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A bold color used sparingly to draw attention to the most important elements, like buttons or links, against a more neutral background.

A group of colors that sit next to each other on the color wheel, such as blue, blue-green, and green. Because they're closely related, they blend together for a calm, harmonious look.

The color model used for printing, which mixes four inks — Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key (black). It's subtractive, meaning inks absorb light, so more ink makes colors darker.

The full range of colors a particular device or method can actually reproduce. A color that falls outside a device's gamut can't be shown accurately, which is why some vivid screen colors look duller in print.

The pleasing arrangement of colors that look good together. Designers reach it using rules of thumb — complementary, analogous, triadic, and similar schemes — so a palette feels intentional rather than random.

The defined set of colors chosen for a project or brand. Limiting a design to a small palette keeps everything looking consistent and deliberate.

How warm or cool a color feels on the spectrum from fiery reds to icy blues. Shifting a whole design warmer or cooler changes its overall mood.

A circular chart that arranges colors by hue so you can see how they relate. Designers use it to pick combinations that work together, like colors sitting opposite or next to each other.

Two colors that sit directly opposite each other on the color wheel, like blue and orange. Placed together they make each other look brighter and create strong, eye-catching contrast.

Colors associated with water and sky — blues, greens, and purples. They feel calm and restful, and tend to appear to recede into the background.

An image or palette made only of greys, from black to white, with no color at all. Designers often view work in grayscale to check that it still reads clearly without relying on color.

A six-character code, written after a # sign, that specifies an exact color for screens — for example #FF5733. It's the most common way to name a precise color in web and app design.

A way of describing color by three intuitive dials: Hue (which color), Saturation (how vivid), and Lightness (how light or dark). It's popular because adjusting one dial maps to how people naturally think about color.

The basic name of a color — red, blue, green, and so on. It's the quality that tells one color family apart from another, before you factor in how light, dark, or intense it is.

A color scheme that uses a single hue in many lightnesses and intensities — one color's light, dark, and muted variations only. The result feels unified and understated.

A way of describing color for screens by mixing Red, Green, and Blue light. Setting how much of each — from 0 to 255 — produces any on-screen color. It's an additive model, so all three at full strength make white.

How pure or intense a color looks. A highly saturated color is vivid and punchy; a low-saturation version looks washed out, muted, or closer to grey.

A color that has been darkened by adding black. Navy is a shade of blue; maroon is a shade of red.

A single, pre-mixed ink used in printing to reproduce one exact color, rather than building it from the four process inks. Often specified by a standardized system like Pantone for consistent brand colors.

A color that has been lightened by adding white. Pink is a tint of red; pastel colors are all tints.

A color that has been softened by adding grey, making it look more muted and sophisticated without simply going lighter or darker.

A color scheme built from three colors spaced evenly around the color wheel, forming a triangle. It gives a balanced but lively palette, like red, yellow, and blue.

How light or dark a color is, regardless of which color it is. Squinting at a design until it turns to greys is a common way to check that its values give enough contrast.

Colors associated with heat and sunlight — reds, oranges, and yellows. They feel energetic and inviting, and tend to appear to advance toward the viewer.