HGTV's curb appeal expert says this radiant front door color will elevate 'almost every home' in 2024

There are curb appeal experts, and then there is John Gidding, the HGTV personality whose advice has gained him international prestige in all things front-yard related. So, when John shares the one color almost guaranteed to accentuate our homes, we listen. 

'When asked to choose a front door color, I often give people the catch-all term, jewel tones. If I have to pick one jewel tone, Normally, I would say ruby because it goes with almost every door and every house color. But this year, and going ahead to 2024, I am going to change that and tell people to go emerald.  

While homes all differ in their appearance, the Curb Appeal host says that this striking hue is versatile enough to impress on nearly all front doors – meaning we've just found the failsafe tone we never knew we needed. But what makes emerald so transformative? 

'The beauty of jewel tones, like emerald, is they really have to be rich and deep. They look so good on doors,' John explains. 'It almost looks like the whole door itself is a gem. And if you're lucky enough to have a bit of paneling on your door, it will catch the light, glint, and draw people towards your front door.'

To accentuate the 'brand new color' further, John recommends adding pockets of outdoor lighting that allow your front door to impress long after the sun goes down.

'When you do that, you imply something about curb appeal – something welcoming and safe. So, let's go with emerald green this year, but any jewel tone will look good.' 

John Gidding

Turkish-American designer and Harvard graduate John Gidding is best known as a presenter on Curb Appeal, in which he and his team spend $20,000 on improvements to a front yard. He was also one of the expert judges on the Fox TV show Home Free and has recently relaunched the Curb Appeal Xtreme on HGTV. 

Naturally, when asked for a front door hue that will look good on any home, we would be forgiven for assuming experts would remain with a timeless monochromatic color that has already impressed for centuries. However, while black, particularly,  remains a powerful choice, emerald and other jewel tones will make a lasting first impression on every style of home.

'Black is always a classic. You almost can't go wrong with it, but you do need the architecture to pull it off,' John comments. 'You almost need something neoclassical with a lot of crisp white trim to play off that deep, dark black.'

Is this our cue to go emerald? We're taking this as our cue. 

For more advice from John, we're picking up his guide to garden landscaping via Amazon below.