The Pantone color of (2026) is ‘Cloud Dancer’
Pantone’s chosen hue is a "billowy, balanced white" reminiscent of a whisper of calm and peace.
Since 1999, Pantone has chosen a color to define the culture of the coming year. “We wanted to highlight to our audience how what’s happening in our global culture is expressed and reflected in the language of color,” – said Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, about the company’s wildly successful annual project.
The global authority on colour has announced that its 2026 Colour of the Year is “Cloud Dancer” (Pantone 11-4201). A “billowy, balanced white”, the shade serves as a calming influence in a “frenetic society rediscovering the value of measured consideration and quiet reflection”.
It’s a minimalist style offering compared to the gourmet-inspired colors of previous years, Peach Fuzz (2024) and Mocha Mousse (2025). Instead, Cloud Dancer evokes a sense of calm and relaxation, as well as symbolizing the desire for a “fresh start.”
“We are living in a transitional time where people are seeking truth, possibility and a new way of living,” – says Laurie Pressman, vice-president of the Pantone Color Institute. “Cloud Dancer exemplifies our search for balance between our digital future and our primal need for human connection.”
“Conversations relating to our Pantone Color of the Year selection do not take place in one isolated meeting at a specific time of year,” – it says on the Pantone website. “It is one long, continuously flowing conversation among a group of color-attuned people.”
To select a color, the global team considers new technologies, social values, art collections, travel destinations, and assesses the overall mood or feelings that designers and consumers experience throughout the year.
As with previous announcements, Pantone is collaborating with a number of brands, including stationery brands “Post-It”, “Motorola”, furniture manufacturer “Joybird”, and children’s favorite “Play-Doh”, to create several products showcasing “Cloud Dancer”.
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