3 Quick Tips for Choosing Your Brand Colors (Backed by Strategy & Psychology)

Brand Design

Aug 24

Choosing brand colors can feel like a never-ending Pinterest scroll or a fight with your inner perfectionist (especially if you’re a visual person like most of my clients). But color isn’t just about looking good — it plays a huge role in how people perceive your brand.

If you’ve ever wondered why some brands feel elevated and cohesive while others feel kind of...off, chances are color is part of that story. You might find yourself asking:

How do I know what colors go well together?
What if they don’t evoke the right emotions?
My favorite color is (purple, orange, neon green, etc.) … can’t I just use that?

Let’s break it down with 3 quick, practical tips for choosing a brand color palette you won’t second-guess six months from now.

1. Keep It Simple

Too often I see new business owners (and even new designers) going way overboard with 10-color palettes, foils, textures, etc. — and to be brutally honest, it’s just not necessary, especially if you’re DIY-ing your branding. Adding complexities like these can be awesome when done carefully and intentionally, but more often than not they just over-complicate things and make for a color palette that, while beautiful, is actually pretty difficult to use.

If you’re wondering how to choose brand colors that are easy to implement, I suggest keeping your palette to six colors or less whenever possible. Now, don’t get me wrong — there are absolutely times when you’ll need a more robust palette — but I’d urge you to start small and expand your palette as needed.

Within your palette, you’ll want to include an appropriate mix of:

Primary brand colors (2–3): These are your main colors used across your brand — website, social media, printables, etc.
Secondary brand colors (2–3): Used as accents to support your primaries — think buttons, sale tags, subheadings, etc.
Neutral colors (1–2): These help tie everything together without stealing the show — best used for backgrounds, accent graphics, and subtle elements.

Need a tool to help test your combinations? Coolors is one of my favorite free palette generators for trying out ideas.

2. Use Color Psychology

Believe it or not, there’s actually a pretty precise science behind how to choose your brand colors. Color psychology in branding helps explain how we react emotionally to different colors and the subliminal messages they communicate. If you're curious, I dive deeper into this in A Beginner’s Guide to Color Theory.

But here’s the TL;DR: different colors make people feel different things. You can reverse-engineer the emotions you want your audience to associate with your brand — and pick colors accordingly.

Here’s a quick cheat sheet of what each color tends to communicate:

Red: Love, passion, power, urgency, hunger
Orange: Warmth, friendliness, energy, positivity
Yellow: Cheerfulness, optimism, joy
Green: Freshness, nature, calm, money, growth
Blue: Trust, tranquility, reliability, professionalism
Purple: Luxury, ambition, mystery, spirituality
White: Simplicity, freshness, purity
Black: Elegance, strength, sophistication
Gray: Stability, intelligence, neutrality
Brown/Tan: Dependability, natural tones, tradition

Think about how you want your brand to feel and use that as a guide for choosing your palette. If you're not sure where to start, this free brand audit can help clarify the personality and vibe you’re going for.

3. Have Fun And Play Around With It!

Now that you’re armed with two of my favorite tools — a solid base structure and a little insight into brand color psychology — it’s time to get to work. You’ll definitely want to try out several different versions of your color palette, and don’t expect to land on the perfect one with your first try.

When I’m working with one of my high-end branding clients, I spend several hours researching and building palette options before I even start designing. Even then, I usually create 10+ variations before presenting anything. The magic really is in the process — so allow yourself to explore!

Try combinations that seem a little out there. Try combinations that feel safe. Look to other brands you admire for inspiration. And when you think you’ve found the perfect palette? Keep playing with it.