Every color, on one rug

A rainbow rug is pure cheer, at any age: a sweep of colored arches across the floor, a soft pastel rainbow over clouds, or bold stripes that brighten a playroom on a grey day. Ours are printed edge to edge on soft velvet, so each band of color is crisp and the palette can be as muted or as bright as you like, and every rug goes in the washing machine, which matters in the rooms where rainbow rugs usually live. You can choose a classic rectangle, a round rug or a rug cut to the shape of a rainbow itself.

Rainbow styles

Style	Colors	The mood	Best in
Boho rainbow	Terracotta, mustard, blush, sage, sand	Calm, earthy, modern	Nurseries, neutral kids' rooms, living rooms
Pastel rainbow	Soft pink, peach, lemon, mint, sky blue, lilac	Gentle and dreamy	Nurseries, girls' rooms, bedrooms
Classic bright rainbow	Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet	Joyful and energetic	Playrooms, classrooms, kids' rooms
Rainbow with clouds	Any palette, with white clouds at each end	Storybook, sweet	Nurseries, toddler rooms
Retro rainbow stripes	Brown, orange, gold and cream bands	Warm, 1970s	Bedrooms, dens, living rooms

The boho rainbow's earthy tones suit a modern nursery, while the classic bright rainbow is better for a playroom.

The boho rainbow

The muted boho rainbow, simple arches in terracotta, mustard, blush, sage and sand, has been everywhere in nurseries in recent years. It's calmer than a bright rainbow, it works with natural wood, rattan and linen, and it grows with a child far longer than a primary-colored design. On a cream background, it looks like a piece of modern art; in a living room, it's playful without ever feeling childish or loud.

Pastel rainbows

A pastel rainbow, in soft pink, peach, lemon, mint, sky blue and lilac, is gentle and dreamy, a lovely fit for a nursery or a bedroom with white furniture and soft lighting. Paired with fluffy clouds at each end, it feels like a storybook illustration. For more soft designs, see our cute rugs and cloud rugs.

Classic bright rainbows

The classic rainbow, red through violet, is bold, happy and full of energy, the right choice for a playroom, a classroom or a child who loves color. It also helps little ones learn their colors: point to a band and name it together, then find something in the room that matches. Isaac Newton was the one who divided the spectrum into seven named colors, adding orange and indigo to the list, and children still learn them in that order today.

Rainbow-shaped rugs

A rug cut to the shape of a rainbow, a curved arch of colored bands, is one of the most charming rugs you can put in a child's room. Our shaped rugs come in sizes from 2.6×2.6 up to 5.2×5.9 ft (80×80 to 160×180 cm). A small rainbow beside a crib or a bed is sweet and simple; a large one in the middle of a playroom becomes the room's centerpiece.

Round rainbow rugs

A round rainbow rug, with concentric rings of color or a rainbow arch on a circle, is a soft, friendly shape for a reading corner, a play area or a nursery. Round rugs come from 2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across. Our round rugs page shows each size in a room.

A rainbow nursery

Rainbows are a favorite nursery theme, and for many families they carry special meaning: a "rainbow baby" is a child born after a loss, the rainbow after the storm. A rainbow rug in a nursery can be a quiet, hopeful symbol as well as a cheerful decoration. For a calm nursery, choose a boho or pastel palette. Premium's plush velvet, 7 mm on a bamboo and cotton back, about 700 g/m², is soft for tummy time and first crawls; once your child is walking on a smooth floor, Standard's non-slip back is the safer choice. Every rug goes in the washing machine, which will be needed. Our kids and nursery rugs have more ideas.

Pulling colors from the rug

A rainbow rug makes decorating easy, because it already contains a whole palette. Pick two or three of its colors and repeat them around the room: a mustard cushion and a sage throw with a boho rainbow, a mint lamp and a pink storage basket with a pastel one, a red bookshelf and a yellow chair with a bright rainbow. The room will feel planned, and the rug will tie it all together.

A rainbow reading nook

A round or rainbow-shaped rug in a corner, a big floor cushion, a low shelf of picture books facing outward and a soft lamp make a reading nook children will actually use. Choose Premium for this, soft enough to lie on, and add a canopy or a string of lights overhead for a cozy, tucked-away feel.

Siblings and shared rooms

When two children share a room, a rainbow is a peacemaker: every color belongs to someone. A large rainbow rug in the middle of the room, or two smaller matching rainbow rugs beside each bed, keeps things fair and colorful.

Playrooms

In a playroom, a rainbow rug becomes part of the game: a bridge to jump across, a stage for toy figures or a color-matching game with blocks. On a hard floor, choose Standard: 5 mm crushed velvet on a non-slip faux leather back, about 500 g/m², so it stays put when kids run and jump. Our kids play rugs have more ideas for active play.

Classrooms

Teachers love rainbow rugs for circle time, story time and morning meetings: the bands of color make it easy to give each child a place to sit. A 5×7 ft rug suits a small reading corner; a custom size up to 5′11″ × 10′ covers more of a classroom floor. Our classroom rugs page has more ideas, including alphabet and seating designs.

Retro rainbow stripes

The 1970s had their own rainbow: warm stripes of brown, orange, gold and cream, curving across everything from vans to wallpaper. A retro rainbow rug brings that cozy, groovy feel to a bedroom, a den or a living room. For more from that era, see our retro rugs and wavy rugs.

Pride

The rainbow flag, designed by the artist Gilbert Baker and first flown in San Francisco in 1978, has become a worldwide symbol of LGBTQ+ pride. A rainbow rug in bold stripes, or a custom design with a progress-style flag, is a joyful way to celebrate it at home, all year round.

How rainbows form

A rainbow appears when sunlight passes through raindrops: each drop bends the light, splits it into its colors and reflects it back toward you, which is why rainbows appear opposite the sun, usually just after rain. It's a lovely fact to share with a curious child sitting on their rainbow rug, and a reminder that the colors are all there in ordinary daylight, waiting for the right moment.

In the bedroom and living room

Rainbows aren't only for children. A boho rainbow at the foot of a bed, a retro rainbow stripe in a den or a minimal rainbow arch under a coffee table adds warmth and personality to a grown-up room. For the softest feel underfoot, choose Premium. Our bedroom rugs page has more layouts.

Bathrooms

A small rainbow rug in a family bathroom is a cheerful touch. One honest note: our rugs are printed velvet, not thick, quick-drying bath mats, so place one by the vanity or the door, rather than right where you step out of the bath, and choose Standard for its grip on tiles.

Your own rainbow

Want a rainbow in your own palette, matched to your nursery colors, or with your child's name in the clouds? Our custom rugs can print any rainbow design in any size up to 5′11″ × 10′, or cut it to shape. Custom rugs are made just for you and can't be returned, so please check names and spelling before ordering.

Standard or Premium

Standard is best on hard or slippery floors, in playrooms, classrooms and bathrooms, because its non-slip back stays put. Premium is softer and warmer, best in nurseries and bedrooms. Both are printed the same way, so every band of color stays crisp, and both go in the washing machine.

Sizes, shipping and returns

Rectangles come in 2×3, 2.6×3.9, 3.3×5, 4×6 and 5×7 ft. Round rugs come from 2.6 to 5.9 ft (80 to 180 cm) across, and rainbow-shaped rugs from 2.6×2.6 up to 5.2×5.9 ft (80×80 to 160×180 cm). Custom sizes go up to 5′11″ × 10′. Every rug is printed to order in 1–3 business days and ships from Turkey; US delivery usually takes 2–5 business days after that. Unused rugs can be returned within 30 days on US orders; custom rugs can't be returned.

Care

Machine wash on a gentle, cold cycle and let it air dry flat. Vacuum on a low setting between washes, and blot spills with cold water right away. The design is printed into the fibers, so every color stays bright, wash after wash, from the first crawl to the first day of school.

Newton's seven colors

Why do we say a rainbow has seven colors? In the 1660s, Isaac Newton passed sunlight through a glass prism and saw it spread into a band of color, which he called the spectrum. He divided it into seven named colors, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet, partly to match the seven notes of the musical scale, a link he found elegant. The spectrum itself is continuous; there are no sharp edges between the colors.

English-speaking children often learn the order with the name ROY G. BIV, one letter for each color. Indigo, a deep blue-violet, is the color people most often struggle to spot, and many modern descriptions simply use six bands.

That history makes rainbow rugs a little smarter. A seven-band rainbow with each color labeled in friendly letters is a cheerful learning design for a child's room or a classroom. A prism splitting a beam of white light into a fan of color, drawn on a dark background, is a striking, science-inspired rug for a teen's study, and a smooth gradient with no visible bands at all feels calm and modern, closer to how light really works.

Whatever style you choose, rainbow rugs pair best with simple, neutral furniture, white walls and natural wood, so the colors can do what Newton saw them do: fill the room with light.

Naming each band out loud, red to violet, is an easy first color game for toddlers.