Nail Techs Swear By These Dark Nail Colours for An Expensive-Looking Manicure

There are certain dark nail colours that I’ve been recommended by nail techs over the years, both in gel polish and nail polish, and they’ve become somewhat iconic. And I see them everywhere when I scroll on Instagram. There’s an art to making dark nails look as luxe as possible. Manicurists tell me that dark nail polishes look best on short nails, with a soft square or oval shape, for the most luxe-looking results. Dark nails can look great on long nails too, but lend more of a gothic vibe. For this look, keeping nails short lets the nail colour do the talking.

If you’re ready for some dark nail colour ideas, scroll ahead to see all the best dark nail inspiration I’ve saved, as well as the best dark nail polishes to recreate the look at home if you’re not heading into the salon.