Dark vs Light Carpet (Pros and Cons)

I always feel quite awkward, when I speak with you about carpet color, because it’s a very personal thing. That’s why I always advise my readers to listen to their hearts when they choose between dark vs light carpets. To help you make the final choice, I want to share the list of pros and cons for both, light and dark carpets.

There’s no winner in the battle of light and dark carpets. Light carpets make the room visibly larger, but they collect dirt and stains easily. Dark carpets look more glamorous and they serve well in high-traffic areas as the wear traces are not visible on them. But they make the premise visibly smaller and darker. Read on to know, for what rooms you should prefer light carpets to dark ones and vise versa.

How to Choose Between Light vs Dark Carpet?

First of all, the color of the carpet is a matter of the homeowner’s taste. Besides, each color awakens some of your feelings, when you come into the room. Light carpets usually make you feel happy, energized, and cool. While dark carpets make you more focused, relaxed, and calm. So, the simplest way to choose either dark or light carpet is just to ask yourself, what feelings you want to elicit in your space. Besides, you should take into consideration the color of the walls in the room, as the carpet tone has to match them. If some floor areas are visible behind the carpet borders, you should pay attention to their color as well. 

If the short answer I’ve written above is enough for you, then don’t waste the time and get the light or dark carpet up to your taste. But if you are still hesitating, then let’s delve into the topic. Read the least of the pros and cons.

Pros and Cons of the Dark Carpet

I want to emphasize the main quality dark color gives to the carpet – it makes its drawbacks less visible. So, if the dark carpet has some seams, dirt, or picks, they will be less noticeable. But let’s have a look at dark carpet pros a little closer.

Pro 1. Stains are less visible

I know, that the more you use the carpet, the more accidents happen on its surface. Your guests may spill the vine, your kids may drop some boiled pasta or a piece of chocolate, which melted. All these dark liquids won’t be noticeable on the dark carpet fiber. Besides, the carpet of a dark color hides .dirt from your visitors’ street shoes. 

Pro 2. Cleaning can be rare

This advantage of the dark carpet logically comes from the previous one. As the dirt is less visible on its surface, you may do wet cleaning of it more rarely. So, you have more free time and save money on carpet powder (if you clean it yourself) or professional cleaning.

Pro 3. It is good for high-traffic areas

The areas with high traffic, like hallways, entryways, or corridors are more challenging for carpets. Lying under people’s feet all the time, the carpet gets dirty and worn out faster. The dark tones hide mud and wear traces, so it works great in high-traffic areas. The carpet of the same color you should choose for rooms, where people come in street shoes.

Pro 4. Seams and picks are less noticeable

To make the carpet fit some hard-to-reach areas, like stairs, sometimes its parts must be cut and sewed again. In this case, seams are inevitable. If the tones of carpet fiber are dark, then the seams are less visible. By the way, if you have a cat or a dog at home, its claws sometimes make picks on the carpet fiber. Your visitors won’t see them if the carpet is dark.

Pro 5: Add comfort and coziness

Dark colors are associated with night. That’s why the dark tones of the carpet make us feel more relaxed and more comfortable in the room. In this room, you feel more focused, too.

As you see, dark tones of carpets have lots of advantages. That’s why many homeowners prefer them to light ones. If you are prone to getting a dark carpet in your room, stop for a while and read the list of cons. 

Con 1: It’s prone to fading

Every time, when you wash the dark carpet, you can see extremely black flows of water, running down from it. The water is black not just because of dirt, but also because of the carpet dye. The dark color is fading with every single wash. 

Con 2: It makes a premise visibly smaller

This drawback is important just for small premises. The dark carpet makes the room look visibly smaller. That’s just an illusion, but you should keep it in mind while choosing the carpet for the small premise.

Con 3: Light-colored stains and pet hair are more noticeable

Visitors often notice the stains, made by light liquids, like milk or pet urine, on the dark carpet surface. If your pet has light hair, you’ll need to spend time vacuuming it from the carpet pile. Otherwise, your guests will see them immediately when they come into the room. The dark carpet draws attention to the white hair and light-colored stains on its surface.

Pros and Cons of the Light Carpet

I know that each carpet lover at least once in his life was watching the white or light beige carpet and dreamed to get it. But the main thing, which stops the homeowners from buying wonderful light carpets, is their ability to look dirty after two weeks of usage. So, let’s deep into the topic and consider the pros and cons of the light carpet.

Pro 1: It makes the room look larger and brighter

The white, light grey or light beige carpets symbolize for many people energy, purity, and power. If you emphasize the ordinary ambiance in your room with the light carpet, you’ll add more positive vibes to your everyday life. Besides, light tones make the room visibly larger. So, it’s a great solution for small premises.

Pro 2: Light-colored stains and pet hair are easier to clean

I agree with you, even the smallest stain pops on the light carpet surface. But there’s good news – the light-colored stains are easier to clean from the light fabric. Besides, light carpets conceal dust and white pet hair better than dark ones.

Pro 3: It serves as a great background for the furniture in your room

I know that my readers often decorate their rooms by themselves and avoid hiring professional interior designers as they want to save some money. If you want to create a great living space, but you lack knowledge, then make simpler choices. The light carpet is a versatile choice for rooms of any style. It will match any wall color. Besides, it will serve as a great background for any kind of furniture in the room.

Pro 4: It is less prone to fading

There’s a good thing about the light color – it is fading very slowly. The white can’t be whiter, you see.

So, light carpets seem to be a robust versatile choice for many homeowners. But nothing is perfect. Here’s the list of disadvantages of light tones for the carpets.

Con 1: Even the slightest dark stains are visible

The carpet lies in your room for years, and during such a long period accidents happen. Your kids may spill some hot chocolate on the carpet pile. Your guests may drop some pasta sauce or spill some vine on the rug. If the carpet fiber is light, you will notice a dark stain on the carpet surface at a large distance. 

Con 2: Too bright for too many exposed rooms

If your light carpet is snowy white or beige, it looks too pretentious and bright on the overexposed premises. The same thing happens with too sun-lighted rooms. So, if there’s a lot of sunlight in your room or the accessories are too expressive, extremely light colors can be a little too much.

Dark vs Light Carpet: What is Better?

If you are still hesitating, about what carpet is better, I advise you to ask yourself, what function my carpet has to fulfill. In what room will I use it? Let’s consider several variants.

Dark vs Light Carpet: For Kitchen

The kitchen is the premise, where you spend lots of hours cooking delicious food, washing the dishes, and probably having meals. This premise is hard to maintain clean. I am sure, many greasy stains appear from time to time on the carpet fiber there. The moisture level is always high in the kitchen, too. I recommend using dark tones of carpet there.

Dark vs Light Carpet: For Kid’s Room

Be sure, that the carpet won’t be clear in the kid’s room. Children make stains on the carpet all the time – they drop some snacks on the carpet. Besides, they drop ink blots on the carpet fiber while doing their homework, etc. That’s why a dark tone is preferable here. But I know that many parents consider dark too glamorous color for a kid’s room. And children usually don’t like black or brown carpets. In this case, follow your inner voice and get the light carpet for the kid’s room. But think in advance, about how you are going to clean it. Consider buying a steam cleaner for a light carpet in the kid’s room.

Dark vs Light Carpet: Living Room

In this room, either dark or light carpet works well. So, if you have a large glamorous living room, where you like to sit in front of the fireplace, drinking red wine, it’s better to get a dark carpet here. Thus, you feel more comfortable and relaxed. Besides, it looks extremely luxurious. But if you have a small bright living room, where you often arrange parties, then add some active vibes with a light-toned carpet on the floor.

Conclusion

To sum up, both light and dark carpets have their advantages and disadvantages. I’ve shared with you a detailed list of pros and cons of light vs dark carpets. To make the final choice, consider your needs and listen to your heart.