What two colors make magenta?

Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses 3 tubes rather than two: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green. Alizarin Crimson leads the mix. Chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

How do you make magenta paint lighter without losing the hue?

Lighten in small steps and compare against the target each time. Chromilla's palette struggles with a lighter magenta (#DE4781) in acrylic: Chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Why does magenta look different when acrylic dries?

Acrylic binder looks milky while wet and clears as it dries, so the dried film reads darker. Chromilla's model applies a 10% value shift for acrylic, so the wet mix #B34564 is predicted to dry to about #A43E58. Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.

What is the hex code for magenta?

Chromilla uses #C22A6A as the target for magenta. The acrylic recipe is predicted to dry to about #A43E58.

Can I mix magenta without black?

Yes. Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses no black: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green.

How to Mix Magenta in Acrylic

Quick answer

To mix magenta (#C22A6A) in acrylic, use 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green. That falls short: Chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out. Try the mixer with your own tubes. Chromilla is a web-based paint color mixer that turns any color, from a photo, the camera or a hex code, into exact paint-tube ratios for acrylic, oil and watercolor, using Kubelka-Munk pigment mixing and aiming at the color after it dries.

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Target

Magenta

#C22A6A

Predicted dry result

83% match when dry

Mix to #B34564 while wet. It dries to about #A43E58.

Magenta in acrylic: tube ratios, and ml for a 100 ml batch
Paint	Pigment	Parts	Share	100 ml batch
Alizarin Crimson	PR83	6	48%	48 ml
Titanium White	PW6	5	37%	37 ml
Viridian Green	PG18	2	15%	15 ml

How we calculated this: Kubelka-Munk pigment mixing, then a per-medium dry shift, scored with CIEDE2000. Method and accuracy benchmark. Last checked August 2026.

Terms used here: Tinting strength, Dry shift, Kubelka-Munk, Delta E (dE2000), Pigment code, Gamut.

A vivid, cool violet-red. The strongest way to reach clean purples. This guide gives you the pigment ratios that land on #C22A6A in acrylic, using the same solver that powers the Chromilla mixer.

Pigment recipe

Checked August 2026

Ratios calibrated for acrylic. Start with the dominant pigment, add the modifiers in the order below, and adjust in 5% steps to your target swatch.

1. Alizarin Crimson
PR83
48%
2. Titanium White
PW6
37%
3. Viridian Green
PG18
15%

What colors make Magenta?

Alizarin Crimson, Titanium White, and Viridian Green, in roughly a 48:37:15 ratio.

How to make Magenta in acrylic

Start with Alizarin Crimson at about 48% as your acrylic base, then work in Titanium White and Viridian Green in the order above. Adjust in 5% steps until the swatch reads #C22A6A.

Why mix Magenta instead of buying it

Mixing Magenta yourself lets you approximate an expensive or hard to find tube from pigments you already own, match Magenta across paint brands whose factory tubes differ, and rebuild the exact color when you run out mid painting. The recipe above is the working starting point.

Common mistakes

White cools and chalks a mix as you add it, so tint in small steps and stop before it goes pastel.

Variations on Magenta

Each variation is its own target (lighter and darker move OKLCH lightness by 0.08; warmer and cooler turn the hue 12 degrees toward red or blue), solved fresh.

Lighter Magenta

#DE4781

Not a confident recipe: the closest mix is 3 parts Titanium White to 2 parts Alizarin Crimson, and chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Darker Magenta

#A11454

Not a confident recipe: the closest mix is 8 parts Alizarin Crimson, 4 parts Viridian Green and 3 parts Titanium White, and chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Warmer Magenta

#C72950

7 parts Alizarin Crimson to 3 parts Titanium White. Chromilla's model predicts an 89% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Cooler Magenta

#BB2F82

Not a confident recipe: the closest mix is 6 parts Titanium White, 6 parts Alizarin Crimson and 1 part Ultramarine Blue, and chromilla's model predicts a 75% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.

Magenta questions

What two colors make magenta?: Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses 3 tubes rather than two: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green. Alizarin Crimson leads the mix. Chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
How do you make magenta paint lighter without losing the hue?: Lighten in small steps and compare against the target each time. Chromilla's palette struggles with a lighter magenta (#DE4781) in acrylic: Chromilla's model predicts an 83% dry match against the target, scored against its own color model, not a measured paint-out.
Why does magenta look different when acrylic dries?: Acrylic binder looks milky while wet and clears as it dries, so the dried film reads darker. Chromilla's model applies a 10% value shift for acrylic, so the wet mix #B34564 is predicted to dry to about #A43E58. Dries slightly darker and a touch warmer.
What is the hex code for magenta?: Chromilla uses #C22A6A as the target for magenta. The acrylic recipe is predicted to dry to about #A43E58.
Can I mix magenta without black?: Yes. Chromilla's acrylic recipe uses no black: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green.

Magenta in other mediums

Magenta in Oil: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green, predicted 87% dry match by Chromilla's color model.
Magenta in Watercolor: 6 parts Alizarin Crimson, 5 parts Titanium White and 2 parts Viridian Green, predicted 85% dry match by Chromilla's color model.

Compare acrylic, oil and watercolor for magenta

Get this recipe for your paint brand

Open the live mixer with Magenta + acrylic pre-loaded and calibrate to your tubes.

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Deep-dive guide

How to mix Magenta, the long version

Common mistakes, per-brand recipes, and the honest limits when the target sits outside what real paint can reach.

Read the guide

Technique guides for this color

Related mixing guides

Pigment mixing is subtractive, so small ratio changes matter. The mixer refines this recipe to your brand and updates on the fly.