This gentle purple hair shade evokes a sweet spring flower. Perfect for anyone transitioning from gray of pastel hair color, this light purple hair color shade can even be workplace-appropriate. The hair color pops even more on anyone with a fair complexion and light eyes.
35 Different Shades of Purple Color
The fierce energy of red and the calm stability of blue together produce the royal and noble purple color. The color purple also gives an impression of wealth, power, extravagance, ambition, creativity, wisdom, peace, pride, independence, dignity, and mystery. Historically, we can see that the purple color was associated with royalty and wealth. This is probably because of the fact that the preparation of the color purple was expensive and only rich people could afford to use this color.
However, now, you don’t have to be rich to use the purple color. You can quite easily create different shades of purple color by mixing cyan (blue), magenta (red), yellow, and black in different proportions. If you wonder how many shades of purple are there, the answer is you can prepare several types of purple color by mixing the primary colors in a different ratio. However, this article will discuss the 35 most graceful shades of purple.
How to Make Purple?
The purple color is basically a combination of blue and red colors. However, different proportions of the primary colors (red & blue) can create different shades of purple. According to the CMYK procedure of making purple, the shade of purple color depends on how much Cyan (C), Magenta (M), Yellow (Y), and Black (K) is present in the color.
In the red purples where the amount of red color is high, the color gives us a warm tone. On the other hand, in the case of blue purples where the blue color is present in the high percentage, we get a cooler tone.
Lets take a look at the 35 Different Shades of Purple:
1. Amethyst
Hex Code: #9966CC
CMYK Code: 25, 50, 0, 20
RGB Code: 153, 102, 204
This is a light purple color, and it comes from one of the classic jewel stones, gemstones. You can prepare this color by mixing a splash of red and 2/3 amount blue.
2. Claret
Hex Code: #53013F
RGB Code: 83, 1, 63
CMYK Code: 0, 99, 24, 67
This is a wine-colored purple, and it looks like a red-purple and gives a warm tone.
3.Lavender
This is a popular and light shade purple color. This color looks a little warm.
Hex Code: #A689E1
RGB Code: 166, 137, 225
CMYK Code: 26, 39, 0, 12
4.Old Lavender
In comparison to lavender, old lavender is darker. This is because the amount of black color is more in this color.
Hex Code: #796878
RGB Code: 121, 104, 120
CMYK Code: 0, 14, 1, 53
5.Twilight Lavender
This color contains much amount of red color and therefore, the color looks brighter.
Hex Code: #81516B
RGB Code: 129, 81, 107
CMYK Code: 0, 37, 17, 49
6. Rebecca Purple
This is great purple color and blue color plays a significant role in this tertiary color. This is a bright color.
Hex Code: #663399
RGB Code: 102, 51, 153
CMYK Code: 33, 67, 0, 40
7. Blue Violet
This color is brighter than Rebecca purple color. Due to the incredible combination of purple and blue, this color looks very warm.
Hex Code: #8A2BE2
RGB Code: 138, 43, 226
CMYK Code: 39, 81, 0, 11
8. Dark Violet
Dark violet is obviously darker than blue-violet. You can also observe that the amount of red and black colors increase in this color.
Hex Code: #9400D3
RGB Code: 148, 0, 211
CMYK Code: 30, 100, 0, 17
9. Russian Violet
This is a really dark color and quite similar to the dark violet color. However, this color looks very pleasant to me.
Hex Code: #32174D
RGB Code: 50, 23, 77
CMYK Code: 35, 70, 0, 70
10. English violet
This is a greyish color. If you would like to have a cooler purple color, this color can be the best choice for you.
Hex Code: #563C5C
RGB Code: 86, 60, 92
CMYK Code: 7, 35, 0, 64
11. African violet
I would say African violet color is a light color. But it does not give a warmer impression.
Hex Code: #B284BE
RGB Code: 178, 132, 190
CMYK Code: 6, 31, 0, 25
12. Glossy Grape
It is just the color of grapes but a little light color. If you are an artist, I must say this color will be very useful to you.
Hex Code: #AB92B3
RGB Code: 171, 146, 179
CMYK Code: 4, 18, 0, 30.
13. Cyber grape
This is another grape color with a darker shade. As this is a dark color, this color gives an efficiently cooler impression.
Hex Code: #58427C
RGB Code: 88, 66, 124
CMYK Code: 29, 47, 0, 51
14. Dark Slate Blue
This is a blueish color. I would say this is just a shade of blue color.
Hex Code: #483D8B
RGB Code: 72, 61, 139
CMYK Code: 48, 56, 0, 45
15. Dark Purple
Dark purple is a rich dark color. You can see the amount of black in the CMYK composition.
Hex Code: #301934
RGB Code: 48, 25, 52
CMYK Code: 8, 52, 0, 80.
16. Mauve
Mauve is a very light color. In this color, you do not need to mix yellow and black color.
Hex Code: #E0B0FF
RGB Code: 224, 176, 255
CMYK Code: 12, 31, 0, 0
17. Old mauve
This color is a great combination of magenta and yellow.
Hex Code: #673146
RGB Code: 103, 49, 70
CMYK Code: 0, 52, 32, 60.
18. French mauve
This is a really bright color. You can also use this color for hair dye.
Hex Code: #D473D4
RGB Code: 212, 115, 212
CMYK Code: 0, 46, 0, 17
19. Opera mauve
Opera mauve is the darker version of French mauve.
Hex Code: #B784A7
RGB Code: 183, 132, 167
CMYK Code: 0, 28, 9, 28
20. Pomp and power
Pomp and Power is a great cooler shade of purple color.
Hex Code: #86608E
RGB Code: 134, 96, 142
CMYK Code: 6, 32, 0, 44
21. Fairy tale
Fairy tale looks like light pink color. However, the addition of a little amount of black color makes this color unique.
Hex Code: #F2C1D1
RGB Code: 242, 193, 209
CMYK Code: 0, 20, 14, 5
22. Orchid
This color is the color of the orchid flower. Orchid color is also commonly used for hair coloring.
Hex Code: #DA70D6
RGB Code: 218, 112, 214
CMYK Code: 0, 49, 2, 15
23. Plum
This is one of the most popular shades of purple color. This color looks really cool.
Hex Code: #DDA0DD
RGB Code: 221, 160, 221
CMYK Code: 0, 28, 0, 13
24. Light Orchid
Light orchid is the darker tone of orchid color.
Hex Code: #D39BCB
RGB Code: 211, 155, 203
CMYK Code: 0, 27, 4, 17
25. Veronica
If you like to have a deep dusty shade of purple color, you will definitely love Veronica.
Hex Code: #A020F0
RGB Code: 160, 32, 240
CMYK Code: 33, 87, 0, 6
26. Byzantium
This color gives a dark tone with the magical combination of magenta, yellow, and black.
Hex Code: #702963
RGB Code: 112, 41, 99
CMYK Code: 0, 63, 12, 56
27. Violet
This is obviously a popular color, and it comes from the simple combination of red and blue. However, you can get different shades of violet color by changing the amount of red and blue colors.
Hex Code: #8F00FF
RGB Code: 143, 0, 255
CMYK Code: 44, 100, 0, 0
28. Wisteria
This is a soft pale purple color. Wisteria is the artist’s color.
Hex Code: #BCA7E8
RGB Code: 188, 167, 232
CMYK Code: 19, 28, 0, 9
29. Iris
Iris is a brighter color than wisteria.
Hex Code: #A06CCB
RGB Code: 160, 108, 203
CMYK Code: 21, 47, 0, 20
30. Periwinkle
Periwinkle is light purple color. People like me may like to paint the walls with this color.
Hex Code: #BFA9E0
RGB Code: 191, 169, 224
CMYK Code: 15, 25, 0, 12
31. Dark Magenta
Dark magenta is an excellent combination of magenta and black color.
Hex Code: #8B008B
RGB Code: 139, 0, 139
CMYK Code: 0, 100, 0, 45
32. Palatinate
If you want to have a darker shade in comparison to dark magenta, palatinate can be the right option for you.
Hex Code: #72246C
RGB Code: 114, 36, 108
CMYK Code: 0, 68, 5, 55
33. Indigo
Indigo is the darker tone of violet color and hugely popular color.
Hex Code: #4B0082
RGB Code: 75, 0, 130
CMYK Code: 42, 100, 0, 49
34. Fuchsia blue
If you like blue-purple, fuchsia-blue can be your color. Otherwise, you may Fuchsia which is a red-purple color.
Hex Code: #B400FF
RGB Code: 180, 0, 255
CMYK Code: 29, 100, 0, 0
35. Purple navy
I love this color for its dark impression. You can combine navy blue color and magenta to get this color.
Hex Code: #4E5180
RGB Code: 78, 81, 128
CMYK Code: 39, 37, 0, 50
Why is 2022 the year of Purple?
When Pantone came up with a custom color, a periwinkle blue, it’s red undertones, and bright hue impressed everyone. Shutterstock’s color trends also had a violet color, and now WGSN has declared the Orchid flower to be the color to watch out for.
What’s the similarity in these? Well, they are all variations of the color Purple.
Not just this, if you scroll through Instagram, Pinterest, or even Twitter – you will see that this is a dominant color across home decor, tech accessories, marketing campaigns, and whatnot. It can be because it is a welcome change after eons of seeing Pink dominate our screens and fashion products. Some also consider purple to be a perfect extension of our world’s current socio-economic state.
Some popular campaigns in 2021 and early 2022 that led us to believe that 2022 is the year of Purple are:
1) The Biden Inauguration
Okay, we know this is not a marketing campaign, but it is too good to miss. The Biden Inauguration was special for many reasons, but for us, it was the explosion of the color Purple that cinched the deal. While people heavily credited the union of colors from both the political parties for this, that truly set the ball rolling for Purple.
2) Spotify Wrapped 2021
We have said it before, and we will say it again. Spotify Wrapped is one of our favorite campaigns, and the 2021 version did not disappoint. This year’s design was spectacular as always. But the thing to note here is that it came with heavy usage of Purple shades.
3) McDonald’s Saweetie Meal
An unexpected addition to this list is this campaign in question from McDonald’s. Who here doesn’t know McDonald’s? But the brand has a very established branding style that all of us recognize everywhere. For them to take a detour and launch a campaign in a color palette that Gen Z and Millennials have come to love was a surprising but refreshing change. And guess what color featured prominent in that palette?
Equality
Last but not the least, society has changed a lot in the last few years. Social inequality and justice are now in the limelight more than ever. What this means to the current generation is that they want to grow up in a fair and equal society. The color purple has a long history of associating with some of the most powerful movements of our generation, right from the Women’s rights movement, the LGBTQIA+ pride flag, and the gender equality movement, to name a few.
This positive association has made it a preferred color for many individuals worldwide.
The many shades of Purple
Did you know that technically the color purple doesn’t exist? It’s actually a combination of red and blue waves that we see in the spectrum of light When we think we see purple, it’s just how our brains are interpreting the overlap of red and blue. Maybe that is what makes this color so special and unique.
In the trend world too, there is more than one shade of purple in the limelight. So before we go any further in telling you how to leverage this glorious color in marketing and design, let’s take a look at the many shades of Purple.
Very Peri
This color came into existence only at the end of 2021 when Pantone launched it as a custom color. An ode to our digital life, the color has undertones of the red we see on our screens every day. People all over the world love this color, and we are already seeing an explosion of this across many campaigns.
Orchid Flower
This is a vivid purple that everyone knows the Orchid flower for. WGSN believes that this color has what it takes to appeal to a wider audience and deliver what the world needs now. A little excitement, serenity, and calm.
Velvet Violet
This was one of Shutterstock’s color trends for 2022 and we think that the company has got it bang on. This color is as purple as it comes, and the mention of texture is an inspired touch from Shutterstock. Velvet piles on the luxury that many of us have come to expect from Purple shades.
Ultra Violet (2018 color of the year)
Pantone thought ahead in 2018 and declared Ultra Violet to be its color of the year in 2018. The team felt that this color was riveting, in touch with the times, and had a futuristic potential in the years to come. They were right, weren’t they?
Millennial Lavender
You know Millennial pink and how popular it’s been. But did you know that another color (lavender) started rising in prominence because of it? Designers and decorators have even dubbed it Millennial lavender. The general consensus is that after a period of looking at pink and neutrals, people wanted something invigorating but not too far from pink. Enter Millennial lavender.
Now that we have seen the variety Purple can offer, let’s see how you can use it in your marketing campaigns. And if you need some help applying these ideas to your campaigns, you can of course sign up for a Kimp Graphics subscription, and our team will help you out.
The Role of Purple in Marketing and Design
Not using such a popular color in your marketing and branding design in 2022 will be a huge wasted opportunity. Imagine if you can amass huge impressions, reach, and favor in your target audience – and new audiences!- just by using a particular color? Why not?
We do understand the apprehension and challenges in adopting a new color. So this section brings you curated advice by Kimp on how to leverage purple in your designs without diluting your brand’s visual identity.
How Purple works in Branding
By the looks of it, Purple is here to stay. And even if the trend changes, Purple has been a popular color for branding for quite some time now. So if your brand personality connects with ideas of luxury, elegance, and innovation, we say go for it. Embrace the purple color for your branding designs.
Ways to add Purple to your brand:
- Your logo design. It is the face of your brand, and if you want to attract this Purple-loving audience, you must be bold. Take the plunge and work on a logo design that features Purple in some way. We strongly recommend Very Peri and Orchid Flower for logos as they work brilliantly with other colors too.
- Your brand colors. If you feel that your logo design wouldn’t look great in Purple, you can still include it in your brand’s visual identity palette to connect with your customers.
- Want a more temporary way to add purple into the mix? Purple is a brilliant color to use across your websites, ecommerce stores, and even social media aesthetics. They are an extension of your physical branding and must have the same vibe you choose for your stores. Also, Very Peri is for the digital world, so it works brilliantly. Velvet Violet and Orchid flower are some good choices too.
Kimp Tip: Draft a brand persona and customer persona before you choose the shade of Purple that will become a part of your brand’s visual identity. Each of these shades has a strong following and knowing your audience will help you choose right. You can also run marketing experiments with focus groups and mockups to see what works.
Wondering how to implement these plans? Sign up for the Kimp Graphics subscription, and our team will dish out as many mockups as you want for a flat fee.
Marketing Campaigns with a touch of Purple
If you are a brand with an existing visual identity in place, and that is working for you, we do not recommend switching it up to follow a trend. Instead, what you can do is adopt this color as your marketing campaign’s primary color. That way, you are following the trend but still keeping your branding safe.
Right from physical store promotions, billboards, email marketing, to digital ads, Purple is a color that works brilliantly. It is a cheerful color and signifies innovation and energy to customers. It also projects a very modern image of your brand – all good things that can bring Gen Z and Millennial customers to your doors.
Kimp Tip: While all shades of purple look good on screens and print, you have to check their compatibility with your existing brand style guide. If they don’t work together, this is not a sustainable color strategy, so check before you proceed.
Sometimes, a color may look great in static graphics but not so much in motion graphics. Solve these issues with our Kimp Graphics + Video unlimited design subscription and experiment away.
Packaging & Purple
What is that one design that intersects branding and marketing? Packaging design. It is also one of the most underrated channels for raising brand awareness and emotional connection with customers. Unboxing culture has made packaging design more important than ever. So if not anywhere else, this is the place to bring Purple in for your brand.
Purple can be very engaging in print, and we recommend the Millennial lavender for a softer touch and the Velvet violet for a bold outlook.
Product packaging often follows color trends, and Samsung and Apple’s colored cases for their phones every year is a prime example.
Kimp Tip: If your packaging design is simplistic and you worry that purple may be too much of a change, we suggest including doodles and custom illustrations for a color pop theme. The best thing about Purple is that it goes well with almost all design themes – minimalism to Color Pop so you can experiment away.
Wondering how illustrations help packaging design? Check out Kimp’s guide here.
Eggplant Hair Color
Eggplant purple evokes the rich, hearty color of vegetarians’ favorite veggie. It’s a bold hair color statement that works especially well on anyone with natural dark skin or hair. The best part? You get to dress in a garden theme with complementary browns and greens that make this hair color perfect to brighten up colder months.
This ultra vivid violet is a bold hair color statement that’s especially powerful on anyone with natural brown hair. Your hair will look just like springtime with hair color the shade of a deep violet flower. The brightness means it works all year long. Try it with simple makeup like brown mascara and glowing highlighter to let the color really make a statement.
Silver Purple Hair Color
Add metallic notes to your look with a purple hair color that lets silver hair strands peek through. Try this on-trend hair color in a highlighted style to liven up naturally gray hair or give an understated elegance to a hair dye job.
Your favorite crayon is now a hair color. This bright hair color shade is a marriage of brightest pink and happy purple. We suggest choosing this look if you love to stand out. Finish the fun hairstyle with a perfectly matching magenta lipstick.
Neon Purple Hair Color
Calling all teens at heart and future rockstars. Neon hair is having a moment, and there’s no hair color more fun than electric purple. This head-turning hair color shade also works as ombre or highlights; no matter what you choose, you’ll be sure to stand out.
Take our quiz to discover the perfect Garnier hair shades for you!
