Pantone's 2026 colour of the year is white and some critics say the optics aren't great

Mentally, aren't we all simply variety of terpsichore in the clouds these years?

The extremely anticipated Pantone colour of the year is seen by many as capturing the current cultural zeitgeist and setting the tone for the year ahead. The annual choice is debated, lauded, sometimes criticized.

And in the weeks leading up to the big reveal, designers will try to crack the code and predict it themselves. Will it be a jewel tone? Something earthy? Two tones, like the infamous 2021 choice of grey and yellow combined?

This year, given the influence of various brands and fashion, many thought it would be a shade of green. But by now, you've likely guessed it: they were wrong.

Because Pantone has just revealed its 2026 colour, and it's, well, it's white. The pick not only surprised designers, but as some people are pointing out online, it's also a loaded choice given the current political climate.

On social media, some are calling the choice "dystopian,"and "pretentious." Others compared it to Sydney Sweeney's American Eagle ad controversy, in which she made a play on the words jeans and genes, which some internet users saw as having eugenic undertones.

"It’s giving 'I've got good jeans,'" someone commented on Pantone's Instagram announcement.

"I can't think of a more appropriate colour than klansman white," commented another person.

Pantone, for what it's worth, describes its choice as "a symbol of calming influence in a frenetic society rediscovering the value of measured consideration and quiet reflection."

Others have noted that it could symbolize peace, via the white flag or the dove.

The Pantone Color Institute says the colour of the year, which it calls Cloud Dancer, is "a billowy, balanced white imbued with a feeling of serenity."

Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, said in a news release that Cloud Dancer is a "discrete hue" and one that we need in a time of transformation.

"The cacophony that surrounds us has become overwhelming," Eiseman said.

The Pantone Color Institute has been revealing the "it" colour of the year since 1999, with its inaugural 2000 shade, Cerulean Blue, described on its website as mirroring "the colour of the sky on a crystal clear day connoting our desire for peace and relaxation as we enter the new millennium."

Those who follow the annual announcement know it's about more than a paint shade to inspire our design choices — the colour of the year is seen by many as representing the current cultural moment.

As a writer for design magazine Print writes, "it's not just about esthetics; it's about understanding the moment we're living in and the stories we want to tell."

So some people are surprised by the 2026 hue (or lack thereof), especially after the 2025 colour of the year was brown, i.e. Mocha Mousse.

"Many saw that colour as a safe, commercial choice," she said.

Finley was also expecting green and said artists and designers are seeing a lot of green in the creative realms. In the contemporary moment, she said, there's a thrust toward Earth stewardship, with people turning their eyes to the Earth and water.

But is Pantone's choice still relevant? Given that its choices inform and influence product colours and design decisions, yes, but there's more to it, Finley said.

"Their colour choices have previously been criticized for missing key opportunities: to throw light on colours connected to global issues, for instance."

Some people were surprised Pantone chose white given the potential implications during a time when U.S. Anti-immigration policy and border patrol have dominated headlines. Just Monday, for instance, U.S. President Donald Trump referred to Somali immigrants as "garbage."

As Vanessa Friedman, the fashion director and chief fashion critic of the New York Times said in its news story today, "given the recent political discourse, when I hear 'white,' less salubrious associations also leap to my mind — ones that I doubt Pantone took into consideration but that could be twisted to pretty uncomfortable ends."  

"White is a loaded colour. On many levels," added Alex Vadukul, a style writer, in the Times story, which also notes that white has traditionally been used to symbolize wealth.

As Vanity Fair writes, "the whole thing sounds like it was lifted from a late-night show comedy skit."

"After a year plus of efforts by the Trump administration and corporations to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion programs alongside aggressive immigration crackdowns, it feels bold, and dare I say out of touch, to utter the words 'white is the colour of 2026.'"

'Parasocial' picked as word of the year — but it's older than you might think

Senior Writer & Editor

---

---