Choosing a shade of green
Green covers more ground than most colors: it's a school and team color, a uniform color for outdoor and service businesses, a seasonal color for St. Patrick's Day and spring events, and, in its muted shades, one of the most popular lifestyle colors right now. Because the shades are used so differently, start by picking the shade, then the garment.
Kelly Green
#158856
Forest Green
#284335
Lime Green
#ACD451
Olive Green
#5B5B46
Sage Green
#A1B1A0
Mint Green
#ADDECD
Kelly green is the bright, saturated middle green, the color most people picture when they say "green." It's clearly brighter than forest green, without the yellow cast of lime. Bright green generally reads as energetic and upbeat rather than serious, which is why it turns up on event and team gear more often than on office uniforms.
Forest green is the deep, dark green, a few steps from black. Suppliers sell it under more names than any other green: Forest, Dark Green, Hunter, Spruce and Pine all land here. Dark green reads as steady, traditional and outdoorsy. Like navy, it's conservative enough for a uniform, but it's less common, so a crew in forest green stands out without looking loud.
Lime green is the bright yellow-green that sits between kelly green and safety green: vivid, but not fluorescent. Hi-vis safety green isn't listed here. Lime reads as fresh, playful and attention-grabbing: a color for events and promotions more than everyday uniforms.
Olive green is the muted, brownish green of military and outdoor gear. Suppliers call it Olive, Military Green, Army, Moss and Loden. Olive reads as rugged, practical and understated, with an obvious military association.
Sage green is a soft, grayish green, the most muted green we list: lighter than olive and much less saturated than mint. Sage reads as calm, natural and relaxed, which is why it's popular on comfort pieces and casual brand merch.
Mint green is the pale, slightly bluish green. Suppliers sell it as Mint, Seafoam, Celadon and Light Green. Pastel greens read as fresh, clean and gentle. Mint is a friendly color rather than an authoritative one.
What green says on clothing
Green is widely associated with nature, growth and freshness. In practice the shade matters more than the hue: bright greens read as energetic and spirited, dark greens as steady and traditional, and soft greens as calm and relaxed.
Green school colors
Green is a primary color for a long list of universities. Most of them use a dark green: Michigan State's Spartan Green, Baylor Green, Colorado State Green, the University of Miami's UM Green and Hawaiʻi's Mānoa Green all fall in our forest green range. Brighter schools, like Marshall, use kelly green.
Official color codes: Michigan State University school colors, Baylor University school colors, Colorado State University school colors, University of Miami school colors, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa school colors, University of South Florida school colors, Tulane University school colors, University of Oregon school colors, Marshall University school colors and University of Notre Dame school colors.
More green
Kelly GreenForest GreenLime GreenOlive GreenSage GreenMint Green
