Purdue University School Colors
Purdue University's school colors are Boilermaker Gold (#CFB991) and Black (#000000). Purdue's brand standards define 10 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 Purdue colors
Purdue adopted old gold and black in 1887, the first year of Purdue football, when a self-appointed committee of students and faculty picked colors so the team would look distinctive in its first game. Purdue Athletics says the players looked to Princeton, then the most successful football program, whose orange and black were widely called yellow and black. Purdue chose old gold in place of yellow and kept the black.
Sources: purdue.edu · purduesports.com
Photo: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Mattwleft, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Purdue primary colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boilermaker Gold | #CFB991 | 207, 185, 145 | 13, 20, 45, 3 | PMS 7502 C PMS 7502 U PMS 10119 C (Metallic, specialty print only) | |
| Black | #000000 | 0, 0, 0 | 0, 0, 0, 100 | — |
Purdue secondary colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aged | #8E6F3E | 142, 111, 62 | 14, 29, 62, 12 | PMS 7562 C PMS 7562 U | |
| Rush | #DAAA00 | 218, 170, 0 | 0, 20, 100, 8 | PMS 110 C PMS 110 U | |
| Field | #DDB945 | 221, 185, 69 | 5, 18, 81, 4 | PMS 4017 C PMS 4017 U | |
| Dust | #EBD99F | 235, 217, 159 | 3, 8, 43, 0 | PMS 7402 C PMS 7402 U | |
| Steel | #555960 | 85, 89, 96 | 63, 51, 45, 33 | PMS 425 C PMS 425 U | |
| Cool Gray | #6F727B | 111, 114, 123 | 50, 40, 34, 17 | PMS Cool Gray 9 C PMS Cool Gray 9 U | |
| Railway Gray | #9D9795 | 157, 151, 149 | 34, 30, 33, 8 | PMS 402 C PMS 402 U | |
| Steam | #C4BFC0 | 196, 191, 192 | 20, 17, 19, 0 | PMS 400 C PMS 400 U |
Matching Purdue colors on clothing
Clothing sold as a given color can be noticeably off from Purdue'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 Purdue's official colors. The pieces below are the closest in-stock matches, out of 420 styles close to Boilermaker Gold.
Clothing in Boilermaker Gold #CFB991
Blank apparel whose fabric color is a close match to Boilermaker Gold, measured from the garment itself. 420 matching styles in stock.
Purdue colors: frequently asked questions
What are Purdue school colors?
Purdue University's school colors are Boilermaker Gold (#CFB991) and Black (#000000).
What is the hex code for Boilermaker Gold?
Boilermaker Gold is #CFB991 (RGB 207, 185, 145, CMYK 13, 20, 45, 3).
What Pantone color is Boilermaker Gold?
Boilermaker Gold is PMS 7502 C, PMS 7502 U and PMS 10119 C (Metallic, specialty print only).
Why are Purdue's colors Boilermaker Gold and Black?
Purdue adopted old gold and black in 1887, the first year of Purdue football, when a self-appointed committee of students and faculty picked colors so the team would look distinctive in its first game. Purdue Athletics says the players looked to Princeton, then the most successful football program, whose orange and black were widely called yellow and black.
Color values are taken from the official Purdue University brand standards (source), checked October 2026. Sweatshirt Station is not affiliated with or endorsed by Purdue 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.