We may not think too much about it when we’re getting dressed or buying clothes, but the color we’re wearing shapes people’s impressions of us. Sometimes it’s not even on a conscious level.
According to the numbers, you should drape yourself in black and trash your pink shirts or brown pants. And if you wear red? Let’s just say it’s complicated.
Here are the results, color by color, ranked from worst to best:
1. Pink: The fluffy, flighty type.
Sorry. People see you as more dumb and flighty if you wear pink, according to the numbers. Is it subconscious misogyny? Hard to say. Either way, if you can appear smart and serious in pink, you’re a real trailblazer. Wear pink proudly — at your own peril.
2. Brown: The boring, reliable person.
Although brown may or may not have sh*tty associations, it conveys that you’re “old-fashioned and simple” and possibly “comfortable and reliable.”
3. Orange: The annoying narcissist.
Unfortunately, the coral shirt makes you seem a lot more arrogant, more unattractive and incompetent. On the bright side, however, orange signals creativity.
4. Yellow: The hopeful creative person.
You’re creative and even optimistic to others when wearing the color of sunshine. But still, like orange, yellow can also make you appear more arrogant.
5. Purple and Green: The kind-of artsy, kind-of chill person.
Shades of purple green fall in the middle of serious and playful, intelligence, and other traits. Like orange and yellow, both green and purple make you seem more artistic and creative, less old-fashioned and conservative.
6. Red: The confident sex bomb.
How people see you when you wear red depends on gender. Red makes you appear super confident, but it can also make you seem more arrogant. Like, obnoxious douche arrogant. Especially if you’re a guy. On a date, the majority of men prefer a woman in red (more than any other color) whereas women want to see men in black or blue. At the same time, women see men as higher in status if they wear red, which makes them seem more attractive.
Wearing red makes you seem more sexual, according to experiments. According to scientific research, men find women who wear red more attractive. If you wear only a bold pop of red (a scarf or shoes) you might look sexy and confident without coming off as obnoxious or over the top.
7. White: The modest, smart, and organized person.
White has associations of cleanliness, and it actually makes you look more organized and intelligent. Assuming you can handle keeping it spotless. Wearing white makes you humble, as it’s also the color that tested lowest on arrogance.
8. Gray: The smart and independent loner.
Along with dark blues and black, gray is likely to make people think more highly of you in intelligence and confidence. Even though it can make you look like a loner, it communicates that you’re independent and smart.
9. Blue: Intelligent, confident, and possibly conservative.
It makes you seem intelligent and inspires confidence. Basically, blue comes just a little after black in everything. Maybe because they’re hard to tell apart sometimes if you wear navy…
10. Black: You win at life.
Apparently, if you wear black, you win at life. More than any other single color, it makes you seem confident, intelligent, sexy. But not too arrogant. People think you’re cooler (and you probably are). The only negative is that wearing black can make you seem less generous, but maybe you aren’t very giving anyway. As if the sexiness didn’t already sell you on black, it also makes people see you as a leader.
In short, wearing black makes you a boss.