- Rachel Bistricer
- Apr 16
- 14 min read
Updated: Jul 9
From the yellow helmet of a construction worker to a bride’s pristine gown, colors are quick to convey important information. Their strong and immediate impact make color palettes a crucial component of any business’s branding and graphic design efforts.
The color scheme you’ll assemble for your brand will play a key role across your various marketing strategy assets - from the way you create a logo and design a business card, to the design of your website, and much more. By applying principles of color theory, you can choose brand colors that resonate with your audience and communicate your brand's message effectively. Employing brand colors consistently and across all platforms can result in a unified look-and-feel to your company, making them memorable and recognizable. They can also impact both your customers' behavior and experience, making them powerful tools.
To help your business stand out with the right brand colors, this complete guide covers everything from what brand colors are all about, to a step-by-step process for choosing your own. We’ve also selected and analyzed 10 examples of successful brand colors for your inspiration.
Give your designs a vibrant edge with our color palette tool. Experiment with shades that make logos, websites or social posts shine. No guessing, just choose your colors and create the perfect schemes for your project.
What are brand colors?
Brand colors are a palette of around five to ten colors that are used to represent a certain company. A consistent and strategic application of brand colors can increase brand awareness and recognizability.
Some of the main applications of brand colors include: a company’s logo, website color scheme, social media channels, business card design and print and digital ads. For businesses operating as brick-and-mortar, the brand colors can also apply to the design of the store, staff uniforms, product packaging and more.
How to choose your brand colors in 8 steps
01. Establish your brand identity
The colors of your brand are a reflection of your brand identity. Your color palette should therefore align with your values ,messaging and the storytelling that you wish to communicate.
For this purpose, you’ll need to first define your brand identity. A recommended practice for this is to compose a list of adjectives that describe your company’s character and personality, as if you were talking about a person. Ask yourself how you’d like the brand to be perceived, and what sets it apart from the competition.
The following spectrum of brand identity traits is key for building a brand, and can help you pinpoint the core of your brand more easily:
02. Explore color meanings
Now that you’ve identified your brand personality, it’s time to choose the colors to make it shine through. In doing so, it’s worth looking into color theory and color psychology principles for common color meanings. You can also research using a color picker.
However, it’s also important to mention that color is not an exact science, and there’s no equation to accurately define which color means what and how your target audience will experience it. This is where color combinations come in, as they help in achieving a look that evokes certain stimuli and feelings through their juxtaposition.
To understand this, think of the difference in the meaning of the color blue when it’s paired with gold - conjuring notions of royalty and luxury - as opposed to the same blue, but paired with pink - which tends to feel much more playful.
Colors can mean different things depending on the colors they’re paired with, as well as on context and cultural connotations. Even color terms, the descriptions by which we identify colors can vary by culture. There are, however, clear trends in color use based on industry. To help you choose the right color palette for your business, here’s a quick breakdown of popular brand colors by a few main industries:
Food: Many food and restaurant businesses opt for warm colors that draw attention and evoke appetite, such as red, orange and yellow. Other food brands choose green to promote connection with nutrition and wellbeing, or blue and pink for sweets and deserts.
Health and wellness: Most health and wellness companies choose blue to signify cleanliness, trustworthiness and responsibility. Other popular options are green, representing nature and wholesomeness, and orange, which can bring up ideas of vitality and energy.
Fashion and beauty: The fashion and beauty industries often use black for sophistication and glamour, and warm colors such as red, orange and pink for passion, confidence and excitement.
High-tech: Tech companies most commonly go for blue, which symbolizes feelings of trust, intelligence, and efficiency. Additional colors are orange, which is friendly and optimistic, and purple, which stands for quality and creativity.
These colors aren't just popular in these industries, but in many others as well. For example, construction companies often use blue too because it conveys a sense of professionalism and competence. Try using a construction logo maker to explore the colors you can use.
03. Search for inspiration
As a final step before crafting your brand colors, look around for color inspiration. Browse through your competitors’ palettes, and try and understand what it is that makes them work well. Think of what you can learn from their color choices, and of ways in which you can differentiate yourself from the competition.
Other great sources of inspiration are online color palette generators, where you can find ideas for interesting color pairings and mesmerizing shades. You can also explore these logo color ideas for some inspiration.
You can also consider conducing market research. This means looking at all the brand color options you want to explore, and taking them to focus groups for feedback. How do people actually respond to those colors and how can you connect that emotion with your brand identity? You can also take away from these groups, color preferences by demographic.
To get your creative ideas flowing, we’ve gathered 10 successful brand colors and analyzed what it is that we like about them. Scroll down towards the bottom of the article to feast your eyes on some beautiful colors.
04. Pick your primary color
Your brand’s primary color, or core color, is the one most associated with your brand. Think of the signature Tiffany’s Blue or Pinterest’s red.
For your primary color, look for a single color that best embodies your business based on color meanings. You can experiment with different shades and tints of the color you have in mind, going from lush and dark to soft and pastel, or even bright neon, in order to find the perfect look.
05. Choose your secondary colors
Once you have your primary color, pick two to four colors to go along with it. These colors will compliment your primary one, and can either appear next to it or independently. A brand’s secondary colors can go in a few different directions:
Analogous color scheme: These are close variants of your primary color. This means that if your primary color is bright red, you can add other warm colors (such as orange and yellow) that belong to the same color family. Analogous color schemes are usually harmonious and pleasant in their appearance.
Monochromatic color scheme: These are different shades and tints of your primary color. For example, if your primary color is blue, your secondary colors can be light blue and dark blue. Monochromatic color schemes can strengthen and enhance your core color.
Contrasting color schemes: Contrasting colors are either complementary colors (seated across from each other on the color wheel), or a selection of colorful, equally-vibrant hues. This color scheme can help your brand colors pop and usually gives off a fun and modern feel.
06. Select neutral colors
When crafting your brand colors, it’s easy to focus on the main colors and overlook the neutrals. However, neutral colors are important as they are the ones in charge of most of your communication (such as the color of your written text) and will appear in the background design of most of your assets.
Neutral colors are usually white or black, often combined with a few shades of grey.
07. Test your brand colors
Once you’ve picked your colors, place them all together and test them in a few different combinations to make sure they complement one another, and convey the message you were aiming for.
In order to make your website accessible, you should also test your palette for in order to make sure that they’re clearly legible together. There are plenty of online resources and browser plugins that test color contrast for accessibility. Contrast Checker and Colour Contrast Analyser are two such tools that we recommend.
Looking for color inspiration for your next project? Check out these Wixel guides:
10 inspirational brand colors that work
01. Starbucks
Starbucks’ brand colors are based on a family of greens, combined with four neutral colors. Their primary color is that of the Siren logo - an iconic shade referred to as “Starbucks Green.”
The expanded color palette merges this primary green, alluding to the brand’s rich heritage, with other “fresh and inviting” hues. These include an accent green and two secondary greens.
02. Instagram
The Instagram brand colors are a gradient of blue to yellow, with a wide range of purples, pinks and oranges in between. This gradient is a reinterpretation of the brand’s rainbow from its earlier, skeuomorphic logo.
This rich color spectrum is meant to evoke feelings of “warmth and energy.” It’s also a tribute to the importance of color in the app’s filters, community uploads, and more.
03. Slack
Slack’s color palette is just as refined as it is playful. It features four primary colors - white, black and two shades of aubergine purple. Accompanying those are blue, green, yellow and red, serving as accent colors.
In Slack’s case, it’s the accent colors that take center stage in the logo, and not its primary aubergine. Coming together to form an octothorpe, the four colors bring to mind notions of teamwork and collaboration.
04. The Guardian
The Guardian is most associated with its navy blue and bright yellow shades. Yet for a platform this rich in content, colors take part in more than brandability alone. They also serve as a navigational tool, by distinguishing between types of editorial content.
For example, red marks news articles, orange is for opinion pieces, and brown is for cultural topics. Each of these colors comes in a selection of variants, depending on their application: dark, main, pastel and faded. These allow for flexibility in color use.
05. Google
Google has one of those timeless logo designs that we all know by heart. And just like the design itself, the four colors of the logo (blue, red, yellow and green) are equally synonymous with the company. Those are the brand’s primary colors, along with white which is also predominant in Google interfaces.
The secondary Google colors are darker versions of the primary ones. Those are followed by tertiary light blue and light green, and a range of grays that serve as the neutral colors in delivering information, such as in written text.
06. Lyft
Lyft is well-known for their signature pink. Yet surprisingly, the primary brand palette is composed of white as the main color, followed by black, and only then - the Lyft Pink. This ratio is meant to instill the pink with greater meaning, making it stand out in the times it is used.
The brand’s secondary palette is much more encompassing, including 40 different colors - from greens and yellows to blues and oranges. These are used to support the main brand colors, and take a back seat in crafting their brand identity.
07. Dell
The Dell brand colors are divided into three tiers. The first tier includes the company’s core colors, with the signature Dell Blue as the primary color, giving off a “vibrant and energetic” feel. The three shades of blue act as the foundation to the rest of the palette.
The second tier is made up of three accent colors (purple, berry, and orange) and five neutrals (white and a range of grays). Last is the third tier, which features three additional accent colors. An exception to this palette is black, which can be used for text or in the logo, but not as a
design element.
08. Dropbox
Dropbox’s primary brand colors are blue, black and white. But there’s much more to it, as the main focus here is the versatility of different color combinations. Dropbox boasts 18 brand colors that produce a total of 32 different pairings.
Dropbox’s rich color spectrum is intended to generate unique mixes that go together well, leading to “interesting and often unusual combinations.” This unique visual language is achieved through dynamic, mix-and-match variations, rather than through unification and standardization.
09. Mastercard
The Mastercard logo is composed of two overlapping circles, one red and the other yellow, which together produce a bright shade of orange. This same orange is also the company’s primary color, accompanied by two shades of gray (light and dark) as the background colors.
The secondary colors in the Mastercard color palette are gold, yellow and green, and the accent colors are red and teal.
10. Airbnb
There are five Airbnb brand colors. The most prominent among them is pink (called Rausch), which is also the color of the brand’s logo, and is used repeatedly in the company's website design. The pink is joined by a turquoise shade, an orange, and two grays - dark and light.
Why are brand colors important?
Brand colors are more than just a design choice—they shape how customers see and connect with your brand. The right colors can tell a story, spark emotions and leave a lasting impression. Here's how to make them work for you:
Express your brand values: Your colors reflect who you are. Use them to showcase your personality and values, helping customers understand what you stand for. The right colors can make your brand instantly recognizable.
Simplify choices: Assign distinct colors to your products or categories to guide your customers. This reduces confusion and improves the shopping experience, helping them differentiate between products.
Create a brand experience: Thoughtful color choices tie your brand together, reinforcing your message and building a cohesive journey for your audience. It ensures your brand feels unified across all touchpoints.
Boost brand recognition: Consistent use of your brand colors makes your business more memorable and easy to spot. Over time, your colors will become synonymous with your brand.
Drive decisions: Colors influence emotions and actions, encouraging customers to engage or make a purchase. The right color combinations can subtly guide customers toward making a choice.
Examples of brand colors and their associations
Red brings energy, passion and urgency, making it perfect for grabbing attention in sales or food branding.
Blue builds trust and reliability, making it a go-to color for finance, healthcare and tech brands.
Purple exudes luxury and creativity, making it ideal for beauty and premium products.
Pink reflects sweetness and playfulness, making it great for campaigns centered on youth and self-expression.
Black speaks to sophistication and authority, making it a strong choice for luxury or minimalist brands.
White represents purity and simplicity, and is widely used in tech, wellness and clean designs.
Brown brings a sense of dependability and earthiness, making it popular with sustainable and outdoor brands.
Gray suggests neutrality and maturity, and it works well for professional and understated branding.
Understanding color terms (made simple)
Choosing the right brand colors starts with understanding some key color terms. These basics will help you communicate clearly with your design team and refine your brand’s palette. Don’t worry—you don’t need to be a designer to get it. Here’s a quick guide:
Hue is the base color—red, blue, green—the foundation for any color.
Shade is what happens when you add black to a hue, making it darker and more dramatic. For example, red becomes a rich burgundy.
Tint is the opposite—adding white creates a lighter, softer version of the hue, like turning red into pink.
Saturation defines how vivid or muted a color looks. A bold green is highly saturated while a softer green feels more subdued.
When it comes to using color digitally or in print design, knowing the systems helps you stay consistent:
RGB (red, green, blue): Used for screens and digital designs. It combines these primary colors to create endless options.
HEX color codes: A shorthand for RGB colors like # F39247 to ensure consistency online.
CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black): Essential for printing. It ensures your brand colors look just right on paper whether it’s business cards or packaging.
Brand colors FAQ
What is brand color psychology?
Brand color psychology is the study of how colors can affect people's perception of a brand. Different colors can evoke different emotions and associations, so it's important to choose brand colors that are aligned with your brand's personality and values. For example, blue is often associated with trust and reliability, which is why it's a popular color for brands in the financial and healthcare industries.
How do I find the right brand color?
There are a few things to consider when choosing brand colors:
Your brand's personality: What kind of personality do you want your brand to have? Do you want your brand to be seen as trustworthy, exciting, creative or something else altogether? Consider how you want to convey your brand.
Your target audience: Who is your target audience and what colors do they find appealing? What colors will resonate with them emotionally?
Your industry: What colors are commonly used in your industry?
Your brand's logo: The colors in your logo should be reflected in your brand colors.
Once you have considered these factors, you can start to experiment with different color combinations.
What are some common mistakes when choosing brand colors?
Some common mistakes people make when choosing brand colors include:
Choosing too many colors: It's better to choose a few key colors that will be used throughout your branding. This will help to create a cohesive and consistent visual identity.
Using colors that are too similar: Using colors that are too similar can make your branding look boring and unmemorable. It is important to use colors that have a good contrast to create a visually appealing and memorable brand.
Not updating their brand colors: As your brand evolves, you may need to update your brand colors. This is especially important if your target audience changes or if your brand's personality changes.
What are the main benefits of using brand colors?
There are many benefits to using brand colors, including:
Brand recognition: Brand colors can help people recognize your brand and remember it. This is especially important if you are a new brand or if you're trying to break into a new market.
Trust and credibility: Some colors, such as blue and green, are often associated with trust and credibility. This can be helpful if you are trying to establish yourself as a reliable and trustworthy brand.
Emotional appeal: Colors can evoke different emotions in people. For example, red is often associated with excitement and passion, while blue is often associated with calmness and relaxation. By choosing the right colors, you can create a visual identity that appeals to your target audience's emotions.
Brand personality: Colors can help to communicate your brand's personality. A brand that uses bright and vibrant colors might be seen as fun and exciting, while a brand that uses more muted colors might be seen as sophisticated and elegant.
What's the most popular brand color in 2025?
Mocha Mousse is quickly becoming a favorite brand color, even earning the title of Pantone Color of the Year 2025. With its rich blend of cacao, chocolate and coffee tones, it invites you to pause and enjoy life’s simple pleasures. To highlight the connection between color and web design, Wix Studio teamed up with Pantone to create the first-ever web design asset collection inspired by PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse. It’s a perfect choice for brands aiming to create meaningful connections with their audiences.
What's the number one rule when branding colors?
The number one rule when selecting branding colors is to ensure they align with your brand's identity and the emotions you want to evoke in your target audience. This means understanding color psychology and how different colors can influence perceptions and behaviors.
What are some of the most dominant brand colors?
The dominant brand colors are those that are widely used and recognized across various industries due to their strong psychological associations and ability to convey specific brand messages. They include
Blue: Known for evoking trust, professionalism and reliability. It's frequently used by tech companies (like Facebook and Twitter), financial institutions (like Chase and American Express) and healthcare providers.
Red: Associated with energy, excitement and urgency. Red is often used by brands aiming to grab attention and evoke strong emotions, such as Coca-Cola, Netflix and Target.
Green: Symbolizes health, nature and sustainability. Green is favored by brands in the health and wellness sector (like Whole Foods).
Black: Conveys luxury, sophistication, and elegance. High-end or tech brands like Chanel and Apple frequently use black to signify exclusivity and premium quality, or something a little edgy.
Yellow: Represents happiness, optimism, and energy. Brands like McDonald's, Ikea and Snapchat use yellow to create a friendly and cheerful image, aiming to uplift customers.