Switch Board Colours for Every Room: A Plate Colour Guide

How to choose a switch board colour for any room

The right switch board colour for a living room, bedroom or kitchen is the one that either disappears into the wall or deliberately matches something in the room. Everything else looks like an afterthought. Modular switch plate colours make that easy, because the plate is only the front: you choose the switches once and pick the colour and finish separately for each room.

We look at three things before recommending a plate colour.

Wall Match the paint for a board that blends in, or contrast it on purpose.

Material Wood panelling, stone, metal fittings or glass in the room give you something to echo.

Hands Who touches the board, and how clean their hands are, decides the finish more than taste does.

This guide walks room by room through the colours we actually make in our KEMPS and VIZA ranges at our Mumbai works, with a link to every shade so you can see it before you buy.

Keep switches Whatever colour you choose, the modules behind the plate stay the same.

Our plate colour palette in one view

Across our 13 KEMPS and VIZA plate designs there are 48 colourways. Grouped by tone, whites and blues lead, with wood, dark shades and warm metallics close behind.

Pale stays pale Our plates are UV-protected and do not turn yellow, so a white or sky blue board still matches the wall years later.

Anti-scratch Every plate carries an anti-scratch coating.

5-year warranty On every plate, whatever the colour.

Living room: the switch board people see most

The living room board sits on the wall guests look at, often beside the TV unit or the sofa. It is where a statement plate earns its price.

Blend in On white or off-white walls, Royal Pearl White or Peony Pearl White give a soft sheen that reads as finished rather than plain.

Statement On a feature wall, a glass-style Glasso Zed Black or Peony Bronze Copper turns the board into a fitting.

MetallicRoyal Olympic Blue Metallic and Aster Rose Gold Metallic add shine without the glass look.

Wood TV unit Echo the veneer with Royal Teak Wood Texture.

Consistency Keep the living and dining boards in one colour where the rooms are open to each other.

Bedroom: calm colours and soft finishes

Bedroom boards are used in dim light, often by feel, beside the bed and the wardrobe. Calm, low-contrast colours work best.

Soft whiteSlim Moon White and Orchid Moon White sit quietly on pale walls.

Wood headboardOrchid Walnut Wood Texture or Royal Mocha Brown Texture match dark wardrobes and headboards.

Blue roomsRoyal Fossil Blue Texture suits grey-blue or navy walls, and the texture hides marks.

Bedside Choose a finish you can find by touch; a textured face is easier than a slick glass one in the dark.

Guest room A simple white keeps a guest room neutral for any visitor.

Kitchen: colours that forgive busy hands

Kitchen boards are touched with wet, oily or floury hands many times a day, usually right beside the counter. Here the finish matters more than the colour.

Easy wipeAqua Cherry Snow White and Cherry White are simple to clean and easy to match again.

Hides marksAqua Cherry Mine Stone and Slim Grey Wood disguise smudges between wipes.

Modular kitchen Grey or graphite cabinets pair with Slim Silver Graphite or Orchid K Grey Metallic.

Avoid Glossy black and glass-style faces beside the hob; every fingerprint shows.

Bathroom and wash areas

Boards for bathrooms are normally placed outside the door or well away from water, for geysers, lights and exhaust fans. Keep the colour light and simple.

Clean lookCristal White or Daisy Cool White suit white and pastel tiles.

Blue tilesCristal Sky Blue picks up blue or aqua tiles.

Green tilesCristal Mint Green for sage and green schemes.

Hard water White and pale shades hide dried water spots and soap marks better than dark ones on boards just outside a bathroom.

One shade Use the same plate outside every bathroom in the home so the corridors read as one scheme.

Kids’ room: bright, washable, forgiving

Children’s rooms need boards that cope with sticky hands and crayon, and colours that still look right as the room grows up.

CheerfulDaisy Sky Blue, Daisy Sky Blue 2 and Slim Peacock Blue brighten a room without shouting.

BoldSlim Real Red or Aqua Cherry Chilly Red make a fun accent on a white wall.

Hides messDaisy Gray is the practical choice for a toddler’s room.

Think twice Dark glass-style plates at a child’s height show every mark.

Teenagers Older children often prefer grey or blue metallic over bright red.

Pooja room: warm, quiet and traditional

A pooja room or mandir unit is usually wood, marble or both, lit warmly, and used every day. The board should feel part of it, not a modern interruption.

Marble and whiteAster Pearl White sits well against white marble.

Wooden mandirDaisy Wooden 1, Daisy Wooden 2 or Aster Oak Wood Texture blend into carved wood.

Warm metalAqua Cherry Dakota Copper echoes brass and copper diyas and bells.

Soft blue Homes with a blue or teal mandir backdrop can use Peony Sky Blue, a glass-style shade that catches the diya light.

Lamp oil A textured plate copes better with daily lamp smoke and oil than a glossy one.

Office and study: neutral and businesslike

A home office or study board is used for chargers, lamps and a desk. Neutral, low-glare colours keep it out of video calls and out of the way.

NeutralOrchid Z Black Metallic or Aster Space Blue Metallic look sharp beside dark desks.

Light deskGlasso Pearl White suits white and birch furniture.

Commercial For offices fitted in bulk, Cherry White Chrome and Decore are the simple, repeatable options.

Green studies A study painted sage or olive pairs with Glasso Mint Green.

Desk height Boards above a desk are touched constantly, so metallic beats gloss here.

Dark walls and black switch boards

A black switch board is the modern choice for charcoal, navy, deep green or exposed-concrete walls. On a dark wall a white plate becomes a bright rectangle; a black one disappears.

Gloss blackPeony Z Black, Cristal Z Black and Glasso Zed Black give the deepest black.

Low-mark black Orchid Z Black Metallic hides fingerprints better than gloss.

Charcoal walls Slim Silver Graphite and Daisy Gray blend into grey rather than black.

Wood interiors and wooden switch boards

A wooden switch board is a textured plate made to look like timber, not solid wood, so it does not warp or crack. It is the natural choice on panelled walls, wardrobes and wooden TV units.

Light oak and ashSlim Rey Wood and V-Wood Rey Wood Texture.

Teak and walnut Royal Teak and Orchid Walnut for traditional Indian furniture.

Grey wash Slim Grey Wood for modern grey laminates.

Tip Hold the sample against the actual veneer in daylight before ordering.

Gloss, metallic or texture: choosing the finish

Once the colour is chosen, the finish decides how the board ages day to day.

Glass-style Richest look, for show walls: Peony and Glasso.

Acrylic Cristal is acrylic and polycarbonate, with a bright colour and gloss.

Metallic Shine for less: Royal American Blue Metallic or V-Wood Red Metalic.

Texture Easiest to live with in kitchens and kids’ rooms.