Risograph Ink Colors
Risograph machines print one ink at a time using replaceable color drums. Each drum has its own personality — saturated, soft, fluorescent, metallic. Here's the full library with accurate hex values.
Standard inks
| Color | Name | Hex |
|---|---|---|
| Black | #000000 | |
| Red | #FF665E | |
| Blue | #3D5588 | |
| Green | #3D6730 | |
| Yellow | #FFB511 | |
| Purple | #3F2B6C | |
| Violet | #5E2D90 | |
| Brown | #A89F94 | |
| Medium Blue | #6F8DCE | |
| Federal Blue | #0078BF | |
| Burgundy | #765B6A | |
| Teal | #3D8E84 | |
| Hunter Green | #407060 | |
| Sun Yellow | #FFE800 |
Fluorescent inks
| Color | Name | Hex |
|---|---|---|
| Fluorescent Pink | #FF48B0 | |
| Fluorescent Red | #FF7477 | |
| Fluorescent Orange | #FF6E40 | |
| Fluorescent Green | #A4DC30 |
Classic two-color pairings
- Fluorescent Pink + Federal Blue — the iconic riso look. Bright, modern, editorial.
- Black + Fluorescent Pink — high contrast, used in zines and album art.
- Hunter Green + Fluorescent Orange — warm, outdoorsy, very Wes Anderson.
- Red + Blue — classic newspaper feel, slight retro tone.
- Yellow + Black — bold, almost industrial.
Three- and four-ink combinations
- Pink + Yellow + Blue — process-color-like, full spectrum from three drums.
- Black + Red + Yellow — punchy and editorial.
- Black + Fluorescent Pink + Federal Blue + Yellow — closest you can get to full CMYK with riso inks.
Tips for picking colors
- Riso inks are translucent — overlapping colors mix on the page. Plan for that.
- Fluorescent inks pop in person but don't fully reproduce on screen. They photograph poorly.
- Most printers stock 6-10 drums. Check the printer's available colors before designing.
- Two well-chosen inks usually beat four mediocre ones.
Try it
Upload any image to the STUDIO·ITY Risograph Effect, pick 2, 3 or 4 ink colors from these presets (or paste your own hex codes), and see the simulation in real time. Pro export gives you per-layer separations ready for an actual Risograph printer.