Pantone Explained: Guide to Color Matching and Color of the Year

Color consistency ensures brand’s identity is cohesive and easy to remember. With the Pantone Matching System (PMS), designers can achieve consistency across processes and materials. This article provides a brief overview of Pantone meaning in design, including industrial application and conversion.

History of Pantone and Its Core Mission

Before Pantone, the world of color was chaotic. Designers lacked a shared language, and this meant inconsistency in color presentation. A logo designed in New York would look different when printed out in Tokyo. This kind of inconsistency would lead to brand miscommunication and dilution.

The subjective color perception and naming became a major problem in design. While one designer would describe the color sky blue, the other would perceive it to be light blue. In addition, factors such as lighting conditions and cultural connotations would affect how color was perceived and presented. Pantone was launched in 1963 to address these concerns and provide a standardized system for communicating colors.

Pantone is a commercial printing company with products that accurately communicate colors. Since its inception, the company has provided a universal language for communicating color. What is a Pantone color? This is a color in the Pantone color selection systems or the PMS. To provide a better definition, here is a more detailed explanation.

What is Pantone?

Pantone definition of colors is widely used in fashion and product/graphic design. The system assigns a specific number to a color based on the following 4 key components:

· Numbered Swatches: A distinct number, such as PMS 185 C assigned to a color to denote the specific color and material.

· Formula Guides: The precise ink mixing recipes to achieve consistent color outcomes.

· Material Specificity: Inclusion of a specific suffix to ensure the appearance of the color remains the same on different surfaces.

· Spot Colors: Pantone comprises pre-mixed inks that can be applied as a single, solid color.

The Pantone Color Institute provides Pantone color definition, ensuring some form of standardization. The Institute studies the influence of color on human thought processes and physical and emotional reactions. It also provides customized color standards, product color and brand identity consulting, and trend forecasting, including Pantone Colors of the Year, Color Psychology, Fashion Runway Color Trend Reports, and more.

Scope and Tools of Pantone Colors

Pantone color meaning is not just a simple chart: It is a comprehensive system for designers to select and reproduce colors accurately. By choosing a specific code from the system, designers can achieve the same color tone across processes and materials. Depending on the nature of the project, Pantone color can range from rich metallic to vibrant neon and subtle pastels.

Pantone provides several physical and digital tools to facilitate color precision. For instance, Pantone Guides are fan-shaped books that contain printed swatches of Pantone colors for easier selection. Pantone Chip Books or Pantone color cards contain tear-out chips of Pantone colors while Color Managers and Spectrophotometers are available for advanced color management.  Digitally, color or Pantone can be selected using libraries and software integrated into Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, CorelDraw, and more.

Industry Applications and Use Cases

With over 10,000 color standards, Pantone can be used across multiple materials. The same colors used in printing can be reproduced accurately in plastics and textiles. This is particularly helpful when consistency is needed in coatings, pigments, and more.

In graphic design and branding, Pantone is used to maintain logo consistency and brand identity. In the printing industry, PMS is used to ensure accurate ink mixing and proofing. Similarly, fashion designers use Pantone colors in selecting textile colors to avoid screen-to-fabric discrepancies.

Pantone vs CMYK

The Pantone color vs CMYK is a decision that often depends on the project at hand. CMYK is a popular color system in printing. However, Pantone is an ideal option when you need precise color-matching in branding. CMYK works great in printing because of the wider selection of colors although lacks accuracy. For more consistent results, Pantone is often a better choice.  

CMYK to Pantone Converter

Most designers use both CMYK and Pantone colors to meet their project requirements. Although the needed results and intended printing method may differ significantly, choosing the right color systems allows you to meet the desired results. A CYMK to Pantone converter helps you maintain color consistency across mediums.

Online converters and software tools, or swatch books help to convert Pantone to CMYK. However, Pantone colors are complex blends. This means that you may not always have a direct CMYK equivalent. Although a good CMYK to Pantone color converter will get the closest colors, it may not be the exact match always. You may need to make some slight adjustments to get closer to the needed tone.

Pantone Color of the Year Overview

The Pantone Color of the Year is announced annually in December. This color serves as a measure of global cultural trends and an inspiration to the design world. The decision is often made based on collective sentiment across all industries, from mobile phones to sneakers.

Recent Selections:

· Mocha Mousse (17-1230) – The Pantone color of the year 2025 is a neutral and comforting tone. Its versatility evokes the quality of cacao and coffee in color.

· Peach Fuzz (13-1023) – The Pantone color of the year 2024 is a soft, peach tone. It perfectly captures the desire to nurture.

· Viva Magenta (18-1750) – This is a bold and vibrant red color is complemented with Magentaverse to signal strength.  

· 2022: Very Peri (17-3938) – The 2022 shade or periwinkle symbolizes transition and inventiveness.

Conclusion

Pantone is a color-matching system used by designers across industries. By providing a unique code for each tone, it ensures accurate and consistent color choice. This simplified way of color selection inspires artists and designers to reproduce the same logos and promotional materials.