The ultimate guide to monochromatic colors in graphic design
Our color choices in art and design are vital to the creative process and end result.
The colors you pick for a design play a massive role in the final outcome. Color influences communication, and every single color says something.
A burst of joy, a sense of seriousness, or a splash of personality—color can characterize these in any design.
"One can speak poetry just by arranging colors well.”—Vincent Van Gogh
Building on these concepts, this article will explore monochromatic color palettes and how to maximize the use of a monochromatic color scheme in your designs.
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What are monochromatic colors?
When you break down the term “monochrome” to its Greek roots, you get:
- Monos = “one”
- Khroma = “color”
One color can have many variations. Monochrome colors are all the varieties of a single hue—the tints, shades, and tones.
A monochromatic color scheme will range between lighter, darker, and more or less saturated versions of the base color or hue.
"Monochrome means one color, so in relation to art, a monochrome artwork is one that includes only one color."—Tate Art Museum
Advantages of using monochromatic color palettes in your designs
- Cohesive brand identity: Monochromatic color schemes bind a color scheme together. By using different shades, tints, or tones of a single color, brands can create a recognizable and unified look across all their assets, from the company logo to marketing materials.
- Balance: Monochromatic colors bring a balanced appearance, reducing the risk of clashing hues. This uniformity helps create a seamless visual experience and can make designs appear more polished and sophisticated.
- Visual communication: A monochromatic palette can direct attention to the key elements of a design without distraction. By limiting the color palette, designers can ensure that important features, such as typography or imagery, stand out and remain the focal point.
- Simplicity: Monochromatic designs exude simplicity and elegance, making them suitable for high-end and luxury brands. The restrained use of color can evoke a sense of refinement and sophistication.
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Monochrome colors in graphic design
Monochromatic color schemes have a long history in graphic design. They’re often associated with minimalist and modern aesthetics.
Early modernist movements like Bauhaus often used monochromatic color schemes to emphasize form and function.
Today, brands leverage the power of monochromatic palettes to reinforce their visual identity and convey specific but coherent messages.
For example, tech companies often use a single color in various shades to project a clean, professional image. Fashion brands might use monochromatic schemes to evoke elegance and sophistication.
Designing with a monochromatic color palette requires practice, experimentation, and an understanding of color theory. Here’s what you need to consider:
- Depth and dimension: Place different tints, shades, and tones of your base color next to each other to create a sense of depth and dimension.
- Contrast: Contrast is important within a monochromatic scheme. Use contrasting shades to emphasize elements and create focal points.
- Texture and pattern: Monochromatic designs benefit from the use of textures and patterns. These can break up the color field and add visual interest.
- White and black: Don’t underestimate the power of white and black. Skillfully incorporating white and black into your designs can help create sharp contrasts, add clarity, and make your monochromatic designs pop.
These color schemes can shape a person's emotional responses and perceptions of a design and create a particular atmosphere.
“Color plays an important role in creating high-impact designs. Regardless of the context, be it graphic design or the design of spaces, objects, or complete experiences, color is the primary tool for designers to capture and guide the user's attention while evoking emotional responses. I employ the 60-30-10 color proportion rule, where I designate a primary color (60%) to serve as the "canvas" for highlighting the complementary (30%) and accent (10%) colors.” - Nastya Kuliábina, Designer and Marketer
How to create a monochromatic color scheme
1. Choose your base color
So you’ve decided to use a monochromatic color palette for your design. But which hue must you choose for the base color?
It depends on your communication objectives and the intended audience. For example, if you’re working on a creative project for a personal brand, you could choose your client's favorite color and play with the shades and tones.
If you’re creating graphic design or illustrations for a brand, you should make the color selection based on the brand’s corporate identity. Choose a memorable color that stands out to make a statement.
2. Create your monochromatic color palette
Monochromatic schemes usually consist of three to seven color variations in your one-color palette, with darker shades, lighter tints, and duller tones of the original color. By using just one hue, you can create a balanced design.
Let’s quickly review color terminology:
- Hue: the base color, which is the primary shade the palette is built around.
- Tints: lighter versions of the hue created by adding white.
- Shades: darker versions made by adding black to your base color.
- Tones: mixing the hue with gray creates tones and adds complexity and depth without changing the color identity.
Even small tone, tint, or shade changes can impact how a color is perceived. Contrary to what you might expect, cool colors often look brighter when paired with warm pastels. This effect can be beneficial when creating contrast within a limited palette.
Here are some basic steps to put together a monochromatic color palette:
- Start with a base color like yellow.
- Create tints by adding white to your base yellow. This will result in lighter shades.
- Create shades by adding black to your base yellow. This will give you darker variations.
- Mix the base yellow with gray to create more muted tones.
- Add your chosen colors as swatches to make it easy to work with them.
Example monochromatic color palette
- Base yellow: Lemon yellow (#FFF700)
- Tint: Pastel yellow (#FFFF99)
- Shade: Goldenrod (#DAA520)
- Tone: Olive yellow (#BDB76B)
Your initial chosen color can be primary or secondary. You can also choose a tertiary color. There's no limit to your color selection as long as it's a hue that you can alter by adding a range of tints, shades, and tones.
Our advice? Don't start with a tint, shade, or tone as a base color because doing so will limit your color palette.
Watch the video below to learn how to create a digital color palette using Linearity's (formerly Vectornator) design platform.
3. Make your image irresistible
There’s beauty in simplicity, and monochromatic images are definitely beautiful. The illustration below takes one intense color found in the night sky and uses it to create an entire landscape—with a little help from a contrasting white brushstroke.
The designer used a range of purple tones to bring depth to the artwork by creating the illusion of shadow and silhouette. Contrasted with lighter shades of blue, the monochrome image is dynamic, using only a single base color.
“I always try to find an exact color or color combination to convey a visual message in the most effective way, or sometimes color helps to immerse the viewer or user in the context even deeper.”—Nastassia Rybak, Graphic Designer
4. Play with grayscale
An all-gray design doesn't have to be drab. There are many ways to incorporate grayscale into modern designs.
This approach, known as an achromatic color scheme, means it lacks color and is purely made of shades and tones. Achromacy and monochromacy are often seen in minimalist styles, creating visual harmony in various design settings.
For a more dynamic look, consider combining an achromatic theme with a pop of color for a strong visual statement.
Graphic designer Ramius Aquiler plays with monochrome in grayscale by combining a pop of yellow. Bright and expressive colors contrasted against gray work beautifully together to draw the viewer's attention to where he wants it to be.
Grayscale can be cool, classy, and simple. There are more variations than you’d imagine. You could add an undertone of beige, yellow, or red to create variations of warmer grays or diversify your color options with a sharp contrast between black and white.
5. Add textures
You can create an entire design in just one color by playing with texture or creating the illusion of texture with contrasting lighter and darker colors.
Think of embossing, relief engraving, and repeating patterns. Think in 3D. There are many ways to make an interesting image—even one with a limited color palette.
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Monochromatic color scheme examples for inspiration
Inspiration is everywhere. From the calming grays of a foggy morning to the vibrant blues of a sunny day, the natural world is filled with stunning monochromatic schemes.
Take these inspirations into your digital canvas and experiment with the limitless potential of monochromatic design.
Brand identity design
Monochromatic design is perfect for creating visual cohesion. Many design elements make up a brand's visual identity, and color plays a significant role in defining the brand.
When choosing the primary brand color, you’ll start where anything in marketing starts—knowing your audience. Choose a color that resonates with the intended audience and communicates what the brand stands for.
Applying a monochrome technique to brand identity effectively creates unity. It'll make designing anything for the brand much easier going forward, as all the colors have already been added to the palette.
Vibrant, bold designs
In a monochromatic scheme, you can have fun with bold colors such as neon or red.
The benefit of incorporating lighter tints and darker shades of a striking, bold color into a design is that you can make a statement without the design being overwhelming or too bright.
Calming, muted designs
Neutral tones in a monochrome design exude timeless style. This color scheme works well for lifestyle brands and high-end products.
A neutral color palette keeps your design simple, bringing peace and connection to nature. Various shades of beige and brown are gentle and calming, especially when combined with white. Darker shades of neutrals can also be used to create a warm ambiance.
Packaging that pops
Monochrome color schemes have been used for some inspiring packaging designs. This technique works particularly well when packaging products that come in a set. Each item can be differentiated by having its own variation from the color palette, as seen below.
With Linearity, you can easily create packaging designs with a monochrome design in grayscale. The benefit of this? You can keep printing costs low.
UX/UI design
Color is used as a communication technique in UX/UI design.
Variations of a single color can be used to show relationships between elements (for instance, subscribe or log-in buttons) or differentiate segments on an interface. In the example below, variations of orange communicate degrees of temperature.
Simplicity
A monochrome palette is the perfect solution for honing the beauty of simplicity.
Limiting your range of colors simplifies the design process, as you don’t need to combine different colors to please the eye. Monochrome colors always look good together.
Even a bright and vibrant monochrome scheme is simple because there's no stark variation in color. It offers a sense of unity that’s inherently uncomplicated and effortless.
Monochromatic color photography
Black-and-white photography and color overlays allow for so much creativity. Monochromatic color photography captures images in one color.
You can combine a monochrome color scheme with photography by intentionally photographing a monochromatic scene or, in the editing phase, by applying a tinted overlay on top of a photograph.
Infographics
A valuable piece of content, infographic design has evolved exponentially in the last few years as more online tools become available for visual data handling.
Designers are getting creative and making some striking infographic designs.
Graphic design tools help non-designers easily create infographics, too. As a marketing designer, it'll be worth your while to learn how to produce captivating infographics.
A monochromatic color scheme can create a creative and engaging infographic that attracts attention and conveys important information.
Hue got this: start creating color palettes
There are many ways to harness monochrome design. Think: Baby pink for a bubblegum brand, grayscale with a bright blue accent color, or a range of dark shades in green to create a moody illustration.
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Get our softwareFrequently asked questions
Is a monochromatic color scheme just black and white?
No, a monochromatic color scheme doesn't only include black and white. While black and white are considered monochrome, a monochromatic color scheme in graphic design refers to a palette derived from a single base hue and extends to its shades, tints, and tones.
When should I use a monochromatic color scheme?
Use a monochromatic color scheme to create a sense of harmony, unity, and coherence in your design. This can lead to a cleaner, more elegant, and visually appealing design. Monochromatic designs can also effectively convey a message or mood.
It can help establish a strong brand identity, as consistent use of specific colors helps customers recognize and remember your brand.
Can a monochromatic design be engaging and dynamic?
Yes. A monochromatic color scheme can produce a dynamic and visually engaging design despite using just one base hue.
You can achieve this by varying the shades, tints, and tones, and using patterns, textures, and contrast to add depth and interest.
Are there any specific tools or software for creating monochromatic designs?
Most graphic design software, such as Linearity Curve, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop, allow you to create monochromatic designs easily.
They offer tools for choosing color schemes based on a single hue and advanced color manipulation features to create shades, tints, and tones of your chosen color.
How can I choose the best base color for my monochromatic color scheme?
The best base color for your design depends on the message or emotion you want to convey.
For instance, blue might convey trust and calm, red for passion or urgency, and green for growth or tranquility. Consider color psychology theory and the cultural significance of colors when choosing your base color.
Can I use different saturations in a monochromatic color scheme?
Yes. Using different saturations of the same hue is one way to create variety in a monochromatic color scheme. Varying the saturation creates lighter (less saturated) or more vibrant (more saturated) versions of the base color, giving you a broad palette to work with.