Northwestern University School Colors
Northwestern University's school colors are Northwestern Purple (#4E2A84) and White. Northwestern's brand standards define 24 colors in all; every official HEX, RGB, CMYK and Pantone value is listed below, along with the story of how the colors were chosen.
History of the Northwestern colors
Northwestern's archives say a committee picked black and gold in the fall of 1879. When it learned other schools already used those colors, it switched to purple and gold. In 1892 another university committee reduced the official colors to royal purple alone, apparently copying a custom of prestigious Eastern universities. The archives describe white as an unofficial second color since shortly after 1892. The university's trademark office, however, now calls purple and white the official colors.
Sources: library.northwestern.edu · northwestern.edu · northwestern.edu
Photo: SecretName101, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Ryan Dickey from Evanston, IL / Chicago, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Northwestern primary colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwestern Purple | #4E2A84 | 78, 42, 132 | 85, 100, 0, 15 (coated); 87, 90, 0, 12 (uncoated) | Custom ink (no Pantone number) (coated mix: process blue 37, rubine red 61, black 2) Uncoated mix: Dark Blue 35.5, Rhodamine 36.5, Black 3, Trans. Wt. 25 |
Northwestern purple on licensed products
Northwestern Purple is a custom ink with no Pantone number; the brand office publishes mixing formulas instead. Licensed and athletics products use Athletic Purple, PMS 268 C (#582C83).
Northwestern secondary colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purple 120 | #401F68 | 64, 31, 104 | 85, 100, 10, 30 (coated); 87, 90, 10, 30 (uncoated) | — | |
| Purple 60 | #836EAA | 131, 110, 170 | 47, 50, 0, 6 (coated); 54, 54, 0, 7 (uncoated) | — | |
| Purple 30 | #B6ACD1 | 182, 172, 209 | 26, 26, 0, 0 (coated); 26, 26, 0, 4 (uncoated) | — | |
| Purple 10 | #E4E0EE | 228, 224, 238 | 9, 9, 0, 0 (coated); 10, 8, 0, 2 (uncoated) | — |
Additional Northwestern palette colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary bright (PMS 360) | #58B947 | 88, 185, 71 | 68, 0, 100, 0 | PMS 360 | |
| Secondary bright (PMS 318) | #7FCECD | 127, 206, 205 | 48, 0, 22, 0 | PMS 318 | |
| Secondary bright (PMS 279) | #5091CD | 80, 145, 205 | 68, 34, 0, 0 | PMS 279 | |
| Secondary bright (PMS 394) | #EDE93B | 237, 233, 59 | 10, 0, 89, 0 | PMS 394 | |
| Secondary bright (PMS 7548) | #FFC520 | 255, 197, 32 | 0, 23, 95, 0 | PMS 7548 | |
| Secondary bright (PMS 7625) | #EF553F | 239, 85, 63 | 1, 82, 80, 0 | PMS 7625 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 7725) | #008656 | 0, 134, 86 | 87, 24, 83, 9 | PMS 7725 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 314) | #007FA4 | 0, 127, 164 | 86, 39, 23, 1 | PMS 314 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 294) | #0D2D6C | 13, 45, 108 | 100, 85, 5, 36 | PMS 294 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 611) | #D9C826 | 217, 200, 38 | 18, 14, 100, 0 | PMS 611 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 7571) | #CA7C1B | 202, 124, 27 | 0, 48, 97, 21 | PMS 7571 | |
| Secondary dark (PMS 1595) | #D85820 | 216, 88, 32 | 2, 77, 100, 9 | PMS 1595 |
Northwestern athletics colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athletic Purple | #582C83 | 88, 44, 131 | 82, 98, 0, 12 | PMS 268 C | |
| White (athletics) | — | 255, 255, 255 | 0, 0, 0, 0 | Thread: Madeira White Thread: RA White Thread: GS/Sulky White | |
| Black (athletics) | — | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 100 | PMS Process Black C Thread: Madeira Black Thread: RA Black Thread: GS/Sulky Black | |
| Gray (athletics) | #C8C9C7 | 200, 201, 199 | 8, 5, 7, 16 | PMS 3 C | |
| Gold Gothic (athletics, approved use only) | #F5C65D | 245, 198, 93 | 3, 22, 75, 0 | PMS 141 C | |
| Mascot Gray (youth apparel 5T and under only) | — | — | — | PMS 408 C Thread: Madeira 1040 Thread: RA 2618 Thread: GS/Sulky 1040 | |
| Mascot Light Gray (youth apparel 5T and under only) | — | — | — | PMS 406 C Thread: Madeira 1118 Thread: RA 2404 Thread: GS/Sulky 1219 |
Matching Northwestern colors on clothing
Clothing sold as a given color can be noticeably off from Northwestern's official values, and supplier color codes describe the dye target rather than the finished fabric. So we measured the actual fabric color of every garment we carry from product photos and fabric swatches, then compared it to Northwestern's official colors. The pieces below are the closest in-stock matches, out of 400 styles close to Northwestern Purple, 383 styles close to Athletic Purple.
Clothing in Northwestern Purple #4E2A84
Blank apparel whose fabric color is a close match to Northwestern Purple, measured from the garment itself. 400 matching styles in stock.
Clothing in Athletic Purple #582C83
Blank apparel whose fabric color is a close match to Athletic Purple, measured from the garment itself. 383 matching styles in stock.
Northwestern colors: frequently asked questions
What are Northwestern school colors?
Northwestern University's school colors are Northwestern Purple (#4E2A84) and White.
What is the hex code for Northwestern Purple?
Northwestern Purple is #4E2A84 (RGB 78, 42, 132, CMYK 85, 100, 0, 15 (coated); 87, 90, 0, 12 (uncoated)).
Why are Northwestern's colors Northwestern Purple and White?
Northwestern's archives say a committee picked black and gold in the fall of 1879. When it learned other schools already used those colors, it switched to purple and gold.
What Pantone is Northwestern purple?
Northwestern Purple is a custom ink without a Pantone number. Athletics and licensed products use Athletic Purple, PMS 268 C (#582C83).
Color values are taken from the official Northwestern University brand standards (source), checked October 2026. Sweatshirt Station is not affiliated with or endorsed by Northwestern University. We sell blank apparel in matching colors; no logos or trademarks are sold. Photos are used under their Creative Commons or public domain licenses and are credited above.