‘Industrial’ revealed as the most-loved interior style in the US

Posted on March 14, 2024

The United States is at the cultural forefront of modern interior design trends, with the nation credited with innovating styles such as Art Deco, and Farmhouse. According to the latest data from Statista, in 2022 there were 144 million homes registered in the US (not accounting for residential trailer parks), with each home sporting a different take on popular interior styles.

Interior design is often on the forefront of US homeowners' minds, as shown by Google search results for interior design: on average, there are over 83,000 searches a month for ‘interior design’, with only India searching the term more.

While style preferences are personal, some design trends are seemingly more popular than others by region. We analyzed Google Trends data to find which interior design trend is the most popular by state and nationwide.

The most popular interior design trends in the US

Rank	Design	Number of states
#1	Industrial	27
#2	Contemporary	8
#3	Scandinavian	5
#4	Traditional	3
#4	Nostalgic	3

By a landslide, the ‘industrial’ interior style is captivating Americans the most. A remarkable 27 states deemed ‘industrial’ the most popular interior motif, with style powerhouses California and New York seeing similar search trends to smaller states, such as both North and South Dakota.

Industrial interior styles are best signified by the use of raw materials such as steel beams or exposed bricks, with furniture often made up of similar working materials. It’s an extremely popular style within modern design, thanks to the minimal financial input required to achieve the visual impact industrial interior design warrants.

The most searched-for trends in every state

Industrial style was the winning trend comparably, predominantly in Kentucky, North Dakota, Ohio and Nebraska.

In second place, but far behind industrial style, is the ‘contemporary’ interior design trend. Around the US, eight states placed contemporary as their favorite style, less than a third of the 26 states seen favoring industrial styles. Nevertheless, Florida and Hawaii prefer the contemporary interior design genre to the often more rigid industrial style. Contemporary interior design is best characterized by the use of dark and light oppositional colors, such as having white walls with a dark oak feature wall at the back of a room. Also, contemporary is a mix of designs through the generations, meaning the best interior designers will seek inspiration from all types of fashion trends through history.

Rounding out the top three is ‘Scandinavian’. The style, formed from Norwegian and Swedish attitudes to home decor, sees five US states name it as the interior design trend most interesting to them. Scandinavian style sees strong interest from Colorado, with West Coast’s Oregon joining in too. The style became popular in the US in the 20th century, when proliferation of global interior styles meant new ways of thinking reached the American shores. Clean lines, simplistic designs and the use of light-coloured wood feature consistently in Scandinavian interior designs, with a particular focus on making the house feel warm and homely.

Three states each believe ‘traditional’ and ‘nostalgic’ styles (respectively) are the most interesting, with the similar trends finishing off the top five. Unlike industrial, contemporary, and Scandinavian interior styles, those of traditional or nostalgic prefer plush furnishings, quilted effect design and more formal interior colors. The design trends hark back to America’s golden age, when wealth was displayed through the use of opulent design choices, such as gold-coloured fixtures and fittings, as well as features such as grand fireplaces. The style slowly faded in popularity as fashion trends moved on, but the theme remains popular in states such as Alabama, Arizona, and West Virginia.

The less-popular interior trends in America

Not all interior design trends can be as popular as the likes of industrial or contemporary. The bottom 5 styles saw few-to-no consistent searches through 2023, highlighting that interior fashion may well have moved on. Here are those at the lower end of success:

Rank	Design	Number of states
#6	Coastal Interior	2
#7	Bohemian	2
#7	Sustainability	2
#7	Art Deco	2
#7	Asian Decor	2
#7	Midcentury	2
#7	Biophilic	2
#7	Hollywood Glam	2
#7	Shabby Chic	2
#15	Minimalist	0

The trend of ‘coastal interior’ sees two US states select the style as their favorite, according to data from Google Trends’ search results. Understandably, the two aforementioned states are Georgia and New Jersey, both of which lead out onto the Atlantic Ocean. Coastal interior styles mimic the sea, with the use of mild blue paints and nautical furnishings. Easy living is the key to successful coastal interiors, with comfortable sofas and relaxing ambience. Pro tip: spruce up the blue theme with some green, to add a coral effect!

Remarkably, seven US states all have different favorite interior design trends. Ranging from complex ‘biophilic’ to the cost-effective ‘shabby chic’, there truly is a huge diversity in America’s choice of interior designs. However, one trend has yet to light up the world of interior design in the US, and that’s ‘minimalist’. It’s the only style on our list to yield zero results.

Top tips for interior design

We asked our in-house interior expert Joan for the best advice on tackling interior design, and here’s what they had to say:

1. Lighting is key

No style is complete without beautiful lighting. Whether you want to embed your lights into the wall, or have a neat floor lamp, always be sure you’re making the most of your available light resources. Minimize your use of overhead lights, which often cast a harsh and ugly light on your beautiful interiors. Cozy up the place with a few beautiful lamps!

2. Don’t be afraid to be a nosy neighbor

Nobody is perfect at creating new interiors out of the blue. Sometimes, we all need some inspiration. Next time you’re at a friends house, mentally note what they did right and what they did wrong regarding their interior style. It could save you time and thousands of dollars along the line!

3. More of something is not always the way forward

Perhaps you’ve finished re-decorating but something is missing. It can be so tempting to add more pieces of art, paint more walls, buy even more furniture. Try very hard to avoid doing that, as you may upset the balance of your interior style. Instead, try adjusting the layout of the room, using what you already have. Can you make it more relaxed or comfortable?

Methodology

To establish which design trend America likes the most, we first crafted a seed list of 15 different styles that are notably popular, from a range of sources including Good Housekeeping and Architectural Digest
Once we had our seed list, we took each term and ran it through Google Trends, with a focus on the state-by-state results of each.
When data collection for all 15 styles in all 50 states was completed, we took a baseline search result from the standard phrase ‘interior design’ in the US, and then ranked each interior design trend according to how it compares by state to the baseline phrase.
Finally, we ranked all the results into one spreadsheet, available here.
Data is correct as of the 25th of January.