KitchenAid just announced its 2026 Color of the Year, and it’s (drumroll please) Spearmint! It’s a soft mint-green shade that the brand says is meant to feel calming, uplifting, and creatively energizing. The color is designed to “refresh the senses and find a moment of clarity” and features a tactile, sandy finish that adds subtle texture to its iconic stand mixer.
“This year’s Color of the Year, Spearmint, feels like a mood booster — it’s positive, uplifting and revitalizing,” said Brittni Pertijs, KitchenAid’s lead color, material and finish designer. “The new tactile sand finish adds a grounding touch, while the color itself offers a fresh outlook and moment of lightness, calling makers to be more present in the moment and in the kitchen.”
But as HGTV reports, don’t let Spearmint’s soft, light and crisp aesthetic fool you; mint green can be styled and complemented more ways than you might think. “Spearmint is incredibly versatile,” Brittni said. “It can be a fresh pop against stainless steel or a perfect complement in a colorful kitchen. It pairs just as well with dark or light woods and works beautifully in both cool and warm spaces. Thanks to its blend of blues and greens, Spearmint can either stand out as a statement or seamlessly blend into its surroundings.” It also plays well with fruity, lemon yellows and berry reds or sherbet-y shades of orange and pink. And, of course, it pops against neutrals.
Spearmint spent three years in development, and is right at home with KitchenAid’s existing creamier green hues, like Blossom, Pistachio and Cardamom, as opposed to more vegetal greens like Evergreen, Juniper and Matcha. While a different part of the palette, Spearmint also shares some of the same softer, muted characteristics of 2025’s Color of the Year, Butter, and 2024’s Blue Salt. Previous Color of the Year picks saw bolder, warmer choices like Hibiscus, Honey and Beetroot. (The last time the Color of the Year was anything near green was 2019’s chartreuse-like Kyoto Glow.)
And for only the second time ever in the mixer category, Spearmint features what KitchenAid describes as a “sand finish” (think: a more tactile matte). KitchenAid explains this finish softens the color even further and invites touch. “Ultimately, we looked to mint leaves for inspiration and wanted to tap into the soft, subtle texture you only notice when you touch them,” Brittni said. “That led us to a sandy finish that feels both inviting to the eye and soft to the touch, which took a lot of development to perfect.”
According to Brittni, the Whirlpool Color, Finish and Material team spends “years analyzing and discussing what we’re seeing in sociocultural, interior design and aesthetic trends with our global team to help narrow in on our options.” She added that they “track those conversations over the course of a few years to make sure that we’re still on trend before finalizing the color.”
KitchenAid’s Color of the Year 2026 Spearmint will be available starting Thursday, Feb. 12, as a KitchenAid Artisan Series 5 Quart Tilt-Head stand mixer.
Photo Credit: TY Lim / Shutterstock.com