6 Types Of Color Palettes & How To Use Them
Color is one of the foundational elements of a brand's visual identity. It’s a powerful subconscious motivator that can ensure your customers keep your business top of mind.?
A brand color palette is a collection of colors that represent a company.
It's a tangible component of a brand - one that people notice first and foremost.
Picking a color palette that showcases your unique brand personality and sticking to it throughout all branding and marketing materials creates deep psychological connections with your audience.?The color palette acts as a powerful subconscious motivator that keeps your business top of mind and helps you stand out from the competition!?
On the other hand, a poorly chosen color scheme can harm your business in many ways. It can undermine your message, go against your values, and convey a feeling that you don’t want people to associate with your brand.
So how do you go about creating the right color palette for your brand?
Well, first things first. You need to get familiar with all the different kinds of color palettes out there. Understanding the nuances of each type will help you make an informed decision that aligns perfectly with your brand identity.?
Monochromatic
A monochromatic color palette consists of different shades and tints of a single color.?
This type of color palette lacks contrast since all its elements are variations of the same hue. It creates a cohesive, elegant look that is great for minimalistic brands that want to hone the beauty of simplicity and foster a sense of sophistication.?
In general, monochromatic color palettes communicate calmness, harmony, and luxury. However, the lightness or darkness of the chosen shades can evoke different emotions. For example, darker shades create a more serious and authoritative tone, while lighter tones feel more soothing and peaceful.
For designers, using a monochromatic color palette is a great way to simplify a busy design, create focus, achieve balance, support legibility, as well as showcase interconnectivity, relationships, and progression of design elements.?
And the best part? Monochromatic color palettes are almost impossible to mess up – just don’t overdo it!
Examples of brands that use a monochromatic color palette include Apple, Nike, and Chanel.
Analogous
An analogous color palette consists of colors that are adjacent to each other on the color wheel.
This type of color palette doesn’t include highly contrasting colors, so it results in softer designs with a cohesive feel, perfect for brands that want to communicate a sense of freshness, growth, or harmony.?
In general, analogous color palettes evoke a sense of unity and balance, as the colors used are closely related. However, depending on the specific colors selected, this type of palette can communicate different things. For example, an analogous palette consisting of red, orange, and yellow creates a sense of energy and excitement. On the other hand, going for cooler tones of blue, green, and purple creates a sense of calmness and reliability.
For designers, using an analogous color palette is a great way to create visually pleasing and calming, yet striking designs, achieve consistency, and create a strong focus.?
Analogous color palettes are fairly easy to work with as all their elements blend well together. To use them properly, choose one color to dominate and accent it with others.?
Examples of brands that use an analogous color palette include Whole Foods, Land Rover, and John Deere.
Triadic
A triadic color palette consists of three colors that are evenly spaced on the color wheel.?
This type of color palette creates a vibrant, dynamic look and is often used by brands that want to convey a sense of excitement, youthfulness, and innovation.?
In general, triadic color palettes evoke a sense of playfulness and energy, as the colors used and bright and bold. However, the shades you pick are also very important. For example, creating a triadic palette using primary colors like red, blue, and yellow results in a fun, attention-grabbing design. In contrast, going for secondary colors such as orange, purple, and green creates a sense of balance and harmony.?
For designers, using a triadic color palette is a great way to create genuinely remarkable designs with strong contrast and emphasized comparisons.?
Triadic color palettes have been a designer-approved secret for years. They’re the safest bet for going outside of one-hue palettes but require a lot of experimentation and sampling to get right.?
Examples of brands that use a triadic palette include NBC, Google, and Lego.
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Tetradic
A tetradic color palette, also known as the double-complementary and rectangular palette, consists of four colors that are evenly spaced on the color wheel.?
This type of color palette creates a complex and elaborate look often used in bold and eclectic designs by brands that want to communicate a sense of luxury and creativity.?
In general, tetradic color palettes are the best way to get the best of both worlds - balance, and diversity, as all the colors used are very different, yet still harmonious. Again, the specific shades you choose will significantly impact the message your tetradic palette communicates. For example, going for bright saturated versions of each color will result in a playful, energetic design perfect for a fun-loving company looking to project a youthful image. Conversely, if you choose muted, pastel version of each color, you will get a softer, more subtle mood appropriate for a brand that wants to convey a sense of calm and serenity.
For designers, using a tetradic color palette is the best way to draw viewers' attention and make a bold statement, create bold contrasts and produce visually stunning end effects.?
Tetradic color palettes can be alarming to look at and somewhat harder to balance, especially for beginners in graphic design.?
Examples of brands that use a tetradic palette include Instagram, Netflix, and Google.
Complementary?
A complementary color palette consists of two colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel.?
This type of palette creates a bold and dynamic look and is often used in high-energy or dramatic designs, beneficial for brands that really want to stand out and make a statement.
In general, complementary color palettes evoke a sense of excitement and vibrancy, as the two colors used create a sharp contrast. Depending on the exact combination of colors, this can convey different things. For example, pairing red and green creates a sense of holiday cheer and festivity, while the combination of blue and orange creates a sense of playfulness and creativity.
For designers, using a complementary color palette is a great way to grab viewers’ attention while creating a sense of balance, order, and intensity.?
The high contrast in complementary color palettes helps highlight key points and takeaways. To use them the right way, avoid muting the colors out as this will lessen the effect of your color palette. Instead, expand the palette with various tints and shades to create a more visually appealing design.?
Examples of brands that use a complementary palette include McDonald’s, FedEx, and Firefox.
Split Complementary?
A split complementary color palette consists of three colors - one base color and two colors that are adjacent to the complementary color of the base color.?
This type of color palette creates a lively and appealing look that can be great for brands that want to convey a sense of vibrancy, innovation, and dynamics, while still maintaining a degree of balance and harmony.
In general, split-complementary palettes evoke a sense of energy and excitement, similar to complementary palettes, but with a slightly softer look. Depending on the colors selected, this type of palette can communicate different emotions. For instance, a split complementary palette that uses red as the base color could feature shades of yellow-green and blue-green as complementary colors to communicate vitality and urgency. In contrast, a split complementary palette based on purple with shades of yellow and green as complementary colors will convey a sense of elegance and balance.?
For designers, split-complementary color palettes are the best way to create striking visuals without hurting viewers’ eyes as they keep the contrast of complementary color palettes but with less visual intensity.
Split-complementary color palettes are more versatile than their complementary counterparts and allow you to achieve a better balance of warm and cool tones. However, it’s easy to create an overwhelming design using them as harmonizing the base and accents can be difficult.?
Examples of brands that use a split-complementary palette include Burger King, Taco Bell, and HubSpot.
In Conclusion
Choosing the right color palette is crucial for creating a strong visual identity and conveying the right message to your target audience. The different types of color palettes each have their own unique benefits and can help you achieve different design goals, whether it's creating a cohesive and elegant look, a sense of freshness and growth, or a bold and striking design.
When choosing a color palette for your brand, consider your brand personality, message, and the emotions you want to evoke in your audience. Take the time to experiment with different color combinations and see how they work together to create a visual impact.
Remember, color is a powerful tool. To make the most out of it, your color palette should be consistent across all branding and marketing materials, from social media posts to business cards.?
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Damjan ?ori? is a freelance designer specializing in logo & visual identity for small businesses. Over the course of 10 years, he has helped hundreds of brands share their story, build awareness, and establish trust by delivering effective graphic solutions across branding, packaging, print, and digital media. In 2021, he received the 99designs award for Best Branding Design.