Whether you’ve studied design or not, everybody has at least a rough understanding of the symbolism behind colors. Red, for example, can mean passion, anger, or love, while green is a calming color that often symbolizes nature and life. But if you’re on the lookout for design inspiration prior to consulting with a graphic designer and you’re desperate for something beyond “blue symbolizes water or sadness,” keep on reading—these in-depth tips might just be what you’re looking for.

Remember that context is extremely important in determining color meanings and that symbolic meanings for color also vary widely across the world, which is why understanding your target market’s culture is always very important.

White White is typically the color of choice for clean, minimalist, or timeless designs. Because achromatic (i.e., whites, greys, and blacks) are common in higher-end items, white can also trigger perceptions of class and elegance. Brands that have been around for a long time and/or rely on a classic look for their packaging may find this a useful color.

Warm Colors (Red, Orange, and Yellow) The colors you see in fast food logos aren’t an accident—these warm colors have been shown to actually stimulate the appetite, making them an ideal choice for food products of all kinds. Being the opposite of cool, calming colors such as green, blue, and purple, warm colors are visually stimulating and energetic, which can denote speediness—another connection to fast food restaurants. Adding gold or silver denotes a luxurious look.

Pink: Did you know boys were originally dressed in pink and girls in blue? Pink is currently considered a feminine color, but can have something of a calming effect—it’s often used in prisons as a way to calm inmates’ tempers. Hues of pink that lean closer to red take on the overtones of passion that red can convey.

Red Apart from the common definitions of love, passion, and war, red increases impulse buys and stimulates the appetite because our early ancestors learned to associate that color with food. It can also increase our adrenaline, raising blood pressure, breathing rate, and body temperature.

Orange Orange is typically considered a fun, contemporary color that can exude warmth, hominess, or friendliness. It’s a common color for companies’ call to action buttons and like red, it can trigger impulse buys. Orange can also indicate inexpensive items due to its use on sale racks.

Yellow: Ever wonder why taxis are yellow? Yellow—not white or red—is scientifically shown to be the brightest color of them all, so it’s a fantastic choice if you prioritize grabbing people’s attention immediately. However, yellow can be a mixed bag due to its roughly equal number of positive and negative connotations—from happiness and courage to envy and sickness. A 2004 study found that babies cry and people argue more if exposed to large amounts of yellow.

Green Green is one of the most popular colors in packaging and is the easiest color for the eyes to process. However, it runs the risk of being overused in food products or items with organic ingredients, so if you’re in certain industries such as food or skincare, use this color with caution.

Teal/Turquoise According to 99Designs, teal and turquoise are often used in business ventures that are creative, innovative or progressive in nature. According to the marketing company Kissmetrics, teal can also appeal to budget-conscious shoppers. It’s a contemporary, nuanced color that can either be youthful or sophisticated depending on how it’s integrated into your design.

Blue Blue is the world’s favorite color, according to a survey by YouGov. Medium and dark blues are classic hues that can suggest reliability, making it a popular choice for technology and electronic products. Kissmetrics notes that blue creates the perception of trust and security, and that royal blue may attract impulse shoppers, but navy blue works best for budget-conscious shoppers. Compared to colors like red, blue is generally not recommended for food packaging because blue-colored foods appear so rarely in nature that it actually suppresses the appetite. According to the packaging company JohnsByrne, blue is a common color in packaging, so the particular shade you choose is extremely important in helping your brand stand out. If you’re thinking of using blue for your brand, it may be worth exploring green-blues or blue-violet shades.

Purple Purple has recently been gaining ground among males, taking it one step closer to being a gender-neutral color. If you want to communicate a sense of your brand being different, high-class, and highly artistic, purple might be your best bet. It’s well-known that this color symbolizes royalty, but it also has connections to magic, the imagination, spirituality, dreams, creativity, and mystery. Purple is somewhat rare in nature, which creates this connection to otherworldliness, but similar to blue, it’s also a tricky choice for edible products. It’s a popular color in the makeup industry, where packaging that gives the impression of being high-class is generally a must.

Brown and Grey/Silver If you sell anything edible, brown and grey are usually not ideal colors because of our evolutionary disposition to avoid these colors in food, which would indicate rottenness. However, for flavors like chocolate, coffee, and cookies and cream that result in brown or grayish colors, this offers excellent visual continuity. Brown can create a wonderful vintage look and has symbolic meanings range from earthiness, comfort, and family to masculinity and a down-to-earth sensibility. Grey and silver are timeless, gender-neutral colors that can add elegance to your product packaging, and grey in particular is often used to indicate that products, such as handheld devices, can be used for years without problems.

Black: Black is hands-down one of the most dramatic ways to make an impact on consumers. Sophisticated and powerful, it’s yet another color that can trigger impulse buys and is a true statement color, especially when paired with an accent color and little else. To take your product packaging a step further and truly impress consumers, we suggest adding one of our many unique surface finishes, ranging from matte-textured to shiny to velvety, to get a truly stunning look.

No matter what stage you’re at in the packaging design process, we’ll be happy to give you a quote! Simply email us or click “Custom Quote” above and we’ll get back to you within 48 hours.

References (please note that the Kissmetrics blog was recently sold to Neil Patel):

Reed, Ron. Color + Design: Transforming Interior Space. Fairchild Books, 2010. Print.

httpss://neilpatel.com/blog/color-psychology/ httpss://99designs.com/blog/tips/colors-marketing-advertising/ httpss://today.yougov.com/topics/international/articles-reports/2015/05/12/why-blue-worlds-favorite-color https://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/target-markets.html https://www.johnsbyrne.com/blog/packaging-colors-say-brand/