Colors in Minecraft: the complete guide

The 16 dyes: color table

Minecraft has exactly 16 dyes, and each one matches a single color. Dyes color wool, glass, terracotta, concrete, beds, candles, leather armor and banners. The table below lists every color with its hex code, which is handy for builders and for texture pack makers alike.

How to make dyes

You can get dyes in a few different ways. The most common is crafting from flowers: put a flower in any slot of the crafting grid and you get a dye in the matching color. Below you'll find every way to get dyes.

Dyes from flowers

This is the easiest way to get most dyes. Flowers grow naturally in many biomes and you can pick them by hand. Here is every flower and the dye it gives:

Dyes from smelting

Two dyes need a furnace:

• Green dye: smelt a cactus in a furnace. Cacti grow naturally in the desert and in badlands biomes.
• Lime dye: smelt a sea pickle in a furnace. Sea pickles can be found in warm oceans.

Dyes from other sources

• Black dye: an ink sac from a squid, or a wither rose
• White dye: bone meal (made from skeleton bones) or a lily of the valley
• Blue dye: lapis lazuli (mined between Y=-64 and Y=64) or a cornflower
• Brown dye: cocoa beans from jungles

Mixing dyes

You can make many secondary dyes by combining two basic dyes in the crafting grid. This is especially useful when the right flowers aren't nearby. Here is every mixing recipe:

Chat color codes (§0-§f)

Minecraft uses the § (section sign) followed by a single character (0-9 or a-f) to color text in chat, on signs, in item names and in config files. On most multiplayer servers you type an & (ampersand) instead of §, because the Minecraft client won't let you type § directly into chat.

The table below lists all 16 color codes with samples and exact hex values:

How to use color codes

• In config files (for example the MOTD in server.properties): use the code directly, like §eYour §6server
• On servers with plugins (for example EssentialsX): use &eYour &6server
• In /tellraw commands: use JSON with a "color" field, for example /tellraw @a {"text":"Welcome!","color":"gold"}

Text style codes (§l, §m, §n, §o, §r)

Besides colors, Minecraft also supports text formatting codes. You can combine them with color codes. Always put the color code first and the style code after it.

Combining example: §6§l = gold bold text. Remember that the color code always has to come before the style code. In the reverse order, the color resets the style.

Hex color codes (&#RRGGBB)

Since Minecraft Java Edition 1.16, chat supports full RGB hex codes, which gives you over 16 million colors instead of the standard 16. This works in /tellraw, in config files and in plugins that support hex.

Format in /tellraw commands

In the /tellraw command, use the "color" field with a hex code:

/tellraw @a {"text":"Colored text!","color":"#FF6B2C"}

Format on servers (plugins)

Popular plugins like EssentialsX, CMI and ChatControl support hex in several variants:

• EssentialsX: &#FF6B2C or &x&F&F&6&B&2&C
• MiniMessage (PaperMC): <color:#FF6B2C>Text</color>
• Gradients (MiniMessage): <gradient:#FF0000:#0000FF>Gradient text</gradient>

Popular hex codes to use in Minecraft

Leather armor colors

Leather armor is the only type of player armor you can dye. By mixing dyes you can get over 12 million unique colors, far more than the standard 16.

How to dye armor: Java Edition

In Java Edition, put a piece of leather armor and one or more dyes in any slots of the crafting grid. You can add up to 8 dyes at once, which gives a mixed color.

How to dye armor: Bedrock Edition

In Bedrock Edition, use a cauldron: fill it with water, click it with a dye (the water changes color), then click the cauldron with the armor piece. Each click with another dye mixes its color with the existing one.

Mixing armor colors

Minecraft's color mixing works differently from mixing real paint. The game averages the RGB values of every dye used, then shifts the result toward the strongest component. That keeps colors more vivid than simple averaging would. The final result depends on the order and proportions of the dyes you use.

Wool colors

Wool comes in all 16 colors and is one of the oldest dyeable blocks in Minecraft (it was added in Classic). White wool drops naturally from sheep, and it is the basic material for dyeing.

Ways to get colored wool

1. Dyeing white wool: put white wool and a dye in the crafting grid (1 wool + 1 dye = 1 colored wool)
2. Dyeing a sheep: right-click a sheep while holding a dye. The sheep changes color permanently and gives colored wool when sheared. This is the most cost-effective method, because a sheep regrows its wool again and again.
3. Natural spawns: sheep spawn mostly white (81.836%), but they can also be light gray (5%), gray (5%), black (5%) or brown (3%). Pink sheep are extremely rare (0.164%).

Palette of all 16 wool colors

Wool is widely used for decoration, pixel art, adventure maps and building projects. Because wool burns, it's a poor main building material in survival. Consider concrete as a fireproof alternative.

Glass colors

Stained glass is a transparent decorative block that comes in all 16 colors. To craft it, surround a dye with 8 blocks of regular glass in the crafting grid (3x3, dye in the center). One recipe gives you 8 blocks of stained glass.

Stained glass panes

Stained glass panes are crafted from 6 blocks of stained glass arranged in two rows of 3 in the crafting grid. The recipe gives 16 panes. You can also dye regular glass panes: 8 panes + 1 dye = 8 stained glass panes.

Uses for colored glass

• Windows and stained glass: combining many colors creates a stained-glass effect, ideal for churches and historic buildings
• Beacons: stained glass placed above a beacon changes the color of its beam. You can mix colors by stacking glass of different colors one above the other
• Aquariums: stained glass gives the water a colored tint

Concrete colors

Concrete is one of the most popular building materials in Minecraft, valued for its vivid, saturated colors and smooth, grain-free texture. Compared with wool, concrete has more intense colors and, most importantly, it doesn't burn.

How to make concrete

Making concrete takes two steps:

1. Craft concrete powder: 4 gravel + 4 sand + 1 dye = 8 pieces of concrete powder in the color you want
2. Harden the powder: put the concrete powder in contact with water (still or flowing water both work). The powder turns into a full block of concrete right away. Rain doesn't trigger the process: it has to be a water block.

Concrete colors compared with wool

Terracotta colors

Terracotta, formerly known as hardened clay, comes in 16 colors plus an undyed version. It has distinctly muted, earthy shades that suit builds in desert, medieval and rustic styles.

How to make terracotta

1. Plain terracotta: smelt a block of clay in a furnace. Clay is found on the floors of rivers and oceans.
2. Colored terracotta: surround 1 dye with 8 blocks of terracotta in the middle of a 3x3 grid. You get 8 dyed blocks.

Glazed terracotta

Smelt colored terracotta in a furnace and you get glazed terracotta, a decorative block with unique, ornate patterns. Each of the 16 colors has its own pattern. Glazed terracotta also has a handy property: it rotates depending on the direction you place it, which lets you build detailed mosaics.

Natural terracotta generates in large amounts in the badlands biome (mesa). There you'll find layers of brown, orange, yellow, white, light gray, red and undyed terracotta. It's the best place to gather large amounts of this material.

Bed colors

Beds can be crafted in each of the 16 colors. A bed's color depends on the wool you use to craft it: 3 blocks of wool of the same color + 3 planks (any wood) = a bed in that color.

Uses for colored beds

• Decoration: in bedrooms, hotels and multiplayer bases
• Marking zones: on PvP servers, colored beds show team membership (for example in Bed Wars)
• Explosions: beds explode in the Nether and the End. Some players use this mechanic to kill the Ender Dragon quickly, a trick known as "bed bombing"

Candle colors

Candles were added in update 1.17 (Caves & Cliffs Part I). You can craft them from honeycomb + string, then dye them. Candles come in all 16 colors plus an undyed (wax-colored) version.

How to dye candles

Put an undyed candle and a dye in the crafting grid. Unlike wool, you can't change the color of a candle that's already dyed. You have to craft a new one.

Candle mechanics

• You can place 1 to 4 candles of the same color on a single block
• Each extra candle raises the light level: 1 candle gives 3, 2 give 6, 3 give 9 and 4 give 12
• Light a candle with flint and steel or a fire charge, and put it out with your hand or with water
• You can place a candle on a cake, which makes a decorative birthday cake

Banner colors

Banners are decorative blocks you can customize with dyes and patterns at a loom. Every banner starts as one of 16 base colors, and then you can add up to 6 pattern layers in Java Edition, each of which can have its own color.

How to make a banner

6 wool of the same color + 1 stick = a banner in that color. In the crafting grid, put 3 wool in the top row, 3 in the middle row and the stick in the bottom center.

Banner patterns

At a loom, place the banner, a dye and, optionally, a banner pattern item. There are over 40 patterns, including:

• Vertical, horizontal and diagonal stripes
• Gradients (top and bottom)
• Rhombuses, triangles and crosses
• Borders and frames
• Special patterns (skull, flower; these need a banner pattern item)

Banners are the key to customizing shields. Just combine a banner with a shield in the crafting grid and the shield takes on the banner's pattern.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

See also

• Crafting basics - how to make items in Minecraft
• Armor crafting - recipes for every type of armor
• Minecraft banners - making patterns and customizing banners
• Building guide - architectural styles and building techniques
• Minecraft biomes - where to find flowers and dye materials
• The /give command - giving items with custom colors
• /give command generator - a tool for generating commands with dyed items
• Items and blocks - the full Minecraft block database