What color do yellow and brown make?
Yellow and brown make golden brown (ochre). Yellow lightens and warms brown into golden brown: ochre, mustard and caramel.
Yellow + brown = golden brown (ochre)
Why yellow and brown make golden brown (ochre)
Brown is a dark, dull orange, so yellow and brown behave like yellow mixed with a darkened orange: the result is earthier and darker than either bright color alone.
Paint mixes subtractively: each pigment absorbs part of the light, and the mix reflects only what both let through. That is why paint mixes get darker and duller as you add colors, while light mixes get brighter.
Change the ratio
Equal parts are only the middle of a range. More yellow pulls the result toward yellow, more brown toward brown. Mix a small test batch, note the parts you used, and scale up once you like it.
All three are mixed with the same spectral paint model. Dark paints are strong, so a little of them changes a mix a lot; light paints such as white and yellow need more parts to show.
Yellow and brown on a screen
Tips for mixing yellow and brown
- Start with the yellow and add the brown to it a little at a time. Darker colors overpower lighter ones quickly, so this way round wastes less paint.
- Mix thoroughly with a palette knife; streaks of unmixed yellow or brown change how the color reads from a distance.
- Let a test swatch dry before judging it. Acrylics usually dry a little darker, while watercolors dry lighter.
- Write down the ratio that works (for example 2 parts to 1) so you can mix the same color again.
- To match a color on screen, compare the paint swatch against the hex code here on a calibrated display, and remember print and paint cannot reach every screen color.
More yellow color mixes
| 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 + 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 brown color mixes
| Mix | Result | Ratio | Hex |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brown + red | reddish brown (rust) | 3 brown : 2 red | #8B3C29 |
| Brown + orange | burnt orange | equal parts | #A76427 |
| Brown + green | olive (dark olive green) | 3 brown : 2 green | #58582D |
| Brown + blue | near black (dark slate) | equal parts | #38503D |
| Brown + purple | plum brown (aubergine) | 1 brown : 2 purple | #6F3856 |
| Brown + pink | rosy brown | equal parts | #AE734E |
| Brown + black | dark brown (espresso) | 2 brown : 1 black | #312C22 |
| Brown + white | light brown (beige, tan) | 2 brown : 3 white | #D3AF82 |
| Brown + gray | taupe | 1 brown : 2 gray | #89795D |
Frequently asked questions
What color do yellow and brown make?
Yellow and brown make golden brown (ochre) in paint (about #B8872F, mixed equal parts). Yellow lightens and warms brown into golden brown: ochre, mustard and caramel.
Is yellow and brown the same in paint and on a screen?
Not exactly. Paint gives golden brown (ochre) (about #B8872F at equal parts), while a 50/50 digital blend in a design tool gives #BB8B2B, because screens mix light rather than pigment.
How do I make the mix lighter or darker?
Add white to lighten it into a tint, black (a little at a time) to darken it into a shade, or gray to mute it. Changing the ratio of yellow to brown shifts the hue itself.
What other colors make gold?
Mix yellow with a little orange or red, then a touch of brown. Metallic gold needs a metallic or pearlescent medium. See what colors make gold.
Mix any two colors
The color mixer blends up to five colors by weight in a spectral paint model, OKLab or linear light, and exports the steps.