teal in branding examples
What does the color teal look like for logos, and in branding? What color combinations create modern palettes?

Teal logos: meaning and modern color combinations

From teal blue to teal green: color palettes, and how to use different types of teal in modern logo design.



Color teal: meaning

The color teal is a relatively young color—the first recorded use of teal as a color name in English was only in 1917. It is named after the Eurasian teal, a duck with a teal-colored stripe on its head.

Although a mix between green and blue of equal parts and really a color of its own, teal often gets pulled into the green color family. Historically, green pigments for paints and fabric dyes were hard to extract from nature and therefore weren’t often used in clothing and heraldic arms. While green could have been mixed with pigments from the color blue and the color yellow, there was a deep dislike to mixing different substances due to distrust in alchemy. This medieval precursor of chemistry transformed matter by combining elements seemingly through magic. The superstitious convention vanished only during the early Renaissance and new copper greens were discovered by German Swedish chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele in the late eighteenth century. [1]

The color teal and its lighter shaded sister colors turquoise, cyan, aqua, and light green aren’t primary colors and are therefore not considered “basic.” A deep teal is calm, sophisticated, and knowledgeable, similar to the dark greens that you see in old libraries. Teal is relaxing; it can be found in nature combining blue skies and green fauna. When brightness is added to teal, or less black is used in the mix, teal becomes turquoise, aqua, cyan, or when there’s less blue, it turns into light green. These lighter shades of teal are younger, clearer, and more invigorating because they remind us of the shallow waters of sunny places.

[1] Clair, Kassia St. The Secret Lives of Color. Penguin Books, 2017.

Start with a Logo Template:

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teal logo template 1
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color palette from teal blue to teal green
Top: Monochrome color palette from cyan to teal. Teal is mixed from cyan plus 50% black. Bottom: Analogous color palette that shows the colors next to teal: blue and green.
teal
The color teal with white that lightens the color and makes it look duller. In contrast, if black is added to a color the darkness increases. These processes are called tinting (adding white) and shading (adding black).

The teal color values: from teal blue to teal green

When using the RGB color model like any screen does (a TV screen, a computer screen, a phone), the colors red, green, and blue (RGB) are being added and they create yellow, cyan, and magenta when they overlap and are being mixed. Cyan is composed of 50% green and 50% blue. In the CMYK color model (anything that gets printed on e.g. a home printer), if 50% black is added to cyan you’ll get the color teal. Teal has an RGB value of 0/128/128 or 0% red, 50.2% green, and 50.2% blue, and its HEX color value is #008080.

The more blue is added to the RGB value, teal turns into a teal blue and if green is added to teal, it turns into teal green.


examples teal for fashion, clothing, B2C
What does teal look like when used as a brand color for fashion logotype and labels, as B2C products or in branded spaces? Teal is sophisticated when used sparingly or when used boldly. It pairs well with neutral tones like white, beige and browns. Teal in form of texture carries well as velvet, a thick linen, or chenille. If you’re looking for fonts for fashion, check out our favorite list of fashion typefaces here. All photos courtesy of Unsplash.
examples teal as brand color for travel and art
The color teal lends itself for being used in travel and lifestyle branding—teal marries elegance, nature and depth. A modern palette that includes teal can use blue and green, brown, orange, and gold. Teal stands out when paired with muted colors like brown or desaturated blues and makes for a strong companion when used alongside a vibrant orange.
examples teal in branding for wellness and fashion
Teal communicates calm, comfort, and knowledge. Its sister colors aqua, cyan, and turquoise have less black and are therefore fresher and younger.

Industries and famous brands that use the color teal

In branding, the color teal has become super popular again in recent years. It is commonly used in electronics, sports, entertainment, communications, and creative sectors, and, when used in lighter and brighter tones, in children-related industries. Muted teal tones and pale greens work well for beauty logos and alongside fashion logotype.

Teal, the bright in particular, had its high times during the 90s, especially in sports branding but was superseded by blue again in the early 2000s. While blue is often listed as Western people’s most favorite color, a comprehensive 2016 publication shines a light on research showing that people have color preferences based on contexts such as clothing, furniture, or general designs as well as personal experiences and cultural backgrounds.

In the process of finding a brand color palette, branding agencies spend a lot of time choosing exactly the right shades. The strategic place to start is to take a look at the common brand colors in your industry first. As a second step, select a color based on what your closest competitors are NOT! using. The reason for that is “brand positioning”—the way the customer thinks of a brand. Good brands stand out—they’re known for something relevant in their field. Considering that, the color teal might be a great strategic choice because it’s not used very often; it makes the brand more memorable in the eyes of the customer.


famous brand logos teal and turquoise
Famous brands that use teal and its lighter color versions aqua, turquoise and light green: Siemens, Canva, GoDaddy, Tiffany & Co., Pampers, Clinique, TikTok, Deliveroo, and Bausch + Lomb.

Traits of teal in logos

After looking at your competitors’ brand colors and selecting a few colors that are not being used and may also fit your direction, pick a final color based on the general emotion you want to convey. Teal’s positive traits are healing, friendliness, invigoration, clarity, creativity, and calm. Teal’s negative traits are aloofness and unreliability.

Then build a palette from there: In modern branding, one bold brand color—which may or may not be complemented by up to three secondary colors—does well.

Pro Tip: Check out the How to create brand personality and traits article to learn more about how to find yours the easy way.

And if you’re on a tight budget or if you’re still testing product-market fit, Mojomox is the modern way to design your brand identity online for free. Create color palettes and logos fast with the mix-and-match letter system, for example for logos starting with the letter S or the letter M. Or get started quickly with the 101 logo ideas tool.


teal color palette using monochrome and analogue colors
Teal within a monochrome (shades of teal) and analogous (neighboring colors in a color wheel) colors blue and green. These types of color palettes create a deep, monochrome look.
teal color palette using complementary colors
The color teal with complementary colors such as orange and brown. Complementary colors are on opposite sides within a color wheel. They create a strong contrast.
teal color palette using complementary colors
Teal paired with muted complementary colors (top), and analogous colors green and blue with more brightness (bottom two rows). These palettes create a more vibrant look.

Start with a Logo Template:

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teal logo template 1
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teal logo template 3
teal logo template 4
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Modern color palettes including teal

Above we selected a few modern color palettes that include the color teal. For custom palettes try a color palette tool like Adobe Color. It lets you generate colors that work well together and you can test them for readability and accessibility.


To get started with the Mojomox logo maker, type your brand name into the field below:

1. Type company name2. Select design3. Modify logo and pick color palette