Colours of printing and ink
Inks for books, banknotes, posters and packaging.
#000000
Black
The colour seen when no visible light is present or all light is absorbedBasic colour
#00FF00
Green
The colour between cyan and yellow, seen widely in plants and natureBasic colour · 🇮🇪 Ireland +1
#0000FF
Blue
A primary colour seen in the sky and sea, used since ancient times in art and dyeBasic colour
#FFFFFF
White
The lightest colour, seen in snow, milk and chalk, and opposite to blackBasic colour
#808080
Grey
A neutral colour between black and white, seen in clouds, ash, and undyed woolBasic colour
#00FFFF
Cyan
A blue-green colour found between blue and green on the spectrum and key in printingBasic colour
#FF00FF
Magenta
A purplish-pink colour named after a battle and key to modern printingNamed shade · 🇫🇷 France +4
#C41E3A
Cardinal
A strong, deep red linked to church robes and team coloursNamed shade
#00FF80
Spring green
A bright green halfway between green and cyan on the RGB colour wheelNamed shade
#4A412A
Pantone 448 C
A dull brown shade chosen to discourage smoking by making packaging unattractiveStandard colour · 🇦🇺 Australia +5
#3E8EDE
Tufts Blue
A clear blue used as the official colour of Tufts UniversityNational or team colour · 🇺🇸 United States
Grey
Greyscale
Images made up only of shades of grey, from black to whiteNamed shade
#000F89
Phthalo blue
A strong, synthetic blue pigment made from copper phthalocyaninePigment · 🇩🇪 Germany +1
Red
BISU Maroon
A deep maroon chosen as a school colour by Beijing International Studies UniversityNamed shade · 🇨🇳 China
#81D8D0
Tiffany Blue
A light blue-green shade trademarked by Tiffany & Co. for its boxes and brandingNamed shade
#C71585
Red-violet
A strong colour found between red and magenta, often called purple in artNamed shade
#123524
Phthalo green
A synthetic green pigment made from copper and chlorinated phthalocyaninePigment
#777777
Gray card
A neutral grey reference card for setting exposure and colour balance in photographyNamed shade
#004040
Rich black
A deep black in print made by layering coloured inks under blackNamed shade
#DAA520
Goldenrod
A strong yellow named for the goldenrod flowerNamed shade
#A4DDED
Non-photo blue
A pale blue used in art and print that does not show up in reproductionNamed shade
#00356B
Yale Blue
A deep blue shade linked to Yale University since the 19th centuryNamed shade
Grey
Middle gray
A neutral tone halfway between black and white, used to calibrate cameras and printsNamed shade
Yellow
Diarylide pigment
A family of yellow organic pigments widely used in printing inksPigment
Gold and metallics
Metal effect pigments
Pigments that give paints and inks a metallic look using tiny metal flakesPigment · 🇪🇬 Egypt +1
#56A0D3
Carolina blue
A light blue shade tied to the University of North CarolinaNamed shade · 🇺🇸 United States
#1E3765
U of T Blue
A deep navy blue used by the University of Toronto since its foundingNamed shade · 🇨🇦 Canada
#3DDC84
Android green
A bright green defined by Google for the Android robot mascot and logoNamed shade
Red
Erythrosine
A bright red-pink synthetic dye used in food, cosmetics, and industryDye · 🇺🇸 United States +4
Black
Brilliant Black BN
A synthetic black dye used in foods and decorations, known as E151 in EuropeDye · 🇺🇸 United States +2
#333399
Blue (pigment)
A standard blue mixed from cyan and magenta inks in printingNamed shade
#FFEF00
Canary yellow
A bright yellow named after the canary bird and used as a printing primaryNamed shade
#00B7EB
Process cyan
The standard cyan ink used in four-colour printing (CMYK)Named shade
#00A550
Green (pigment)
The standard green made by mixing printer's cyan and yellow inksStandard colour
#512888
KSU purple
A dark, blue-toned purple used by Kansas State UniversityNamed shade
#FF0090
Magenta (process)
The magenta used as a primary colour in printing inksNamed shade
#9678B6
Purple mountain majesty
A medium lavender-grey shade named by Crayola in 1993Named shade
#ED1C24
Red (pigment)
The standard red mixed from magenta and yellow for printing on paperNamed shade
#367588
Teal blue
A blue-leaning teal shade named in the early twentieth centuryNamed shade
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Goldenrod: Huw Williams ( Huwmanbeing ), Public domain, source
- Magenta: Basile Morin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Phthalo blue: Smokefoot, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tufts Blue: HereToHelp, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- White: Steve Snodgrass, CC BY 2.0, source
- Yale Blue: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Effect pigment: FK1954, Public domain, source
- Pantone 448 C: The RedBurn (picture on the packaging, Public domain, source
- Greyscale: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Gray card: Christian H., Public domain, source
- BISU Maroon: Beijing International Studies University, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Grey: John Fowler, CC BY 2.0, source
- Black: w:Harlan Kredit, Public domain, source
- U of T Blue: DoubleBlue, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cardinal: Philippe de Champaigne and workshop, Public domain, source
- Green: Myrabella, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Spring green: Аружан Жамбулатова, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cyan: Claude Monet, Public domain, source
- Tiffany Blue: Ajay Suresh, CC BY 2.0, source
- Blue: NOAA-JMA, CC BY 4.0, source
- Red-violet: Fructibus, CC0, source