50 Modern Front Door Designs

The front door is often the focal point of a home exterior – a door is the first thing guests see when they arrive, it's the last thing they contemplate after leaving, it's visited daily by the mail delivery, and it gives potential buyers something to remember the house by. An ordinary home can become "the house with the red door" with nothing more than a simple coat of paint, while a magnificent piece of architecture can rely on a unique door style to tie its exterior design together. Why settle with normal? This post looks at 50 spectacular front doors that boast expressively tailored personality and style.

1 | Architect: Stuart Silk Architects

Let’s start with a modern take on a classic. Smooth horizontal wood panels gain a contemporary update with a silky black handle guard that runs from top to bottom.

2 | Architect: Sanders Pace Architecture

Here’s a wood door formed from a solid sheet of veneer, integrated within matching boards that wrap around on the side and ceiling.

3 | Via: Sean Myers

Doors that reach from top to bottom make entryways look larger than they really are. This one is especially interesting because of how the handle guard continues sideways with room for a mail slot.

4 | Architect: SBCH Architects

Warm wood panels jump out from the neutral home exterior, horizontal matte black panels providing a little extra decoration.

5 | Architect: ONG & ONG

Vibrant wood tones add natural character to concrete exteriors. Here, a matching walking path further differentiates the entryway from the paved parking and patio tiles.

6 | Architect: McClennan Architects

In the context of an industrial exterior like this one, a natural door can have an even bolder effect. This one has a textural exterior to stand in contrast with the concrete and steel that surrounds it.

7 | Architect: Atelier M+A

This classic door seems to float weightlessly between frameless sidelights.

8 | Source: Daniel James Hatton

Camouflaged within its bordering panels, this door makes a dramatic first impression by offering a surprising substantial and weighty look among a perfect glass-clad exterior.

9 | Via: Martha Stewart

Chevron wood panels are a nice break from the traditional horizontal or vertical wood planks. Fiery orange is a nice finish for a modern Californian home like this one.

10 | Designer: Joseph Douglas

Timber planks and alternating glass strips allow for guarded visual continuity, allowing sunlight to filter through an otherwise heavy-looking door. The long door pull is another interesting touch.

11 | Source: Bramco Builders

Incorporating artistic glass is another way to make a front door stand out. These textural sheets of glass coordinate well with the textural exterior of the home, and provide extra privacy that ordinary panels could not. Note that this door also opens on a pivot to save space on the interior.

12 | Designer: Jute Home

Garden-facing doors don’t need a lot of bulk, so something with glass panes like this is perfectly workable. It’s the perfect solution for an entryway with a farmhouse vibe like this one.

13 | Architect: Sculp[IT]

Wow! These oversized atrium-height doors are breathtaking. Mechanized hardware allows designers to overlook the weight of the doors so the homeowners can go as big and bold as they want.

14 | Source: Borano

Deep rose tones ring with a traditional and sophisticated tone, while the brushed steel door guard incorporates modern styling.

15 | Designer: Keratuer

This Red Dot Design Award winner gains admiration for its enhanced security and keyless entry options as well as its distinctive styling. Exotic woods like the ones used here always catch the eye.

16 | Designer: Axolotl

The ideal door a minimalist exterior – this sleek and modern design uses uncomplicated modern materials, its stripes serving up just a touch of decoration for visual interest.

17 | Designer: Minarc

Wavy wood panels flow and interweave for an artistic effect. The ultra-tall and wide design opens on a pivot, making it stand out both in terms of looks and functionality.

18 | Designer: Axolotl

This part of the door tour takes us through several highly artistic and up-to-date options. This futuristic door incorporates a textured print on top of a cloudy finish.

19 | Designer: Axolotl

Unusual materials can transform an ordinary front door into a true focal point. This one goes for a bold approach to texture, with stone-like panels varied by tint and height.

20 | Via: Casa Vogue

Designed by Deborah Aguiar and executed by Joinery Piñeiro, this door transforms ordinary wood panels into a daring sculptural arrangement. Even the mail slot plays an integral role in the design.

21 | Designer: Axolotl

Laser carved doors give homeowners endless possibilities for self-expression. This floral imprint continues along the frame to either side to stretch its effect on the home’s exterior.

22 | Designer: Axolotl

Here’s another laser carved door, this time featuring an aerial view of the client’s home and neighborhood in the finest of detail. Its aluminum coating contributes substantial visual weight.

23 | Designer: Denai Kulcsar Interiors

Even snake scale texture looks right at home on a modern front door. Edgy and elegant.

24 | Designer: Axolotl

This door combines cutout branches with a multi-tone finish for a perfectly up-to-date result. The handprint on the door pull is a neat idea, too.

25 | Designer: Michael Fullen Design Group

Check out this flattering take on pane windows, with small squares of amber glass embracing an open view without compromising security. This would be a nice door for an updated take on a classic exterior.

26 | Architect: Mahoney Architect & Interiors

Here’s another take on tiny panes, this one with frosted glass to provide ample privacy while still retaining a bright and sunny appeal.

27 | Architect: Silvas Studios Architecture

Are you looking for a way to incorporate natural themes without sacrificing your modernist aesthetic? This starburst pattern draws the eye immediately, its distressed bright blue paint keeping the personality nice and casual.

28 | Architect: MCK Architects

Screen doors can boast plenty of style too. Here, decorative strapwork creates a guarded but attractive boundary between the front door and the street outside. Fresh air filters right through to cool the home, but the hot sun doesn’t get very far.

29 | Architect: Dick Clark Associates

Designed by architect Dick Clark and constructed by Gary McFarland, this artistic door glows brightly from within thanks to the ethereal lights sandwiched between semi-transparent onyx panels.

30 | Designer: Mark Tessier

The mid-century Scandinavian vibes are strong with this door! Natural shades of orange and green blend flawlessly with the nearby furniture and decoration while livening up the home’s concrete exterior.

31 | Architect: Workroom

Natural materials meet minimalism in this gorgeous entryway.

32 | Architect: Chamberlain Javens Architects

Sideways herringbone patterns certainly aren’t a common pattern for front doors, making this one even more noticeable. The golden ratio inspired sidelights reinforce the artistic elements at play here.

33 | Designer: Jennifer Post

Glossy doors are uncommon as well. White stripes offer a response to the black strips along the exterior walkway. Inside, glossy walls and floors continue the highly polished theme.

34 | Via: Minha Casa

This cardinal red door uses its extra-wide stature and pivot construction to make a dramatic statement every time it sweeps open.

35 | Designer: Denise McGaha Interiors

Pivoting doors always seem to create a stir among visitors. This method can turn even an ordinary door into a show-stopper.

36 | Architect: Furman + Keil Architects

Some doors don’t have much of a pivot to them at all. This lovely example could be mistaken for a traditional hinged door at first glance, but the lack of visual hinges makes it a great option for those who seek out minimalism in exterior design.

37 | Architect: Olson Kundig Architects

It’s impossible to overlook this creative modern door. A pivoting outer frame reveals a smaller door within, the smaller door adhering to traditional sizing and the outer door blurring the boundaries between inside and out.

38 | Designer: Karim Rashid

Karim Rashid’s innovative Ring front door design won a Red Dot Design Award, thanks in part to its unique opening mechanism: a ring hiding inside the volcano that opens when activated.

39 | Designer: Karim Rashid

The gorgeous Blow door, also by Karim Rashid, curves outward to provide a visually stunning alternative to a traditional door handle.

40 | Source: Inside Out

Now let’s move on to a collection of doors that emphasize color. This bright blue door stands out against the surrounding potted plants, a cool drink of water within a desert-inspired garden.

41 | Via: Skona hem

Bright yellow is a cheerful and welcoming color, perfect for a front door.

42 | Architect: Moises Esquenazi and Associates Photographer: Studio DIY

Do you recognize this famous entryway? The creatives at Studio DIY noticed this bold door making waves on Pinterest, and became so obsessed they actually took the time to hunt it down.

43 | Via: The Transcontinental Affair

Color is a great way to embrace bright flora growing nearby – these blossoms would have outshined any other door, so now the entrance gets to share the spotlight.

44 | Architect: Matharoo Associates

Constructed from 40 planks of Burma teak, this door contains fabulously intricate inner mechanisms including a wire rope and hidden counterweight to create its dynamic opening effect. It looks just like an ordinary oversized door when closed, but fans out into a beautiful curved opening.

45 | Via: Permahaus

This door offers another amazing example of construction turning ordinary materials into something magical, in this case, a lovely starburst pattern that extends the door framing on either side.

46 | Photographer: Toni Kaarttinen

This wooden door is especially unique. Its wood body continues down beneath the stairs and off to the sides to create the illusion of one large door, with a set of varied stairs seeming to float in front.

47 | Architect: Peter Zumthor and Gottfried Böhm

What could make you feel more secure than a stone door? This work of art is carved from solid basalt.

48 | Via: Livemaster

Woodcarving can come in handy for artistic expression as well. This door takes its owl motif to the next level by including a sculptural beak and tinted windows for eyes.

49 | Source: Decoesfera

While this is not a home, the idea is still solid – the door itself is an ordinary style, but the streetlamp painting gives it a distinctive artistic frame.

50 | Via: Photobucket

Wow! This door is built into a round window, its unique shape and proportions ensuring undivided attention.

A great door design can be made special with a few additional things. Explore these to truly take your entry to the next level:
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40 Decorative Door Stops That Leave The Door Open For Conversation
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