Front Door Design: How to Pick the Perfect Style for Your Home
By: Britteny
From Dutch and French to pivot and farmhouse, the number of front door styles available is seemingly endless. Plus, there’s tons of colors and materials to choose from too. This can make the process of selecting a door for your home feel daunting and overwhelming. But your front door design is an important aspect of your home exterior, and getting it right is crucial for good curb appeal.
Don’t panic, though. We’re here to help. Keep reading to discover our favorite front door design ideas and tips for picking the perfect option for your home.
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Complement your home’s architectural style
When updating various elements of your exterior, whether it’s the front door or something else entirely, it’s important to keep in mind your home’s architectural style. For example, if you have a super modern industrial-style home, a traditional front door might look out of place. Similarly, if your home leans traditional, you’ll likely want to avoid anything too contemporary or modern.
The home above has a modern exterior, and the pivot door we used in the entry perfectly complements the style. The black frame coordinates with the metal roof, porch columns, and siding rendered in Sherwin Williams’ Peppercorn. The large wood handle matches the decking and steps, window box, and horizontal wood beams on the right side of the home.
Keep it simple
If your façade features lots of textures, colors, or decorative elements, consider a simple front door to balance out the busyness. With two different siding types (rendered in different colors and orientations), plus a covered porch, stone and wood accents, black window trim, and plentiful landscaping, the home exterior above has a lot going on. To counteract this, we selected a relatively simple front door.
On the flip side, if your exterior is rather plain, a statement-making front door can add a much-needed ‘wow’ factor.
Coordinate with other doors
If the front side of your home has multiple doors, you should ensure they all complement each other. In the rendering above, the glass double doors in the entrance are used all throughout the design. We even used the same arched windows above the front door on top of the door leading out to the balcony on the left side of the home. This repetition creates cohesion.
It’s also import to ensure your front door looks cohesive with your garage doors. For this home, we suggested a single entry wood front door with glass panes. We chose a modern wood style — which also features glass panes along the top — for the garage doors. Using the same stain on all the doors helps tie them together.
In addition to other doors, you should ensure your front door plays nicely with other elements like your windows and shutters. For the home below, we added some color to the exterior via the front door and shutters, both rendered in pretty pastel hues.
Consider material
From aluminum and steel to wood and fiberglass, doors can be made from all sorts of materials. Depending on your preferred aesthetic and the climate you live in, one might be a better choice than the others. If you live in a humid climate, you might want to avoid wood and instead opt for fiberglass or wrought iron. Fiberglass insulated doors are a smart choice for homes in colder climates.
Glass front doors like the one above can elevate your exterior and work well with a variety of house styles. They also let more natural light into your home (more on that below).
Incorporate glass for more natural light
If you don’t want a fully glass door but still want to let more natural light into your entry area, consider adding transom windows or sidelights instead. The door seen above is made from wood but it’s flanked by sidelights and has a transom window overtop of it. The addition of these panes of glass will allow lots of natural light to flow through. They also frame the door nicely.
Be mindful of your budget
Renovating a home can be expensive, but there are plenty of ways to make design updates without breaking the bank. When selecting a front door, make sure your pick makes sense within your overall budget.
Home Depot offers a variety of affordable exterior door options and is one of our go-to budget friendly vendors. The design above features one of our favorite front door design options from Home Depot. It has a slim tempered glass window and a waterproof and rot-resistant frame.
P.S. Check out all our favorite Home Depot doors here.
Play with color
The color of your front door can have just as much of an impact on your curb appeal as the style and materials used. While we love a stained wood front door or a moody black option, we also enjoy incorporating bold-colored doors into our design.
The door in the design above is a focal point thanks to the vibrant yellow-green hue (Benjamin Moore’s Wasabi) our designers chose. By using a bold color for the door and wood siding around it, our designers brightened up the entry and created contrast with the rest of the home’s dark siding.
This design also features a fun front door color — Benjamin Moore’s Galapagos Turquoise. This rich teal hue looks lovely juxtaposed with the pale blue siding.
P.S. Check out all our favorite blue front door colors here.
Bonus tip: Don’t forget to accessorize
Once you’ve got the perfect door picked out, don’t forget to accessorize it. In addition to the necessary hardware items (the door knob/handle), we often recommend dressing up doors with a knocker or wreath (like above) to add even more interest.
You can also add items like light fixtures, planters, and rugs to the space around your door to create an inviting entrance. We highlighted the door on the house above with some of our favorite accessories. The wall lanterns on the stone columns and black planters beneath them frame the front door. The rug in front of it and hanging pendant light above it also help make the door a focal point.
Bring your front door design ideas to life
With so many front door styles to choose from, picking the perfect option for your home might feel overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to! Use this post as a guide, or enlist the help of our expert exterior designers. Your home’s front door can have a significant impact on your curb appeal, so the decision shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Finding the right front door is just the beginning of your home renovation project. You also have to consider siding materials, paint colors, and much more. Partner with us, and we’ll pick the best options for your home and deliver a cohesive, showstopping exterior design. Begin your exterior design project today.
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