A survey of more than 500 experts revealed their top choices for shower fixtures, tiles, colors, and more.
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Design lovers (and anyone looking to renovate their bathrooms), get excited: The National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), which represents nearly 50,000 North American kitchen and bath industry professionals, has released its 2024 Bath Trends Report. The report identifies products, styles, features, and materials that are anticipated to be popular in the next few years and is based on a survey conducted online among 536 respondents that include designers, manufacturers, contractors, and architects.
The NKBA provided lots of numbers for what’ll be hot (more on that in a second) and what’s not: They confirmed that “Hollywood” lighting, glass blocks, vessel sinks, bathroom chandeliers, and all-white bathrooms are slowly on their way out. Now time for the good stuff! Let’s dive into the rest of the data to find out what’s coming up in beautiful bathroom design.
Related: 21 Stunning Modern Bathroom Ideas to Inspire Your Next Renovation
Modern Design
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55 percent of survey takers agree that modern, contemporary design styles with an organic, natural influence are still going strong in bathrooms at the moment. Unsurprisingly, transitional and timeless styles are still mainstream too and not going anywhere either, according to 64 percent of respondents.
Related: 10 Interior Design Styles and How to Know Which Best Suits You
Green Bathrooms
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The all-white bathroom is falling out of favor, and now we’re leaning towards biophilic-inspired colors like green. Most survey respondents (35 percent) reported green as their preferred bathroom hue, which out-ranked white (31 percent), blue (26 percent), gray (25 percent), and several others. General color palettes are shifting towards warm neutrals and earth tones for a cozy, calm ambience in bathrooms.
Water Closets
A water closet is just a tiny room with a toilet! But a closed-off loo is seriously in demand: 71 percent of respondents say that water closets, both with or without doors, are considered highly desirable now.
Smart Toilets
And on the subject of toilets, designers say that in three years, the top toilet trends will be smart toilets that feature automatic lids, warming seats, and self-cleaning functions. A toilet that cleans itself? Sign us up!
Tricked-Out Showers
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The fancier the shower, the better: Features like built-in seating, hand-held shower heads, rain showers, steam showers, and body sprays are all on the rise. 67 percent of respondents say a shower with a separate tub or entire wet room (57 percent) will also be popular configurations.
Related: 5 Luxury Shower Ideas Designers Are Loving Right Now
Door-less Showers
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When asked about shower configurations, 70 percent of respondents said the favored approach was for no door or open (and curb-less) transition between the shower and the rest of the space. Additionally, any glass panels surrounding the shower will be frameless and crystal clear (versus frosted or smoked).
Black Faucets
The leading finishes for faucets are black (51 percent) followed by nickel or pewter (45 percent). Matte and brushed finishes, enhanced with Spot Defense for fewer water marks, are trending as well.
Fridges
Yes, you read that correctly. More bathrooms will have bevvy stations and mini refrigerators. 21 percent of respondents said there is growing interest in adding refrigerators to primary baths for beverages, medications, creams, and makeup.
Related: 5 Beauty Products That Are More Effective When Chilled
Floor Tile Patterns
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Pretty floor tile arrangements on shower floors are on-trend now: Tiles installed in a variety of patterned designs (e.g. hex, chevron, herringbone) are beating out large-format tile, pebbles and stone, slabs and solid surfaces, and circle or square mosaics. The rest of the bathroom floor will also have patterned, textured tiles (primarily ceramic and porcelain) with small or no grout lines and enhanced with app-controlled heating features.
Related: The 12 Different Types of Tiles, Explained by Experts
Wallpaper
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This trend has been floating around for a while now, and it’s not going away any time soon. According to the NKBA, designers are leveraging wallpaper as the top way to incorporate new statement colors to the bath, netting the most votes with 50 percent. This topped bringing in color through cabinets and vanities (49 percent), wall paint (36 percent), artwork (31 percent), and bathroom flooring (27 percent).
Large-Format Tile
People are sick of cleaning grout lines! They’re now straying from the tile shower and looking for more paneled, grout-less options. 74 percent and 68 percent of respondents say large-format tile and slab or solid surface, respectively, will line more shower walls in the future to minimize grout upkeep.
Related: 9 Shower Tile Ideas to Inspire Your Bathroom Renovation
Quartz
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Light-colored engineered materials are edging out natural materials in general. Because it looks so much like real stone and is incredibly easy to care for, quartz is the top choice with a whopping 81 percent of respondents confirming it will be the “it” vanity material in the near future. (Another hot vanity-related trend: Extending the countertop material into a backsplash for a seamless look.)
Related: Quartz vs. Quartzite: Pros Explain the Differences
Light-Colored Vanities
Vanities are lightening up—respondents confirmed that light to medium natural grain and textured wood are preferred over darker, painted styles. Additionally, floating vanities are growing in popularity, with 64 percent of respondents saying they’ll be in more homes in the next three years. Another trending vanity feature is motion sensor toe kick lighting, which adds a nice glow to spaces but also functions as an elevated take on the nightlight.
Backlit Mirrors
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56 percent of respondents say backlit mirrors will be everywhere in a few years, as well as mirrors with anti-fog qualities and smart or connected capabilities.
Related: How to Organize Your Bathroom Vanity in Three Simple Steps
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