The Power of Color in Design — Part 3: Color Psychology
The process of selecting colors is actually more complicated than it appears. Choosing the right colors can make a significant difference in design.
In previous articles about the power of color, we began to understand the models and color schemes and their various roles in design. You can check out the previous articles on color models and schemes here 👇.
Some people might think that choosing colors in design is entirely dependent on the designer’s taste. However, the process of selecting colors is far more complex, as choosing the right colors for each project can significantly impact how effective your design is in attracting attention and influencing the user’s emotions.
In this article, we will discuss color psychology and popular colors often used in design, such as red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, white, and black — and their psychological meanings.
Understanding Color Psychology
Before discussing the meaning of each color, let’s first understand what color psychology is. Color psychology is the study of how colors can affect human behavior, emotions, and perception. Every color you choose can evoke emotions and communicate different meanings to different people.
The Meaning Behind Colors
Understanding the psychological meaning of each color can help create appealing and effective designs for users. Now, let’s discuss the meanings behind the most frequently used colors in user interface design:
Red: Passion and Urgency
Red is a striking and attention-grabbing color often associated with passion, energy, excitement, and urgency.
In user interface design, red can be used to draw attention to important elements to create a sense of urgency or highlight the importance of a user action. However, use this color wisely, as excessive use can make the design look ambiguous and even create feelings of anxiety.
Blue: Reliability, Stability, and Intelligence
Blue represents calmness and trust and is often associated with reliability, stability, and intelligence. In design, blue can be used to create a sense of trust and professionalism.
Blue is very popular among tech companies and financial institutions because it conveys stability and security. However, overuse of this color can create a feeling of coldness and detachment.
Green: Growth, Balance, and Harmony
Green is a refreshing and peaceful color often associated with growth, balance, and harmony. It is often displayed on elements like buttons to give the impression of positive actions users should take, such as continuing or agreeing to a certain action.
Yellow: Optimism, Happiness, and Warmth
Yellow is a bright and cheerful color often associated with optimism, happiness, and warmth. In UI design, yellow elements can also indicate warnings or caution.
Overuse of this color can make your design very confusing, so it’s essential to use it thoughtfully.
Orange: Enthusiasm, Creativity, and Friendliness
Orange is a warm and energetic color often associated with enthusiasm, creativity, and friendliness. In design, orange can be used as a primary application color. It is most commonly used in food and beverage applications because it conveys warmth and friendliness.
However, like the previous colors, overuse can make your design very confusing and even create a feeling of aggressiveness.
Purple: Creativity, Spirituality, and Wisdom
Purple is a regal and luxurious color often associated with creativity, spirituality, and wisdom. Additionally, purple is favored by both men and women. Careful consideration is needed when determining the composition of this color, as like blue, excessive use of purple can make your design feel dark, isolated, and mysterious.
White: Clean, Pure, and Simple
White is a clean and pure color often associated with purity, sincerity, and simplicity. In UI design dominated by white, the displayed design will create a sense of simplicity, purity, and minimalism.
When designing an interface, white is often recommended as a neutral color with the largest composition in the design to create a natural color combination.
Black: Power, Elegance, and Boldness
Black is a color often associated with power, elegance, and boldness. In designs dominated by black, the displayed design will create a sense of assertiveness and professionalism.
This color is most often used in minimalist web displays and news applications because it provides a serious and elegant impression. However, using black without bright color accents can create feelings of sadness or negativity.
Tips for Choosing the Right Colors
Here are some tips for choosing colors effectively in UI design:
Understand Your Target Users
The first step in applying color psychology to UI design is to understand the product’s target users. Different colors can have different meanings and emotions depending on the culture, age group, gender, and other factors. For example, red may be associated with femininity in some cultures but may be considered childish or unprofessional elsewhere.
Choosing Color Schemes or Palettes
After understanding the users, the next step is to choose a scheme and determine the color palette. A color palette is a set of colors you can consistently use in design. Several online tools, such as Adobe Color, Coolors, or Flat UI Colors, can be used to create harmonious color palettes.
Use Colors to Convey Emotions
Colors can trigger emotions, which can be used to create the right atmosphere in design. For example, blue can create a sense of stability and security, while yellow can create a sense of happiness and optimism. Green can create a positive and harmonious feeling, while red can create a sense of urgency.
Use Contrast to Highlight Important Elements
Color contrast is the difference between two colors. You can use contrast to highlight essential elements in your design, such as action buttons or differences between titles and subtitles. In design, for example, you can use bright blue or green as action buttons (Call To Action).
Conclusion
Color psychology is an essential element in UI/UX design. Understanding the meaning of colors and how to use them strategically can help you create designs that meet business and user needs.
When applying color psychology, the first thing to note is to understand the target users who will use your product, then choose the appropriate scheme and color palette, and use the right color contrasts to create attractive and effective.
