What Colors Make Black? How to Mix Black Paint

Short answer: you can make black by mixing dark complementary colors, such as a deep blue with a dark brown, or a dark red with a dark green, or by mixing all three primaries (red, yellow and blue) at full strength. The result is usually a very dark near-black that looks richer than black from a tube. Many painters prefer it for shadows.

Why mixing colors makes black

In paint, every color absorbs some light. When you combine colors that absorb different parts of the spectrum, together they absorb almost all of it, and what's left looks black. Complementary colors (opposites on the color wheel) cover each other's gaps, so they're the most effective pairs.

Mixes that make black

Mix	What kind of black	Tip
Ultramarine blue + burnt umber (dark brown)	A deep, neutral black	A painter's favorite; easy to shift warm or cool
Red + yellow + blue (dark versions)	Near-black	Use the darkest red and blue you have
Dark green + dark red (e.g. phthalo green + crimson)	A very dark, slightly cool black	Strong colors; use little paint
Dark blue + dark orange or brown	Warm black	Good for shadows in skin and wood
Purple + dark yellow-brown	Soft black	Great for night skies

Start with the darker color and add the other a little at a time. Test a small dab on paper: mixed blacks often look very dark in the jar and slightly colored when spread thin.

Warm and cool blacks

Cool black: add a little more blue. Good for night skies, water and metal.
Warm black: add a little more brown or red. Good for hair, fur and shadows in warm scenes.
Neutral black: balance the two until you can't tell which way it leans.

Why use mixed black instead of tube black?

Black straight from the tube can make colors look flat or "dirty" when you mix it in. A mixed black contains color, so shadows look more natural. If you only have tube black, use it in small amounts, and remember that darkening a color with its complementary color often looks better (see what colors make brown for how complements work).

Black with crayons, markers and colored pencils

Colored pencils: layer dark blue, dark brown and dark purple with firm pressure. It gives a deep, rich black that looks better than a single black pencil in large areas.
Crayons: a black crayon is easiest. For a richer black, color dark blue first and then black on top.
Markers: use a black marker for outlines, and a dark blue or purple underneath for large dark areas.

Our guide to how to color with colored pencils covers layering in more detail.

Black in light vs paint

On screens, black is simply the absence of light: the pixel is off. In paint, black comes from pigments absorbing almost all light. That's why you can't "mix" black on a screen the way you can with paint, and why white, not black, is what you get when you combine all colors of light.

Try it

Mixed black is great for night scenes. Try a page from our werewolf coloring pages or monster coloring pages, using a cool blue-black for the sky and a warm brown-black for fur.