Magazine
Car colour blindness: Black is the UK's most popular car colour
A quarter of cars are black, but why don't we choose yellow or purple instead?
- Black’s in, purple’s out: 24% of cars are black, the most popular car colour
- 13% of drivers with black cars have driving convictions
- When it comes to car make, 50% of Ferrari’s are red
- Journalists are 127% more likely to have a yellow car than the average motorist
New analysis of over half a million Admiral car insurance policies has revealed that despite having a wide range of car colours to choose from, black is still the nation’s favourite.
Nearly a quarter (24%) of all cars analysed were black. Blue was the second most popular (19%) and grey third (16%). Purple was the least popular, accounting for less than 1% of all cars analysed.
Classic black leads the pack: the nation’s top 10 car colours
| Rank | Colour | % of cars |
| 1 | Black | 24 |
| 2 | Blue | 19 |
| 3 | Grey | 16 |
| 4 | White | 14 |
| 5 | Silver | 12 |
| 6 | Red | 11 |
| 7 | Green | 2 |
| 8 | Yellow | 1 |
| 9 | Brown | 1 |
| 10 | Purple | 0 |
Both female drivers and male drivers favoured black and blue as the top two colour choices, but white cars are far more popular with women, coming in third place with female drivers while male drivers prefer grey.
| Female | Male | |||
| Rank | Colour | % | Colour | % |
| 1 | Black | 23 | Black | 26 |
| 2 | Blue | 19 | Blue | 19 |
| 3 | White | 17 | Grey | 17 |
| 4 | Grey | 15 | Silver | 13 |
| 5 | Red | 12 | White | 12 |
| 6 | Silver | 11 | Red | 10 |
| 7 | Green | 2 | Green | 3 |
| 8 | Yellow | 1 | Brown | 1 |
| 9 | Brown | 1 | Yellow | 0 |
| 10 | Purple | 0 | Purple | 0 |
According to Admiral data, those driving black or grey cars are more likely to have a motoring conviction (13%), the highest of all colours, and drivers of purple cars are least likely to have a conviction (8%). In terms of conviction types, black car drivers are the most likely to have a speeding conviction (7%) compared with 4% of purple car drivers who have been convicted of driving too fast.
Convictions: drivers in black cars race ahead
| Conviction type | Most likely | % of drivers with colour car convicted | Least likely | % of drivers with colour car convicted |
| Total motoring convictions | Black/ Grey | 13% | Purple | 8% |
| Speeding convictions | Black | 7% | Purple | 4% |
Occupations
Of the 15 professions analysed, 13 were found to favour black cars, with journalists and musicians bucking the trend and favouring blue cars above black.
Comparing results for each profession to national averages for all motorists analysed, it was also found that:
- Taxi drivers are 162% more likely to have a purple car than the average driver;
- Journalists are 137% more likely to have a yellow car than the national average;
- Hairdressers are 72% more likely to drive a white car;
- Driving Instructors are 58% more likely to have a brown car;
- Musicians are 45% more likely to have a silver car;
- Undertakers are 26% more likely to have a grey car;
- Teachers are 14% more likely to have a red car.
Make and colour
Whilst black was the predominant colour when looking at make of car, a few manufacturers bucked the trend. Fifty per cent of Ferrari’s – nearly 5 times the national average – were red. One in 4 Fiat’s were white, making it the top choice and whilst 19% of VW drivers opted for black, 19% also opted for grey making it joint favourite.
| Make | Top colour | % |
| Aston Martin | Black | 40 |
| Audi | Black | 31 |
| BMW | Black | 29 |
| Ferrari | Red | 50 |
| Fiat | White | 25 |
| Ford | Blue | 24td> |
| Honda | Blue | 23 |
| Jaguar | Black | 24 |
| Land Rover | Black | 34 |
| Mazda | Blue | 25 |
| Mercedes | Black | 32 |
| Mini | Black | 22 |
| Nissan | Black | 26 |
| Porsche | Black | 35 |
| Renault | Black | 25 |
| Rolls Royce | Blue | 48 |
| Seat | Black | 21 |
| Vauxhall | Black | 26 |
| Volvo | Black | 25 |
| VW | Black/Grey | 19 |
Location
Analysis of postcode areas revealed a picture of where each colour was most prevalent. Thirty per cent of cars in Enfield were black, the highest proportion of any postcode area in the UK. Whilst purple is not a popular choice in Colchester where only 0.3% of vehicles were mauve.
| Colour | Region/Postcode with highest proportion of colour |
| Black | Enfield - EN |
| Blue | London - WC |
| Brown | Darlington - DL |
| Green | Truro - TR |
| Grey | Watford - WD |
| Purple | Colchester - CO |
| Red | Dundee - DO |
| Silver | London - EC |
| White | Kilmarnock - KA |
| Yellow | Dorchester - DT |
Head of motor at Admiral Sabine Williams said:
“Our analysis shows that classic black is the nation’s favourite car colour regardless of where in the country you live. It’s interesting that in an age where people want to express their individuality in how they look, so many of us still resort to choosing the same colour cars. Three quarters of motorists drive either a black, blue, grey or white car.
“But while the colour of your car may not affect your premium, the way that you drive will. Drivers of all colour cars can reduce their chances of having a motoring conviction or needing to make a claim by staying legal when driving, sticking to the speed limit, making sure their vehicle is well maintained and parking their vehicle securely at home and when out. ”