What colours go with pink?
The figure wears a pink T-shirt with ivory trousers, the engine’s best partner for pink. Shuffle keeps the pink top; tap the trousers to try navy, grey or denim.
Drag to turn · tap a piece to change it · Space shuffles · L locks
This look
Pink T-shirt, ivory trousers and white sandals
Casual, right for 24 °C.
Why this works
- The pink T-shirt is the one colour; everything else is calm, so it stands out without competing.Less sure · ConventionSchloss & Palmer (2011)
- Light pieces for 24 °C, about as much as people typically wear at that temperature.StandardHavenith et al. (2012)
- Pink T-shirt with ivory trousers: a relaxed twist on a smart look.Less sure · ConventionStylist convention
Or try
Wearing this today?
Log it, and the picks rotate what you wear.
How this works: Method, 7 sources,
How this works
Method
With no wardrobe it builds a look from colour schemes; with yours it picks from what you own, leaving out pieces archived, in the wash or worn recently. A pick must suit the occasion and the weather, then it is scored on colour harmony (the Ou–Luo model and scheme rules, in OKLab), light against dark, warmth (garment insulation summed as in ISO 9920, against the UTCI clothing model), formality and rotation. The same day and wardrobe give the same pick until you shuffle.
Sources
- Ou, L.-C. & Luo, M. R., "A colour harmony model for two-colour combinations", Color Research & Application 31(3) (2006)
- Schloss, K. B. & Palmer, S. E., "Aesthetic response to color combinations", Attention, Perception & Psychophysics 73(2) (2011)
- Ottosson, B., "A perceptual color space for image processing" (OKLab) (2020)
- ISO 9920, Ergonomics of the thermal environment: estimation of thermal insulation of a clothing ensemble
- ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55, Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy (garment insulation table)
- Havenith, G. et al., "The UTCI-clothing model", International Journal of Biometeorology 56(3) (2012)
- MET Norway, Locationforecast 2.0 (weather data, CC BY 4.0)
Changes
- Added 21 pages: what colours go with navy, black, grey, beige, olive, burgundy, brown, white, denim and pink (each table from the engine), and what to wear from 40 to 80 °F and 5 to 25 °C.
- First published.
How pink with ivory scores
The engine scores a pair of colours as a top and trousers, with the parts of its outfit score that depend only on colour. Pink has a lightness of 0.75 and a colourfulness (chroma) of 0.11; ivory has 0.95 and 0.02.
- Light against dark: the lightness gap is 0.21, which earns 0.98 of 1.
- Harmony: the Ou–Luo model gives 0.55; blended half and half with the neutral-plus-accent scheme’s credit of 0.90, that is 0.73.
- One statement piece: 1.00 of 1.
(0.22 × 0.73 + 0.08 × 0.98 + 0.07 × 1.00) ÷ 0.37 = 0.83
The weights are the ones the tool uses for these parts of every outfit. The harmony model was fitted to people’s ratings of flat colour patches on a screen, not clothes, so treat the score as a strong hint rather than a verdict.
The 8 best partners for pink
Ranked by the engine, best first. The evidence column says how sure each reason is: research, design theory or stylist convention.
| Colour | Why it works | Evidence | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| ivory | Ivory is a neutral, so pink stays the one colour in the outfit. | Convention | 0.83 |
| burgundy | Pink and burgundy are shades of one colour family: a tonal pairing that looks put-together. | Research | 0.80 |
| black | Black is a neutral, so pink stays the one colour in the outfit. | Convention | 0.78 |
| charcoal | Charcoal is a neutral, so pink stays the one colour in the outfit. | Convention | 0.78 |
| denim | Denim works like a neutral, so pink stays the one colour in the outfit. | Convention | 0.77 |
| brown | Brown works like a neutral, so pink stays the one colour in the outfit. | Convention | 0.75 |
| red | Pink and red sit next to each other on the colour wheel, so they blend naturally. | Research | 0.72 |
| blue | Pink and blue make a livelier, less usual pairing. | Research | 0.63 |
Pink leads, neutrals follow
This pink is a real colour (chroma 0.11), so the tool treats it as the accent and looks for neutrals to support it. Ivory, black, charcoal and denim all let it stand out without competing.
Burgundy is the tonal choice: a darker shade of the same family, which lab studies of colour pairs rate as going together. Red sits next to pink on the wheel and blends in, a warmer, louder outfit.
Taste varies more than rules do
Studies of colour pairs in different countries found that people agree on whether a pair feels warm or cool, but not on whether they like it. Pink is a good example: it reads soft to some and bold to others. The table shows what the engine rates highly; your own taste counts as much.
Pink with green is a near-opposite pairing. Colour theory calls that complementary; it is bold rather than harmonious in lab terms, so the tool shows it as a style choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do pink and red go together?
Yes. They sit next to each other on the colour wheel, so they blend. Keep one of them muted, or let neutrals frame them, if you want it calmer.
What colour trousers go with a pink top?
Ivory, white, grey, navy, black and blue jeans all work. Burgundy trousers give a tonal look in one colour family.
Do pink and grey go together?
Yes. Grey is a cool neutral that makes pink look softer. Charcoal gives more contrast than light grey.
What shoes go with a pink outfit?
White sneakers, nude or tan sandals and black shoes are safe. Burgundy shoes repeat the colour family for a tonal finish.