You can’t legally have a bedroom without a window.

Wow rachel lee helpful. Iwould paint it a warm colored cream. we painted my daughters house gentle cream and it is bright and not dingy. good luck

I have to agree with Rachel. A windowless room is not a safe place for sleeping. There should always be a second point of egress, ie. window. As a guest, I would be very grateful for a place to sleep--but would not feel truly comfortable in a windowless bedroom. As to being helpful :) I would prefer a soft, light neutral as well. One of my favorites is SW Neutral Ground, but I would be tempted to go lighter than that without natural light.

I would use a very light warm color, not a neutral. Make up for a lack of windows with with something else to look at other than a plain white, gray or beige walls. Pull a color from a interesting bedspread. Add some interesting art on the walls

These are windowless rooms, notice the mirrors and lighting in the first one make the room feel less closed in:

Another:

Good lighting:

Cozy:

Another thing you could do is use a bedroom door that is frosted (see second pic), or a French door, or something like that to give the illusion of a window, and light beyond.

ETA: Sorry, forgot to answer the question! It’s hard to say, not knowing more — is there trim? What is the flooring? What size is the room and ceiling height? What is your decor style?

Just because someone has spent a lot of money on mirrored closet doors and wainscoting still doesn’t make a windowless bedroom legal. There is a legal requirement to have a window that a firefighter in full gear can get into the room to rescue humans. If someone is overcome by smoke outside the door or dies from flames, no one will care what color you have painted on those charred, death trap walls.

Just because someone replies with pictures to an OP doesn’t mean they agree with what they’re doing.

I actually don’t.

But I knew there’d be plenty of lecturing, so didn’t feel the need to add mine. I gave ideas for if they proceed.

We don't know the floor plan. We have a windowless finished basement. It is next to my laundry room which does have windows and a door. Both DD’s like sleeping there when they visit because it stays dark.

Escape would be up 6 steps to the tv room which has a door and windows.

Or, escape out the laundry room door.

To the question. I would go with a light color, but not a white.. White without natural light can look dingy.

Thanks for taking the time to comment. For the record, my basement had 2 sliding doors that open up to a patio.. one of the sliding door is may be 15 feet from this room.. I am aware that this room is not up to code but someone could be rescued from the sliding doors.. we also have working smoke detectors ..

Thanks for the ideas and am working on finding a stick on wallpaper for the back wall and a warm neutral color... love the picture with the green bedspread..

Ya, "legally" a bedroom must meet certain requirements for buying, selling, building, renting, etc, but I don't know of any law or homeowners insurance policy telling you where you MUST sleep in your own home or what furniture MUST be in certain rooms. Heck I've know people who slept all night hugging the toilet. Let alone sleeping in other various parts of a house.

There are "legal" bedrooms that have legal size windows that are useless for escape or for firemen to access. In my area we have homes built on cliffs that firemen would need mountain climbing equipment to get to a rear bedroom window. Or a fireman with a ladder would need to be a kangaroo to getting over the rows of fences in the backyards of row houses. I've seen house with 3/4 story bedrooms over concrete driveways.

Just call the room a TV room, flex room, or whatever and put a bed in it. Hope you pick the perfect color for your needs.

@functionthenlook Like many code violations, you may never be caught, but unlike many other code violations, this one is more likely to cause injury or death and you most certainly can be held accountable if you knowingly created or negligently created a situation that led to someone else being injured or killed in your home.

While it seems safe enough to sleep in a room without an egress and you may think someone will be able to go 15 feet to the closest door, but your not thinking about what happens during a fire. Most people don't burn to death, they die from smoke inhalation. It isn't that you couldn't navigate your way to a door, but the fire uses all the oxygen and the occupants suffer oxygen deprivation. They can't think clearly, may not be able to move normally and this can be compounded by the chemicals that are produced when building materials and furnishings burn. Breathing in those chemicals can enhance the disorientation from the lack of oxygen. The other issue with basement dwellings is that when the first story burns the building can collapse, so that door that is 15 feet away is now impossible to get to.

When I lived in California I volunteered with an organization that rescued animals during the wildfires. During the 2003 fires I worked with the rescue team for about 18 hours before going to the ER. My brain felt foggy and I couldn't see. My vision was terribly impaired, everything was blurry. I had been wearing a fire rated mask, I was a good 1/2 mile in front of the fires, but I had breathed in enough smoke that it caused a chemical pneumonia and I wasn't getting enough oxygen to support the optic nerves. This can happen in minutes when you are not wearing protective gear and are in the midst of a house fire, not 1/2 a mile away.

If you choose to make a guest bedroom in your basement that has no windows be a caring hostess and insist that your guests stay in the master and you and your spouse shoulder the risk that your are knowingly assuming and sleep in the room with no windows.

Okay, we know a windowless room can not be a legal bedroom.

janecarey62, I have many rooms, including a full bathroom, in my basement. The biggest, a main room which we use as a t v room with a wet bar; I added a Saarinen table with 6 ghost chairs for a card table. Sweetie loves to have the fellas over for poker. Day light from sliders and two large windows on that wall, lots of dimmable LED ceiling lights, and a chandelier over the card table, make that room top shelf ; it looks great! Accents are red..a Chinese Wedding Cabinet, a red bamboo chair, light leather sofa, lots of antique Asian influences that my daughter brought back from her military years in Japan.

Another room is office and the third room I have set up as a bedroom. It is used probably a half dozen times a year. There is a well in the foundation, so I had my builder construct an inside "window"...with glass, muntins, trim and during the day there is some light. You may not have an exterior well on that wall, so have the electrician add LED string lights around the interior frame, so when the lights go on it will add a lovely influence.

https://www.impressiveinteriordesign.com/fake-window-for-basement/

There's lots of wood work and a set of double closet doors, painted B.M. Super White (as is all the trim in the house). I chose to paint the entire lower level B.M. Racoon Hollow for walls and ceilings. The house was built in the 60's, so the ceilings have all the drop boxes for pipes, etc, and I couldn't figure out how to paint them, so what the heck, painted it all one color. Success.

Sorry, long winded, thinking about the space and typing at the same time. All to get to my point; if you can provide good lighting in the room, why do whites? Paint the room a saturated color you love. Don't be afraid to paint the ceiling the same color. Bedding choice will top off the sundae.

I have a queen brass and iron bed I found by good luck at a consignment shop. It is a beauty; hand made, England. Suggesting something for a bed that is bright. Either paint the furniture or find a fun headboard. There are some wonderful upholstered headboards on OneKingsLane.

I no longer say "basement"...it has now become "the lower level". : > }

Judi 😄

I remember staying in the bedroom at my late DH’s parents’ walk-out basement in Iowa, the tiny windows were way up by the ceiling. No way a body could fit through them.

My now DH’s house on Long Island had a full basement — living area, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom — with not one window or door to the outside. Just a staircase.

{I’m just remembering, not arguing anything.}

It is an interesting topic. I’ve spent extended amounts of time in plenty of rooms with no windows, such as offices, school rooms, etc.

I get the difference, I wasn’t asleep (well, sometimes I was). ;)

Again, no one needs to come at me. Just musing.