What Colors Make Gray? 3 Easy Ways to Mix Gray

Short answer: gray (or grey) is made by mixing black and white. The more white you add, the lighter the gray. You can also make a gray by mixing two opposite colors, such as blue and orange, then adding white. That second method gives you livelier grays that look richer than the flat gray you get from black and white.

Below are three easy ways to mix gray, how to make warm and cool grays, and how to get gray with crayons and colored pencils.

Gray or grey?

Both are correct. "Gray" is the usual spelling in the United States and "grey" is more common in the UK and many other places. They mean the same color, so use whichever you like.

3 ways to mix gray

1. Black plus white

This is the simplest recipe. Start with white and add black a tiny bit at a time. Black is very strong, so a small dot goes a long way. Stir fully before you add more.

Mix	Result
Mostly white + a speck of black	Light gray
Equal white and black	Medium gray
Mostly black + some white	Charcoal or dark gray

Remember that it's much easier to make a gray darker than to make it lighter, so begin with white as your base.

Gray from black and white can look flat or dull. It's fine for stone, metal or pavement. For anything more natural, try the next methods.

2. Two opposite colors plus white

Colors that sit opposite each other on the color wheel cancel each other out when mixed. In paint, that gives you a neutral color, which is a brown or a gray depending on the amounts. Add white and you get a gray with a hint of color.

Opposites	Mix with white to get
Blue + orange	A soft blue-gray or warm gray
Red + green	A reddish or greenish gray
Yellow + purple	A pale yellow-gray or lavender gray

The best way to get a true gray is to mix the opposites in nearly equal amounts. If one color wins, you get brown. See what colors make brown for what happens when you mix opposites without white. For the wheel itself, check out our color mixing chart.

3. All three primaries plus white

Mix red, yellow and blue until you have a dull dark brownish color, then add white. This is really the same as method 2, since each opposite pair contains all three primaries. You can nudge the gray toward warm or cool by using a bit more of one primary.

Warm gray vs cool gray

Not all grays are the same. Gray can lean warm or cool.

	Warm gray	Cool gray
Leans toward	Red, orange, yellow, brown	Blue, green, purple
Looks like	Stone, sand, driftwood, an elephant	Steel, storm clouds, a shark, winter sky
How to mix	Black or gray + a touch of orange, red or yellow	Black or gray + a touch of blue

You usually decide this by looking at what's next to the gray. A warm gray next to a cool blue looks beige. A cool gray next to a warm red looks bluish. Read more about this in warm and cool colors.

Gray shades you might want

Light gray (silver, ash): lots of white plus a touch of black or blue.
Charcoal: black with a little white and a speck of blue or brown.
Slate: gray with extra blue and a little green.
Taupe: gray plus brown.
Gunmetal: dark gray with a bit of blue.

How to color gray with crayons and colored pencils

You can't mix dry media on a palette, but you can layer.

Use gray pencils or crayons if you have them. Many sets come with light and dark grays. Layer a light gray as a base and a darker gray in the shadows.
Layer opposites. Color lightly with blue, then layer orange over it with light pressure. Or red then green. The result is a soft, natural gray. Keep your pressure light so the paper grain doesn't fill with waxy color.
Black plus a light touch. If you use black pencil for gray, press very lightly. A light black layer looks gray. Press harder only for deep shadows.
Blend with a white pencil. After layering, a white or colorless pencil can smooth the surface.

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

Tips for natural-looking gray

Don't use one flat gray. Real stone, clouds and animal fur have many grays in them. Use three: a light, a medium and a dark.
Tint your grays. A gray with a little blue looks like a rainy sky. With a little brown it looks like an old wall.
Use gray for shadows with care. Black or gray shadows can look dull. Try dark blue or purple under yellow things, and dark green under red things.
Leave some paper white for highlights.

Gray in coloring pages

Gray appears on many subjects. A few good ones:

Sharks, dolphins and elephants. Try a shark coloring page with cool gray on top and lighter gray on the belly.
Dinosaurs: many artists use grays and browns for their skin.
Bats, wolves and rocks.
Rainy weather, fog and castle stones.

You can also practice with a set of paint chips or a grayscale strip: color a row of squares from white to black using only pencil pressure, and see how many steps you can make.