4 Ways To Make Gray - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow What Colors Make Gray? A Color Mixing Guide PDF download Download Article Create different shades of gray with these DIY tricks Co-authored by Kelly Medford and Raven Minyard, BA

Last Updated: October 7, 2025 Fact Checked

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  • What colors make gray?
    • |
  • Making Gray Paint
    • |
  • Gray Frosting
    • |
  • Gray Polymer Clay
    • |
  • Video
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  • Q&A
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This article was co-authored by Kelly Medford and by wikiHow staff writer, Raven Minyard, BA. Kelly Medford is an American painter based in Rome, Italy. She studied classical painting, drawing and printmaking both in the U.S. and in Italy. She works primarily en plein air on the streets of Rome, and also travels for private international collectors on commission. She founded Sketching Rome Tours in 2012 where she teaches sketchbook journaling to visitors of Rome. Kelly is a graduate of the Florence Academy of Art. There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 913,077 times.

What colors make gray? You probably thought of black and white, but it’s actually possible to make gray by mixing complementary colors or primary colors, too—and these often look more natural than a neutral gray. We spoke to professional artist Kelly Medford and baker Maria Short to teach you all the best ways to make gray paint, frosting, and polymer clay.

Easy Ways to Make the Color Gray

  • To create a neutral gray, combine equal parts black and white. If you’d like a darker shade, add more black and vice versa.
  • To create primary gray, mix the primary colors (red, blue, and yellow) until you reach your desired shade.
  • To make complementary gray, mix 2 complementary colors (colors opposite each other on the color wheel), like red and green.

Steps

Section 1 of 4:

What colors make gray?

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 1 Black and white Combining black and white will result in a color known as “neutral gray.” Neutral gray is the purest type of gray you can create because it has no other tint or hue. This is the most straightforward way to create gray.[1]
    • Equal parts of black and white should create a mid-tone gray. Vary the shade by adding more of either color. More black creates a darker gray, and more white creates a lighter gray.

    Meet the wikiHow Experts

    Kelly Medford is an American painter based in Rome, Italy. She studied classical painting, drawing, and printmaking in both the US and Italy and graduated from the Florence Academy of Art.

    Maria Short is a baker and the owner of Short N Sweet Bakery & Cafe in Hilo, Hawaii. She has over 24 years of experience and specializes in specialty desserts and wedding cakes.

  2. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 2 Complementary colors Complementary colors are two colors that, when combined, cancel each other out and produce white, gray, or black. Mixing two complementary colors will result in a color classified as “complementary gray.”[2]
    • If you’re using a color wheel, complementary colors are opposite each other.
    • The basic color complements are:
      • Red and green
      • Yellow and purple
      • Blue and orange
    • Combining equal parts of any two complements will result in a flat gray, but you can give the gray a slight tint by adding more of one color than the other.[3] Adding more red, yellow, or orange will result in a "warm" gray, but adding more green, purple, or blue should result in a "cool" gray.
    • To make gray-purple, you can mix purple with yellow (its complementary color). Use a green-yellow for a bluer gray or an orange-yellow for a browner gray.
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  3. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 3 Primary colors Primary colors are colors that cannot be created by combining other colors, but can be mixed to create other colors. The three primary colors are red, blue, and yellow. When you combine all three, the resulting color is called “primary gray.”[4]
    • Mixing equal parts should produce a flat gray, but you can create tints by using more or less of certain colors. Using more blue should result in a cooler tone, but using more red or yellow without additional blue can create warmer tones.
    • You may have to play around with the ratio of colors you use. Medford says, “The same 3 colors used to make gray can also make brown.”[5]
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Section 2 of 4:

Making Gray Paint

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  1. Step 1 Choose which type of gray to create. 1 Choose which type of gray to create. Neutral gray, complementary gray, and primary gray are easy to create with paint, but the best option depends on the paint colors you have and the desired application. For example:
    • Neutral gray can be a great way to tone down other colors without altering the actual hue. Overall, it works best when you know you'll need gray in its purest form.[6]
    • Complementary gray works best if you want to give cool or warm tints to the hue of the gray.[7]
    • Primary gray works well when you need to create shadows or pair the gray next to a brighter color. Since primary gray contains all three primary colors, it can make nearby secondary colors look brighter.
  2. Step 2 Combine equal amounts of the appropriate colors. 2 Combine equal amounts of the appropriate colors. Pour equal amounts of the involved colors into a paint dish or onto a paint palette. Mix thoroughly using a painter's stick until the colors are equally blended.
    • To review, your color options are:
      • Black and white
      • Red and green
      • Yellow and purple
      • Blue and orange
      • Red, yellow, and blue
    • Blending the colors should result in gray paint. If you used “pure” hues, the resulting gray should be fairly flat in appearance. If the colors used weren't pure hues, however, you may notice a slight tint.
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 3 Lighten or darken the shade by adding white or black paint. Examine the shade of the developed gray. If it seems too dark, add a bit of white to lighten it. If it’s too light, add some black to darken it. Work in small amounts of either color to avoid altering the shade more than necessary.[8]
    • Use white and black to alter the shade regardless of which type of gray (neutral, complementary, primary) you made. Adding any other color will ultimately affect the hue instead of the shade.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 4 Tint the hue by adding more color. Examine the hue of the developed gray. If it’s too dull for your liking, add more color to tint it. If you made complementary or primary gray, add more of any color used to produce the original gray. If you made neutral gray, mix in nearly any paint color to create a wide variety of tints.[9]
    • For example, if you made gray with blue and orange paint, only add more blue or orange (not red, yellow, green, purple, etc.) However, if you used black and white, it’s okay to add any of these colors.
    • Add small amounts of the color regardless of which one you use. If you don't like the results, it'll be easier to fix them if you've only altered the color in small degrees.
    • Medford says, “Color is relative to what it is next to, so keep this in mind when painting.”[10] For example, if your painting features a lot of reds and oranges, giving your gray a reddish tint will make it look more realistic.
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Section 3 of 4:

Making Gray Frosting

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  1. Step 1 Decide which shade of gray frosting to create. 1 Decide which shade of gray frosting to create. Neutral gray is the easiest to create when working with icing, but you can still make complementary and primary grays. Stick with neutral gray if you want a pure hue, or try one of the other two types if you’d prefer a bit of a tint.
    • Since readily available packages of liquid food color come with red, yellow, green, and blue, you'll need to create primary (red, yellow, blue) gray or complementary (red and green) gray if you plan to use standard liquid food coloring.
    • If you buy specialty gel or paste food coloring, however, you can create any of the three types since these food colorings have a wider variety of color options.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 2 Add food coloring to the white icing one drop at a time. Spoon the white frosting into a glass bowl, and gradually add food coloring and mix until fully combined. Add only a drop or so at a time, as it may be difficult to fix the shade if you accidentally add too much.[11]
    • As a reminder, the color options are:
      • Black and white (note: you do not need to add white food coloring since the icing itself is white)[12]
      • Blue and orange
      • Yellow and purple
      • Red and green
      • Red, yellow, and blue
    • Add liquid food coloring by dropping it in with the bottle's dropper cap. Add paste or gel colors by dipping a toothpick into the color and swirling the same toothpick into the white icing, thereby transferring the color.[13]
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 3 Incorporate more black food coloring to darken the gray. If you like the tint of the gray but want a darker shade, mix small amounts of black into the frosting until you reach the desired hue. You can darken the icing with black food coloring regardless of the colors used to produce the gray.
    • Alternatively, create a more vibrant shade by adding more of the original colors to the icing. The higher concentration of color will make the gray brighter. This can be tricky, however, since you'll need to use the exact same amounts of each color to avoid changing the hue.
    • If you want to make black food coloring, Short says to “mix red, blue, and green to create a dark gray shade. This will get you as close to black as possible.”[14]
  4. Step 4 Tint the gray with food coloring to get the perfect shade. 4 Tint the gray with food coloring to get the perfect shade. If the gray seems a little too flat, try mixing in a small amount of some other color to slightly alter the hue. For neutral gray, tint the hue using nearly any other color.[15] For complementary and primary grays, tint the hue by adding a greater amount of one color already involved.
    • For instance, if you made the gray with red, blue, and yellow food dye, only use red, blue, or yellow tints (not green, purple, or orange).
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Section 4 of 4:

Making Gray Polymer Clay

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  1. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 1 Pinch off equal parts of your desired colors and knead them. Grab equal amounts of each involved color. First, knead the colors separately. Then, knead them together by sticking them together and rolling them into a ball with your hands. Flatten and re-roll as needed until no marbling remains. The colors should be evenly mixed into a solid gray.[16]
    • Your color options are:
      • Black and white
      • Blue and orange
      • Red and green
      • Yellow and purple
      • Red, yellow, and green
    • To create a pure gray without any tint, use black and white. If you want to tint the gray, primary or complementary grays can simplify the process and reduce your overall number of supplies.
  2. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 2 Lighten the color with translucent clay, if desired. If you want to lighten the color without changing its value, knead a pinch of translucent clay into the ball of gray. Translucent clay has no color, so it won't change the shade or hue of the gray.[17] Instead, it will simply make the gray seem duller and less vibrant.
    • When choosing how much translucent clay to use, the total amount should not exceed one-third the total amount of your gray clay.
  3. Step 3 Lighten the shade with white clay, if desired. 3 Lighten the shade with white clay, if desired. When you want to lighten the actual shade of the gray, knead a small amount of white into the existing ball. You can add white regardless of the colors used to create the original gray.
    • While you could technically darken the color by adding black, it can be difficult to mix black clay into other colors without ruining them. Darkening neutral gray in this manner is much easier, though, since it already contains a black component.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Make Gray 4 Consider tinting the clay. Once you're satisfied with the saturation of color and shade, determine whether or not you want to add a tint by mixing in small amounts of one color. You should be able to use nearly any color when tinting neutral gray, but you'll need to stick with one of the original colors you used when tinting complementary or primary grays.
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Community Q&A

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  • Question Can you make gray with food coloring? wikiHow Staff Editor wikiHow Staff Editor Staff Answer This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow Staff Editor wikiHow Staff Editor Staff Answer Yes. Dilute black food coloring with water or mix it into a white substance (such as white frosting) to create gray. You can also tint it with other colors, such as blue or red, to make a warmer or cooler gray. You can also try mixing red, blue, and green food coloring to get a grayish tint. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 9 Helpful 11
  • Question How do you make gray with primary colors? wikiHow Staff Editor wikiHow Staff Editor Staff Answer This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow Staff Editor wikiHow Staff Editor Staff Answer A pure gray is a combination of white and black. However, you can get a grayish-brown shade by mixing red, yellow, and blue. Use more blue to get a cooler “color gray” or more red if you want a warmer color. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 13 Helpful 25
  • Question I have almost a full gallon of dark yellow paint, and would like to turn it light gray. Is this possible by adding different color paint? Community Answer Community Answer Mix it with its complementary color (purple) to make it gray. Then add white to make it a lighter gray. Yellow paint is often not a true yellow, but a yellow hue. This means you need to be careful with the amount of purple you add. Most likely a small amount of purple will turn the yellow into gray. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 11 Helpful 27
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References

  1. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
  2. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
  3. ↑ http://www.housepaintingtutorials.com/mixing-paint-colors.html
  4. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
  5. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview
  6. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
  7. ↑ https://artincontext.org/what-colors-make-gray/
  8. ↑ https://artstudiolife.com/what-colors-make-gray/
  9. ↑ https://www.celebratingcolor.com/mixing-gray/
More References (8)
  1. ↑ Kelly Medford. Professional Artist. Expert Interview
  2. ↑ https://countryrecipebook.com/how-to-make-grey-frosting/
  3. ↑ https://countryrecipebook.com/how-to-make-grey-frosting/
  4. ↑ https://youtu.be/njF9GTa0w3k?t=11
  5. ↑ Maria Short. Baker. Expert Interview
  6. ↑ http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/2012/04/my-ramblings-on-icing-color-and-some-easter-cookies/
  7. ↑ https://www.raisingnobles.com/polymer-clay-color-recipes-polymer-clay-color-mixing-recipes-free/
  8. ↑ https://thebluebottletree.com/translucent-polymer-clay-faq/

About This Article

Kelly Medford Co-authored by: Kelly Medford Professional Artist This article was co-authored by Kelly Medford and by wikiHow staff writer, Raven Minyard, BA. Kelly Medford is an American painter based in Rome, Italy. She studied classical painting, drawing and printmaking both in the U.S. and in Italy. She works primarily en plein air on the streets of Rome, and also travels for private international collectors on commission. She founded Sketching Rome Tours in 2012 where she teaches sketchbook journaling to visitors of Rome. Kelly is a graduate of the Florence Academy of Art. This article has been viewed 913,077 times. How helpful is this? Co-authors: 9 Updated: October 7, 2025 Views: 913,077 Categories: Mixing Paints Article SummaryX

Whether you’re working with paint, frosting, or clay, the easiest way to make gray is to mix black and white. This will give you a neutral gray that’s neither warm nor cool. To make a gray with a little more depth and a hint of color. Try mixing equal parts of two complementary colors, such as red and green, yellow and purple, or blue and orange. You can also combine the three primary colors, red, yellow, and blue. If you mix the colors in equal amounts, all these combinations will make a flat, neutral gray. But you can make your gray a little warmer or cooler by adjusting the color balance. For instance, to make a cool gray with blue and orange, use slightly more blue. Add extra orange if you want a warmer gray. You can also make a neutral gray with black and white, then add other colors, such as blue or red, to give it the desired tint. Add white to make your gray lighter, or black to make it darker. Did this summary help you?YesNo

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Reader Success Stories

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Yes No Advertisement If you buy through links on our site, we may earn a commission.Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Kelly Medford Co-authored by: Kelly Medford Professional Artist Click a star to vote Co-authors: 9 Updated: October 7, 2025 Views: 913,077 Cash Rich

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"I'm looking to make a gray paint. I needed to know just how much paint that I had to mix in order to match the..." more Jay

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"Mixing yellow, red, and blue to make gray, that's what helped me the most. Thank you." Tim Tolliver

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"Preaching at our local church tonight and am using color mixing as a reference." Rated this article: Larie Baffie

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