Microcement colours: the 20-colour chart and how to choose yours
Choosing the microcement colour is the decision that shows the most and raises the most doubts. That is why this guide starts with what almost nobody shows: the complete chart, the 20 Smartcret colours with their swatch, grouped by family and with what each one does on a wall or a floor. Then, how to choose according to the light and the room, the greys (the microcement classics), which colours work in the bathroom, in the kitchen, on the floor and outdoors, and the answers to the usual questions: whether the colour changes the price (no), whether the swatch is true to life and whether you can change colour later on.
The twenty colours are available in the eight microcement kits, with no change in price except during promotions.
All the colours are available in ready-to-use microcement, already pigmented in the container: no pigment is dosed or mixed on site, so the shade you choose is the one you get.
The Smartcret colour chart: the 20 colours, with swatches
Twenty colours, the same in every kit (bathroom, kitchen, floors, walls, outdoor, fireplace and furniture), and all with a matt finish, which is the one given by the varnish included in the kit. The swatches below are the same ones you see in the selector on each product page; the code next to each one is an on-screen reference, for guidance only: the real colour is mineral, with the trowel’s watermarks, and it changes with the light.
Whites
Blanco
neutral white · #ebebeb
Blanco Roto
warm white · #d0ccc8
Porcelain
cream white · #ebe5d2
Three whites and none of them is an emulsion-paint white: Blanco is the most neutral and luminous; Blanco Roto leans slightly towards warm grey and is more forgiving of wear marks; Porcelain is a cream white that warms the room without becoming beige. For a small space or one with little light, any of the three opens it up.
Light colours with a hint of tone
Blush
powder pink · #eaddda
Moss
light mint green · #dee7dc
Liquen
light greenish grey · #d0cebd
These are the colours for anyone who wants something more than a neutral without leaving the light tones. On a wall with natural light they read as whites with character; in a small bathroom, Moss and Liquen give that feeling of freshness usually sought with green tiles, without the grout lines.
Sands and beiges
Bone
bone beige · #dccfbb
Champagne
golden beige · #e4d3b3
India
golden sand · #e5d3a7
Mojave
sand · #d3c2a5
Spike
greyish beige (greige) · #cfc2b2
The most versatile family: these are the colours that go best with wood, with white and with natural textiles, and the ones that age best. Bone is the classic bone shade; Spike, the “greige” the current style calls for; Champagne, India and Mojave climb in warmth, from a golden beige to a desert sand.
Greys
Universe
light warm grey · #bab6ac
Papyrus
greenish grey · #b7b7a6
Shale Grey
slate grey · #97948b
Breeze
greyish blue · #7e8c93
We cover these separately further down, because grey is the microcement colour par excellence. A warning that saves disappointment: there is no black or anthracite in the chart; the darkest is Breeze, a deep greyish blue, and the most intense grey is Shale Grey. If you are looking for a black floor, microcement is not the material.
Earth tones and colours with character
Cafe
latte brown · #ac8e76
Salmon
light peach · #ebc8a7
Coral
pinkish terracotta · #e19b84
Khaki
khaki green · #b1ac7c
Wasabi
olive green · #95976d
Cafe is the brown of rustic or warm-industrial floors; Salmon and Coral are the terracotta tones, from a soft peach to a coral that demands the spotlight on a single wall; Khaki and Wasabi are the greens, in high demand in bathrooms and kitchens with wood. These are colours for one wall or one area, rather than for a whole house.
CHOOSE YOUR MICROCEMENT COLOUR
How to choose the microcement colour: four rules that never fail
- Look at the light and the size before the catalogue. In small spaces or those with little natural light, the light colours (Blanco, Porcelain, Bone, Universe) open up the room and add brightness. With plenty of light or plenty of square metres, you can go for Shale Grey, Cafe or Breeze, which add depth without dulling the room.
- Match it with what you already have. With wood, the sands and the bone shade (Bone, Mojave, Spike) are a safe bet; with white or black furniture, any grey; with brass and warm tones, Champagne and Salmon.
- If in doubt, go timeless. Microcement lasts many years; the neutrals (whites, sands, greys) will still be liked ten years from now. Colours with character are better on one wall or a piece of furniture than throughout the house.
- Do a real test. The colour changes with the substrate, with the light in the room and with the sanding; an on-screen swatch is no substitute for seeing the material on your wall. If you are torn between two colours, choose the lighter one: applied microcement usually reads a shade darker than the swatch because of the texture.
And one rule that is not about colour but conditions it: the finish. The kits come with matt Smart Varnish, which is the one that respects the tone of the swatch; if you prefer a slight sheen, there is a satin version of the varnish for microcement, which intensifies the colour a little and reflects more light.
Grey microcement: the renovation favourite
If one colour is associated with microcement, it is grey, and there are four in the chart, each with its role. Universe is the light, warm grey, the one chosen for most living room and kitchen floors because it does not muddy the light. Papyrus leans towards green and looks especially good with wood and plants. Shale Grey is the slate grey, the most intense in the chart: on a floor it handles traffic better and hides stains; on an entire wall it darkens, so it needs light. Breeze, greyish blue, is the grey with the most personality: perfect for a shower wall or a headboard wall.
The short rule: light greys open up the space and add light; dark greys handle more and hide better. And the usual honest tip: the final shade varies slightly with the substrate and with the hand of whoever applies it; if you are torn between two, the lighter one.
Microcement colours for bathrooms
The bathroom is where colour is chosen most carefully, because it is usually small, with artificial light and with tiles underneath. What works: Bone, Porcelain and Blanco Roto to gain space and warmth at the same time (pure white, in a bathroom without a window, can look cold); Universe and Papyrus if you want the hotel grey without darkening; Moss, Liquen, Khaki and Wasabi if you like green, which in the bathroom pairs with wood and white like few others; and Breeze for a single wall, the shower wall, with the rest in a light colour.
Two specific tips: in the shower and the sink, medium tones hide limescale drops better than very dark ones; and if the bathroom has coloured tiles that you are going to keep in part, choose a neutral that does not compete with them. The case below is a real bathroom: floor in Bone over the old tiles, with the green wall tiles untouched.
Left: renovation by @the.kaisers in Bone.
The ideas by area (sink, shower, small bathroom) and the kit prices are in microcement in the bathroom: ideas and prices.
Colours for the kitchen
In the kitchen, colour works alongside the units. With white or light wood fronts, a floor in Universe or Spike unifies and does not show marks; with black or dark grey units, a light floor (Porcelain, Universe) balances things. On the wall between the countertop and the cabinets, where the splashback goes, a medium tone (Bone, Papyrus, Cafe) hides marks better than a white. You have the specific guide in microcement for the kitchen floor.
Colours for floors, living rooms and bedrooms
On a floor the colour is seen on a large scale and in raking light, so the trowel’s watermarks show more: medium tones (Universe, Spike, Bone, Mojave) integrate them better than the very light or the very dark ones. To unify the living room, open-plan kitchen and hallway with a single colour, Universe and Bone are the ones that tire least. In bedrooms, the sands and Blanco Roto on walls bring calm; Cafe on the floor, rustic-style warmth. Everything else about floors (substrates, application and prices) is in the microcement floor guide.
Colours for outdoors
Outdoors, the sun rules: the light colours and the sands (Porcelain, Bone, Mojave, Spike) heat up less and hide dust; the medium greys fit in with concrete and stone; the very dark ones, on a terrace in full sun, heat up and show wear more. The same twenty colours are available in the outdoor kit; the step by step is in the outdoor microcement guide.
2026 trends in microcement colours
What is being asked for most this year, with names from the chart: greige (Spike, Universe) as the background neutral throughout the house; soft greens (Moss, Liquen, Khaki) in bathrooms and kitchens, replacing green tiles; earth and terracotta (Cafe, Salmon, Coral) on an accent wall; and warm white (Porcelain, Blanco Roto) in the line of the Pantone 2026 colour Cloud Dancer. What we are not seeing: very dark greys on entire floors, which darken the space and show marks.
How much each colour costs: the same
In no kit does the colour change the price. What sets it is the kit, the square metres and the substrate (tiles or plasterboard/cement): in the indoor kits the material comes to £26–43 per m², in any of the twenty colours. You can check it on the product page of each of the microcement kits when choosing colour, square metres and substrate.
So the colour lasts like the first day
Microcement pigments are mineral and stable: the colour does not fade with use. What ages is the varnish, and with it the vividness of the tone. Two gestures: renew the coat of Smart Varnish when it loses protection (sooner on a kitchen floor than on a bedroom wall), and a coat of Smart Wax wax every 6–12 months depending on use, which adds a subtle sheen and enhances the colour. Daily cleaning with water and neutral soap; never bleach or ammonia.
Frequently asked questions about microcement colours
What microcement colours are there?
At Smartcret, twenty: three whites (Blanco, Blanco Roto, Porcelain), three light colours with a hint of tone (Blush, Moss, Liquen), five sands and beiges (Bone, Champagne, India, Mojave, Spike), four greys (Universe, Papyrus, Shale Grey, Breeze) and five earth tones and colours with character (Cafe, Salmon, Coral, Khaki, Wasabi). You have them all with their swatch at the start of this guide.
Does microcement come in colours, or is it painted afterwards?
Microcement is coloured throughout: the pigment is in the material itself, it is not a paint on top. In Smartcret’s ready-to-use microcement the colour already comes in the container, so nothing is dosed on site and there are no differences between tubs.
Can I choose the colour when buying the kit?
Yes: the colour is chosen on the kit’s product page, together with the square metres and the substrate. All the kits come in the twenty colours and the price is the same for any of them, except during occasional promotions.
Is the final colour the same as the swatch?
Very similar, not identical: microcement is mineral, it has the trowel’s watermarks and it changes with the light in each room; the matt varnish respects the tone, the satin one intensifies it a little. That is why we recommend seeing the material before coating an entire room and, between two shades, going for the lighter one.
Can the colour of microcement be changed later on?
Yes, without removing anything: the surface is sanded, the finishing coats are applied again in the new colour and it is varnished. It is a complete finishing application, not a simple repaint.
Is there black microcement?
Not in the Smartcret chart: the darkest is Breeze (greyish blue) and the most intense grey, Shale Grey. A black floor with microcement requires a product and an application different from those of a kit.
