What colors make blue?
In paint, blue is a primary color and cannot be mixed. In print, cyan and magenta make blue; on screens, blue is a primary of light.
How to mix blue
Like red, blue is a primary in the traditional painter’s model, so it cannot be mixed from other paints. In the printer’s model, cyan and magenta make blue, and that is how inkjet printers and many modern paint sets get theirs.
Lighter, darker and muted blue
- Lighter blue: add white.
- Darker blue (navy): add a little black or a touch of orange.
- Teal or turquoise: add green or a little yellow.
- Violet-blue (indigo): add a touch of purple or red.
Add darkening colors a little at a time: it is easy to darken a mix and hard to lighten it again. When you need a lot of a color, mix more than you think you need, because matching a batch later is difficult.
Blue in paint, print and light
There are three color-mixing models. Paint uses the traditional red, yellow and blue primaries. Printers use cyan, magenta and yellow (plus black). Screens mix red, green and blue light, and light adds up instead of absorbing. Blue is a primary color of light (the B in RGB), so #0000FF is pure blue light.
| Model | Primaries | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| RYB (paint) | Red, yellow, blue | Painting, art education |
| CMY(K) (print) | Cyan, magenta, yellow (+ black) | Printing, many modern paint sets |
| RGB (light) | Red, green, blue | Screens, web and digital design |
Shades of blue to aim for
Named shades near blue. Each links to its hex, RGB and OKLCH values and the colors that go with it.
What blue makes with other colors
| Mix | Result | Ratio | Hex |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue + red | purple | equal parts | #483A4B |
| Blue + orange | dull gray-green (neutral) | 2 blue : 1 orange | #276155 |
| Blue + yellow | green | equal parts | #4D954A |
| Blue + green | blue-green (teal) | equal parts | #1B6C56 |
| Blue + purple | blue-violet (indigo) | equal parts | #3B3A9F |
| Blue + pink | lavender (light purple) | 1 blue : 2 pink | #808EC2 |
| Blue + brown | near black (dark slate) | equal parts | #38503D |
| Blue + black | blue-black (dark navy) | 2 blue : 1 black | #212D33 |
| Blue + white | light blue (sky blue) | 2 blue : 3 white | #7CB7EB |
| Blue + gray | slate blue (blue-gray) | 1 blue : 2 gray | #5A7D8F |
More color mixing answers
- What colors make brown?Mix any two complementary colors: red and green, blue and orange, or yellow and purple. All three primaries together also make brown.
- What colors make purple?Red and blue make purple. For a brighter violet, mix magenta with blue or cyan; add white for lavender.
- What colors make green?Blue and yellow make green. Cyan and yellow give the brightest green; yellow and black give olive green.
- What colors make orange?Red and yellow make orange. More yellow gives amber; more red gives red-orange.
- What colors make red?In paint, red is a primary color and cannot be mixed from others. In print, magenta and yellow make red; on screens, red is a primary of light.
- What colors make yellow?Yellow is a primary color in paint and print and cannot be mixed. On screens, red and green light make yellow.
- What colors make pink?Red and white make pink. Magenta and white give a cooler, brighter pink; add a touch of yellow for coral or salmon.
- What colors make black?Mix the three primaries, or two dark complementary colors such as ultramarine blue and burnt umber, to make a near-black.
- What colors make gray?Black and white make gray. For a richer gray, mix two complementary colors (blue and orange) and add white.
- What colors make teal?Blue and green make teal. Add a touch of black for dark teal or white for light teal.
- What colors make gold?Mix yellow with a little orange or red, then a touch of brown. Metallic gold needs a metallic or pearlescent medium.
- What colors make tan?Brown and white make tan. A little yellow keeps it warm; a touch of black makes it darker.
Frequently asked questions
Can you mix blue paint?
Not from red and yellow. Blue is a painter’s primary. In the printer’s model, cyan plus magenta makes blue.
What two colors make blue?
Cyan and magenta, in the CMY printing model.
How do you make navy blue?
Add a little black to blue, or a touch of orange (its complement). See blue and black.
Mix blue digitally
Blend colors by weight in a spectral paint model, OKLab or linear light, then copy the hex codes.