The importance of the kitchen to your life at home can’t be overstated. Your kitchen is the focal point of your home both in terms of functionality (it’s where you spend so much time preparing food, cooking, serving, and cleaning up), and socially (it’s called the heart of the home for a reason!). Often, no matter how lovely the rest of your home might be, everyone ends up hanging out in the kitchen!
Because it’s such an important space, it makes sense to focus your energy on the kitchen when it comes to updating or renovating your home. You want it to be a functional, welcoming, and stylish place. And the current kitchen trends support those desires! What’s cooking in kitchen design in 2024 and 2025? Read on to find out.
Caring for and supporting the environment is a high priority for today’s homeowners, and kitchen design reflects those priorities. With an emphasis on reducing the home’s carbon footprint and using renewable resources and eco-friendly materials, today’s kitchens are better than ever for the environmentally conscious.
While white and painted cabinets are always popular, stained wood cabinets are becoming more desirable. The warm, natural look of the wood and the fact that they will age well and only grow more beautiful make them a great sustainable option. White oak, walnut, and alder are popular choices.
Most consumers know the dangers of VOC (volatile organic compounds) when it comes to paint, flooring, and other materials used in the home. Low VOC paint has been around for a while and is a great choice. But today’s eco paints take environmental (and personal) safety a step further. Made with non-toxic ingredients and manufactured in environmentally friendly ways, eco paints are a great option if you want to prioritize sustainability.
There are several on-trend ways to reduce energy consumption in the kitchen.
The use of bamboo and cork flooring in the kitchen is on the rise–and for good reason. Cork is harvested from the bark of the cork tree without damaging the tree and bamboo is actually a fast-growing grass that reproduces very quickly. This means that they are renewable sources. They’re easy to maintain, offer good insulation, and look gorgeous and stylish.
Today’s kitchens work smarter, not harder–and that means you do, too! Using smart kitchen technology is a trend that is here to stay. Smart kitchens use internet-connected appliances that let you monitor and manage your devices remotely (usually from your smartphone). Smart technology in the kitchen means greater convenience, better energy efficiency, and more comfort. Try these popular smart appliances and see what you think:
Smart ovens allow you to preheat the oven remotely. You can program your oven to cook certain recipes and it can adjust the cooking time and temperature for you. Smart ovens send you an alarm when your food is done and message you if it starts to burn! Some smart ovens can replace microwaves by using air frying or light-based cooking.
Smart dishwashers allow you to start the wash cycle from your phone–helpful if you forget to turn it on before you leave for work! They can adjust wash cycles as needed and even inform you if they spring a leak somewhere.
Have you ever gotten to the store and realized you don’t know if you need a particular ingredient for tonight’s dinner? Your smart refrigerator can take a photo of the inside of the fridge and text it to you! It can also let you order groceries from a touchscreen on the door and display recipes right there where you need them.
Kitchen trends in 2024 and 2025 are all about simplicity and peace. We want to enjoy being home, connect with nature and the world around us, and focus on what’s important to us. These desires are manifest in the colors and designs we see gaining popularity today.
Since today’s kitchens are more than just food preparation spaces, homeowners want them to be as tastefully decorated as the rest of the home. Statement wallpaper adds an element of surprise and delight to a kitchen. Try a bold floral or abstract print on an accent wall, as a backsplash, or even in the interior of your pantry. Another 2024 kitchen trend is hanging art in the kitchen. Choose something meaningful or a piece you love, frame it, and enjoy the curated feel.
As we start heading into 2025, other kitchen design trends are taking center stage.
People today want their kitchens to make their lives easier. We want uncluttered spaces that support our desire to gather with those we love and to stay home more often than we used to. This means we need space to entertain, ways to treat ourselves at home, and more thoughtful storage than before.
Today’s kitchen layouts focus on open and welcoming spaces where there is room to sit and visit with the cook. It’s popular to have eating spaces like a breakfast nook, a large island, a diner booth, or a window seat in the kitchen as another space to hang out, eat, do homework, or socialize.
One major kitchen trend in 2024 and 2025 is hidden storage. People want to make the most of the kitchen space by using every inch in smart, thoughtful ways. This means we’re seeing the rise of toe-kick storage, hidden step stools, appliance garages, and refrigerator drawers.
Another rising trend is bigger, better pantries and even a resurgence of butler’s pantries. (Butler’s pantries are traditionally hallways between the kitchen and dining room that have storage, extra food prep space, and often a small sink.) These larger storage areas give homeowners the flexibility to store everything they need for themselves and their families and to entertain others–all out of sight of the kitchen area.
Many people enjoy having dedicated beverage stations as a place to store specialized gear (The milk frother! The French press!) and make their daily drinks. You can have a water dispenser installed to make filling your coffeemaker a breeze. Undercounter fridges or fridge drawers keep creamer and kids’ beverages within easy reach. Many people also want freezer space near their beverage station to keep smoothie ingredients within reach. And a cocktail bar makes a great addition to parties.
Kitchens today are more than just places to prepare a meal. They’re places to do homework or work from home, to visit with friends and family, to eat and drink and relax. Because of the many jobs they do, the best kitchens have spaces that can be used for many different functions.
A great kitchen island is easily the most popular spot in the kitchen. Trending kitchen islands aren’t always the traditional rectangle shape, and they’re also multi-function spaces made to be enjoyed.
Workstation sinks couldn’t possibly work harder or be more multifunctional. Workstation sinks have built-in accessories that slide along integrated tracks. Accessories include cutting boards, colanders, drying racks, and even food serving areas. These sinks are generally larger than regular sinks and make preparing food, serving, entertaining, and clean-up easier than ever.
For the serious entertainer, prep kitchens (also known as back kitchens) are rising in popularity. These smaller kitchens off the main kitchen are meant to keep the kitchen mess out of sight. You can prepare food and hide dirty dishes in the prep kitchen and keep your main kitchen sparkling clean and ready to host people. You get the best of both worlds: the charming and casual vibe that comes from having people in the kitchen–without the pile of dirty dishes in the sink.
Prep kitchens can also be used to store dishes, linens, groceries, dried goods, and larger appliances so the main kitchen can remain streamlined and clutter-free.
If you’re planning a full kitchen remodel, integrating these kitchen trends should be easy. You can talk to your designer or project developer about your needs and wants. Do you love hanging out in the kitchen and want an amazing island to serve as the heart of the space? Do you need extra storage space for a particular hobby like making your own pasta, and want a butler’s pantry to meet that need? Maybe you have a busy family and need as much smart technology as you can get, or you’re very concerned about your home’s environmental impact and value sustainability. As you plan your remodel, discuss what trends make sense for you and your family.
For a kitchen refresh (a smaller project than a full remodel), consider replacing your appliances with Energy Star or smart appliances. Reface your cabinets with Shaker-style doors and use natural stone countertops. You can install a new kitchen island that is perfect for your existing space and your family’s needs. If you’re replacing flooring, consider using a sustainable, gorgeous material like cork.
What if both a remodel and a refresh aren’t in your immediate future? You can still take advantage of the 2024 and 2025 kitchen trends by trying some of the following options:
Check out our kitchen gallery for photos of beautiful kitchens we built that our clients love. We are passionate about making your home the best it can be to support you and your loved ones, and that includes making your kitchen perfect for you. Are you ready to get started? We’d love to help you design and build a kitchen that is practical, lovely, peaceful, and homey. Give us a call today.