Bakery Color Palettes

These bakery colour palettes are here to aid you in selecting colours for your bakery logo, menu boards, cake boxes, website and Instagram posts. They are designed for the home baker, bakery owner and sweet brand designer.

Colors in each palette are of 5 each. Click on any swatch to copy the swatch’s HEX code.

“I really like the colors and the overall ambiance at Layers. The packaging, the quality and the presentation of the cakes are features I like a lot. I find interesting about this is that the cakes are not only beautiful they’re delicious as well.”

Popular Bakery Colors: Fresh Croissant, Strawberry Shortcake, Sourdough Loaf, Macaron Box, Chocolate Ganache, Lemon Tart, Blueberry Muffin, French Pâtisserie, Cinnamon Swirl, Vanilla Bean.

10 Bakery Color Palettes

Quick Reference Table

Red	FF0000	Reddish Red & Reddish Orange
Fresh Croissant	#8B4513, #C47A2C, #E8B04A, #F7E1B5, #FF7E00	Baking and Pastry Making Shops
Strawberry Shortcake	#C0392B, #F28B82, #FADADD, #FFF5F5,	The colors #5A3E36 are primarily used by cake and cupcake shops.
Sourdough Loaf	#4A3426, #8C6A4F, #C9A27E, #E8DCCB, #FCE0BB	Bakery goods manufacturers (not made in the bakery)
Macaron Box	#F6C1CF, #C9E4DE, #FCE7A8, #D7C3F0, #FFFFFF	Dessert boutiques
Chocolate Ganache	#2E1A12, #5B3322, #8E5A3C, #D4A373, #B6A896	Snack brands that also contain chocolate.#0000FF Food and beverage brands containing chocolate.
Lemon Tart	#F4D03F, #FFF3B0, #FFFDF5, #7D9D5C, #3A6E85	Museums, airports, shopping malls, workplaces
Blueberry Muffin	#2C3E73, #5B6FB0, #A8B8E6, #F2EFE9, #C89F7A	Breakfast bakeries
French Pâtisserie	#1F3D36, #4F7A6E, #D8C3A5, #F7F3EC, #C7C6C5	Bakeries and shops selling cakes or cupcakes
Cinnamon Swirl	#6B3E26, #A0613B, #D9A066, #F3DCC2, #8A9A5B	Scoffing bakeries in the neighborhood
Vanilla Bean	#3B2F2A, #9C8B7A, #E9DFD3, #FAF6F0, #D6B98C	Minimal, modern bakeries

What Palette to choose?

The requirements for the choices:	The best choice and why:
A bakery that is known for their fresh breads	Sourdough Loaf: earthy browns feel honest and handmade.
Birthday and custom cake orders	Strawberry Shortcake: pinks get happy and celebratory.
Gift boxes for pretty soft pastels	Macaron Box: soft pastels are pretty boxes for gift boxes.
	French Pâtisserie – deep green and gold means “special treat.”
A home bakery Instagram	Lemon tart: bright yellow amidst a noisy stream.
A neat and simple shop layout	Vanilla Bean: simple neutrals show your products.

Let’s see how they compare: Rustic Earth Tones vs Sweet Pastels!

There are two styles of most bakeries. This is how they’re different.

Rustic Earth Tones

Consider Sourdough Loaf, Cinnamon Swirl and Fresh Croissant.

Best for:

• Bakeries and artisan shops (bread-first)
• Kraft paper bags and wooden shelves
• Brands that desire traditional and warm feeling.
• Coffee and pastry joints, Breakfast.

Sweet Pastels

Remember Macaron Box and Strawberry Shortcake?

Best for:

• Cake, cupcake and dessert stores
• Gift boxes and party orders.
• Young, Instagram-friendly brands
• Plans for kid’s birthday and celebration menus.Birthday and celebration menus for children.

My rule of thumb would be to choose the most successful product. When people arrive for bread, be of the rustic variety. When they come for cakes, go pastel.

Use these palettes to create your own color schemes.

Website

• Set the background of your page to the lightest color.
• Make text and headings the darkest color.
• Put bright colours in buttons such as “Order a cake.”

Signage & Packaging

• Use a color converter to convert HEX colors to CMYK before printing.
• You should use one main colour on boxes – it should be easy for your brand to stand out.
• Make a sample box first as colours often appear darker on cardboard.

Social Media

• Choose a background color to use for all product photos.
• Apply the same 2-3 colours to text and Story stickers.
• Check your grid. It should be the look of one bakery, not ten.

CSS Snippet

css

:root {
  --bakery-dark:   #8B4513; /* text */
  --bakery-gold:   #E8B04A; /* buttons */
  --bakery-butter: #F7E1B5; /* cards, borders */
  --bakery-cream:  #FFF9EF; /* background */
}

Add this to your stylesheet and then use var(--bakery-gold) in any place you use that colour.

Pro Tip

Test colors over the food itself. The colors that work well on the computer monitor may look tired and dull on the loaves of bread or over-sweet in the cakes. Print samples of colors in front of your most popular products.

Personally, bakery colours aren’t only for the exterior – they affect the whole brand persona. Colors, packaging, the ambience of the shop and the presentation of the product all work in concert like the layers of a cake and the bakery appears much more desirable and memorable.

FAQ

Which colors are suitable for a bakery?

The warm browns, creams and golds remind of fresh baking. Cake and Dessert Shops can do soft pinks and pastels.

What is the ideal number of colours for a bakery brand?

I suggest 3-4 colors; 1 dark, 1 light and 1-2 accents. After that it gets a bit clutter.

Are these palettes available to be used?

Yes. Get them for your logo, menu, website or packaging. No credit needed.

What palettes should be used for my bakery?

Begin with your top-selling product and the emotion you would like your customers to experience. Our brand colours guide will take you through it step-by-step.

Looking for More Color Ideas?

Our Brand Color Library has hundreds of brand colour options to choose from. Click on any color to copy, and use it for free forever.