Every year, paint company color experts develop trending hues for consumers and industry. Ever-changing variables affect the direction of yearly color design. Trends develop over the course of time: Demographics, changing consumer desires, social and economic changes and technology all converge, or come together, to influence color themes. This culminates in a Color of the Year which is supposed to be the most appealing color moving forward. These Sherwin Williams hues are the opposite of popular, these are the most unpopular colors.
Most Unpopular Colors: The Loneliest Color 2025
These are the most unpopular colors in the Sherwin Williams color collection.
The Loneliest Color 2024
In addition to presenting its most popular color, this year, Sherwin-Williams announced their least popular color, which they’ve officially titled “The Loneliest Color.” Sherwin’s bean counters figured out what their least purchased and least sampled hue is, and the color is… Kingdom Gold SW 6698. It’s a vibrant shade with elements of goldenrod and mustard. They created a palette of nine other harmonized, least popular colors to compliment Kingdom Gold.
Golds are not popular in today’s market. Integrating them into design schemes can be challenging due to their intensity and potential for visual overstimulation, which can alter the perceived size and ambiance and size of a room. How unpopular is it? It’s pretty unpopular. Each year, Sherwin-Williams tints millions of gallons of paint, but when it comes to Kingdom Gold, less than 11,000 gallons of it have been tinted in the last 14 years.