Colours behave differently depending on whether they are displayed on a screen or printed on paper. Understanding the three main colour systems will help you avoid surprises when your designs go from screen to print.
RGB — For Screens
RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue. These are the colours of light that your screen mixes together to create every colour you see on monitors, phones, tablets, and TVs.
- Use for: websites, social media, email, presentations, digital ads
- Colour range: very wide — can display vivid, bright colours that print cannot reproduce
- Format: three values from 0–255 (e.g., R:212 G:175 B:7)
CMYK — For Print
CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key (Black). These are the four ink colours used in standard commercial printing. Every brochure, business card, and poster you have ever seen was printed using combinations of these four inks.
- Use for: anything that goes through a printer — brochures, business cards, packaging, posters, flyers
- Colour range: narrower than RGB — some bright on-screen colours simply cannot be reproduced in print
- Format: four percentage values (e.g., C:0 M:17 Y:97 K:17)
Pantone (PMS) — For Brand Consistency
Pantone colours are pre-mixed, standardised inks identified by a unique number (e.g., Pantone 7405 C). Unlike CMYK, which mixes four inks on the press, Pantone uses a single pre-mixed ink for exact colour matching.
- Use for: brand colours that must be identical every time — across business cards, signage, packaging, merchandise
- Why it matters: CMYK can vary slightly between print runs and printers. Pantone guarantees the same colour every time, everywhere
- Cost: Pantone printing costs slightly more because it uses additional ink plates
Why Your Screen Colour Looks Different From the Print
Your screen uses light (RGB) to create colours. Paper uses ink (CMYK) to create colours. These are fundamentally different systems, and some RGB colours — particularly bright blues, vivid greens, and neon shades — simply cannot be replicated in CMYK ink. This is not a mistake or a printing error. It is physics.
What Your Brand Guidelines Should Include
Your brand colour palette should specify values in all relevant systems:
- HEX (for web: #D3AF07)
- RGB (for screens: 212, 175, 7)
- CMYK (for print: 0, 17, 97, 17)
- Pantone (for exact matching: PMS 7405 C)
This ensures your brand colour is consistent whether it appears on a website, a business card, or a vehicle wrap.