so it provides a good base for cherry cabinets.
Black flooring is able to blend into the background, making it a good backdrop for more vibrant colors in the kitchen. If you have a small space, you can still have black floors; just be sure to choose a glossy finish such as marble tile so that the floor reflects rather than absorbs the light.
Laminate or Hardwood Flooring
It can be hard to choose a wooden floor surface that works with cherry cabinets because if you match it exactly, then the amount of cherry can be overwhelming, but if you choose a color that is different but similar, then it may look like you tried to match the cherry wood and failed.
A wooden floor surface that is vastly different from the color of the cherry cabinets can look completely mismatched. However, wooden floors are a popular choice in kitchens because they are long-lasting, durable, easy to clean, and less severe than hard tiled floors if you fall over on them.
They can also be sanded back and re-stained if you change your mind about the color in the future. Understandably, you may be reluctant to choose a floor surface that is not wooden simply because you have cherry cabinets.
If you are set on having wooden floors with your cherry cabinets, there are ways you can achieve this without sacrificing style.
Whitewashed
There are some laminate flooring options that have a whitewashed effect, creating the look of wood that has been treated with lime wash. You can also create your own whitewashed wood by staining untreated hardwood with a mixture of white paint and water.
This creates a neutral flooring surface that still has visible wood grain, adding character to the room and contrasting against cherry cabinets. Pale flooring like this can help to create the look of a larger space and make for a more airy feel. Whitewashed wood is ideal for an informal, coastal vibe.
Gray
Gray wood flooring surfaces can be achieved by staining hardwood with gray stain, or you can buy ready-made gray laminate flooring.
Gray flooring can be found in various shades of gray, but the result for most is a weathered, natural look. Gray wood flooring can help to balance out the warmth in cherry cabinets, while the visible wood grain helps to prevent the flooring from feeling too cold and clinical.
White and Light Woods
If you want a natural wood-colored flooring that has not been stained or painted, then the best choice to go with cherry cabinets is one that provides a good contrast but has similar tones. For example, cherry wood with golden orange tones would contrast nicely with a white wood which also had some golden tones, such as ash or white oak.
These are pale-colored woods that have yellow or gold grains running through them, which ensure they complement the tones in cherry wood without competing with them or clashing with them. Other white woods which can work well with cherry wood include holly and hickory.
Maple can also be a good choice providing it is white maple without any hint of green. Some maple wood can have green undertones, and this would clash with the red tones in cherry wood to make for a jarring feel.
Dark Woods
As cherry wood is a medium shade that is neither pale nor dark, this means that dark woods can contrast it nicely. As with choosing a white wood to go with cherry, when choosing a dark wood, you need to ensure that it is several shades darker to achieve a good contrast, but it also needs to contain the same tones as cherry wood to prevent clashing.
Dark woods which work well with cherry cabinets include wenge, ebony, and blackwood. Try to choose dark woods with golden tones rather than red tones because excessive use of red can be too severe.
In a kitchen with lots of cherry cabinets, the use of more red-toned wood covering the floor can render the room overwhelming and make it an unpleasant place to be. Avoid mahoganies or any other flooring with red hues.
If you have an oak cabinet instead of a cherry cabinet, we recommend you to read this post ‘ What Color Floor Goes with Oak Cabinets?‘
