Garage door styles to suit every home

There are many small but necessary decisions to make when buying a residential garage door. The most fun and transformative is the door style. It has a massive impact on your home’s aesthetic and will be there for decades to come.

There are hundreds of different designs, but don’t let choosing between garage door styles stress you out.

We think they fit into two broad style categories:

Timeless classics and country-chic
These are perfect for simple, subtle injections of style and quintessential charm. They’ll look fresh and give your home’s exterior an effortless lift. Raised panel garage doors and carriage garage doors are popular choices.
Modern marvels
These are great if you’re looking for a sleek, crisp, and minimalist design. Modern garage doors can make a statement or blend beautifully into your home’s exterior. Full-view aluminum garage doors and planks garage doors are popular examples.

What's the most popular garage door style?

The most popular garage door style is a carriage house door. These are generally what people refer to as "old-style" or "traditional" garage doors. Carriage doors were originally built for carriage houses and have decorative overlays.

However, there’s a style to suit everyone – you just need to explore your options and decide based on three factors:

Your home’s architectural style
Your lifestyle
Your personal style

1. Your home’s architectural style

The type of home you have can influence the garage door style you choose. We'll go through popular pairings for America's favorite home styles:

Ranch
Mid-century Modern and Contemporary
Tudor
Craftsman
Modern Farmhouse
Colonial and Cape Cod
Mediterranean

Ranch

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Ranch homes are typically single-story with open-plan living, large windows, and a simple exterior. They’re one of the most popular home styles in the US and suit both classic and contemporary residential garage doors. Add subtle style for a modest façade or be bold by using faux wood for warmth and Madison or Stockton window inserts for extra character.

We think these ranch-style garage doors are a great match::

Mid-century Modern and Contemporary

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Characterized by open internal space, asymmetrical details, lots of natural light, and metal, and concrete, these statement houses suit garage doors with clean lines and bold windows.

Whether it’s horizontal edge-to-edge glass with steel or short rectangular panes with aluminum, both help to add atmosphere and intrigue to your aesthetic – especially at nightfall when internal lights will add a warm glow to your home’s exterior.

Some excellent modern garage doors options include:

Tudor

Inspired by late Middle Ages and early Renaissance architectural styles, these homes are characterized by stucco exteriors and decorative half-timbering. They suit neutral-colored or wood-effect doors with arches that create soft silhouettes. Leaded glass in small windows also complements this type of home.

Tudor garage door styles include:

Interested in a new garage door but not sure where to start? Read our guide for everything you need to know about buying a garage door.

Craftsman

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The craftsman home is known for its covered front porch, tapered columns supporting the roof, and mixed stone or brick sidings. These exteriors are quite versatile – depending on the look you're going for, there are several craftsman-style garage doors to complement your facade.

If you want something classic, go for:

If you're feeling bold, go for:

Modern Farmhouse

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The modern farmhouse home style has rapidly gained popularity in recent years. These homes are typically all white, featuring a covered porch, an abundance of windows, and black or natural wood trim.

Carriage house doors are the most popular farmhouse garage door style, as they resemble old-fashioned barn doors. Though some prefer solid-color steel garage doors, others get creative with faux or natural wood or opt for bolder aluminum designs with long horizontal windows.

For a traditional garage door, try:

For something more modern, try:

Full-view aluminum garage doors

Colonial and Cape Cod

These classic and charming homes are typically symmetrical with steep gable roofs and a central front door. They’ll often have cladding, pillars, shutters, and dormer windows, too.

Choose a garage door that reflects your home’s simple, symmetrical structure without diminishing its historic charm. For a touch of elegance, carriage garage doors are a great choice.

These styles work well:

Mediterranean

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Popular in southern California and the southwest, these homes typically feature plaster or stucco exterior surfaces and tiled roofs. Wood garage doors pair well with this home style, though faux wood garage door alternatives are becoming increasingly popular with homeowners who don't want to deal with the maintenance of real wood.

Mediterranean garage doors include:

2. Your lifestyle

When it comes to residential garage doors, consider the opening style as well as the panel style. Think about how you’d like your door to open and how you’re going to use your garage space as this influences the kind of tracks and opening mechanisms you need.

What are the types of garage doors?

Up and over doors
Roller doors
Swing doors
Sectional doors

If you plan to do a lot of work on cars in your garage and like to spread onto your driveway, sectional, roller, or up and over doors will work as they tuck away into the garage headspace.

If you want to store lots of belongings in your garage, a roller door won’t use up much headroom. A swing door is also good for this – you just need to account for the doors opening outwards into your driveway which requires more space and flat ground.

What are the most commonly used garage doors?

Sectional garage doors are the most common. However, all door types have their uses. It's just a case of weighing up what will work best for your garage, space, style, and situation.

3. Your personal taste

Choose a garage door that you’re happy with and meets your requirements.

There are garage door styles that naturally work well with certain houses, but you can make any garage door suit your home. With plenty of materials, colors, hardware, and glass to choose from, buying a garage door is a chance to make a statement and design something unique to you. So, don’t get bogged down with what you should buy. Instead, have fun and design something that’s truly yours.

Try garage door styles on your home

To visualize how your house would look with a new garage door, try before you buy with our DoorVision tool. Simply upload a photo of your home to try different styles on for size. Happy door shopping!