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.
How to mix yellow
Yellow is a primary in both the painter’s and the printer’s models, so no two paints make it. It is a secondary color only in light: a screen shows yellow by lighting its red and green subpixels together.
Lighter, darker and muted yellow
- Lighter yellow: add white.
- Golden yellow: add a little orange or red.
- Darker yellow (mustard, ochre): add a little brown, not black.
- Lemon yellow: add a touch of green or white.
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.
Yellow 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. Red light plus green light makes yellow light: #FF0000 + #00FF00 shows as #FFFF00.
| 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 yellow to aim for
Named shades near yellow. Each links to its hex, RGB and OKLCH values and the colors that go with it.
What yellow makes with other colors
| Mix | Result | Ratio | Hex |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow + red | orange | 3 yellow : 2 red | #FA7A30 |
| Yellow + orange | yellow-orange (amber) | equal parts | #F8A221 |
| Yellow + green | yellow-green (chartreuse) | 2 yellow : 1 green | #9DC930 |
| Yellow + blue | green | equal parts | #4D954A |
| Yellow + purple | brown (muddy gray-brown) | 1 yellow : 2 purple | #885056 |
| Yellow + pink | peach (light orange) | equal parts | #F8B646 |
| Yellow + brown | golden brown (ochre) | equal parts | #B8872F |
| Yellow + black | olive green | 2 yellow : 1 black | #5B5D36 |
| Yellow + white | pale yellow (cream) | 1 yellow : 3 white | #FDF59A |
| Yellow + gray | khaki (muted yellow) | equal parts | #B6B240 |
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 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.
- 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
What two colors make yellow?
In paint, none: yellow is a primary. In light, red and green make yellow.
How do you make dark yellow?
Add a little brown or orange, not black. Black turns yellow olive green; see yellow and black.
How do you make mustard yellow?
Mix yellow with a little brown, or with a touch of purple to dull it.
Mix yellow digitally
Blend colors by weight in a spectral paint model, OKLab or linear light, then copy the hex codes.