How to Make Red Paint Darker

Co-authored by Renée Plevy and Eric McClure

The most common way to make a red paint darker is to mix it with another color. You can combine 2 different shades of red to make minor changes to a paint, while mixing red with green or blue can radically change a color’s tone without muddying it. Neutral colors, like black and brown, can be added to a red paint to make more intense and dramatic changes to your paint. You can also adjust the impression that red makes by changing your paint or applying additional coats.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using Red, Green, or Blue Paint

1
Mix a deeper shade of red with your base red. Mixing 2 shades of the same color together is the best option for making minor changes to a red paint’s color profile. Modify a red paint by mixing it with a darker shade of red that is the same brand and type of paint. Add maroon, burgundy, or crimson to a light red and mix it thoroughly with a mixing stick or brush so that the 2 shades combine thoroughly.^{[1]
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- This is the simplest way to make minor adjustments to your red.
- Stick to the same category of paint when mixing. If your base paint is acrylic, mix it with other acrylics. If your base paint is a semi-gloss oil-based paint, mix it with other semi-gloss oil-based paints. If you mix different types of paint, they may blend into an inconsistent texture or color.
- If you’re working in low-light conditions, it can be hard to see a difference in a red paint when you mix it with another red.
2
Add a little bit of green paint to make a deeper red. Complimentary colors can be combined to make different shades of brown. If you want to push a red into a darker shade without adding black, use a little bit of green to give your red paint a brownish undertone. Start with a combination that is 1-part green to every 10-parts red before increasing the amount of green that you’re using.^{[2]
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- Darker colors will radically change a lighter paint rapidly. Err on the side of caution by starting with a conservative amount of green before you go further.
- You can identify a color’s complimentary color by referring to a color wheel and looking for the color that is on the opposite side of your red.
- If you add black to a color, it will naturally absorb more light. Adding a little green is a good way to keep a red vibrant and vivid without making a room feel smaller or a painting appear flatter.
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3
Use an analogous shade of blue to make a red darker and muted. A violet undertone will make a shade of red darker and deeper. Mix darker reds with softer blues and lighter reds with deeper blues to darken your red paint. Start by mixing 1-part of your analogous color and 10-parts of your red before you increase the amount of blue that you’re adding.
- Analogous colors refer to colors that are next to one another on the color wheel, like light green and bright yellow or dark orange and light red.
- If you use too much blue, your red will end up looking purple.
Tip: Mixing analogous colors often makes a paint feel dynamic and unique. If you’re trying to make a statement on an accent wall or make a focal point pop, consider this option.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Mixing Reds with Neutral Colors

1
Add black to change the shade of red and make it richer. Combining black with any color will create a darker shade of that color. This is the most straightforward way to make a color darker. Start small, with 1-part black for every 30-parts of red to ensure that you don’t overdo it when mixing your paints. Black is the strongest color in terms of how potent it is at modifying a paint color, so work in smaller increments when increasing the amount of black in a mixture.^{[3]
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- Many painters don’t like mixing primary colors with black because it muddies the color and might not look dynamic
Warning: It is very hard to reverse the changes to a color if you add black because it is such a potent pigment. In addition, black changes a color so quickly that it can be hard to identify how much you need.
2
Combine red with a gray to make a darker, flat red. Start with 1-part gray to 15-parts red. Mixing a paint with gray instead of black means that you’re adding some white to your color, which will create a more neutral impression. The white and the black will cancel each other out in terms of vibrancy, resulting in a flatter, muted red. Combine red and flat gray if you’re trying to make your wall or painting feel neutral.^{[4]
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- If you’re worried about making a room feel smaller when you paint a wall red and gray, use a lighter shade of gray. It will mute the red without making it feel dark.
- You can mix gray by combining white and black.
3
Mix a red with a brown to make a muted, earthy shade of red. Start with 1-part brown to 20-parts red. Choosing the right shade of brown to mix with a red can be difficult because brown can contain a wide range of colors. Generally speaking, the lighter your brown is, the more orange your red will appear to be. Opt for small amounts of a darker brown if you’re working with a primary red.^{[5]
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- You can add black or yellow to your brown-red mixture to make it burgundy.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Applying a Second Coat and Mixing Materials

1
Add another coat of the same red to make the color richer. After your first coat has dried, you can make a red richer in color by adding a second coat. This works particularly well if you’re working with a shade that is deeper than primary red. Simply cover your canvas, wall, or item a second time using the same paint that you used the first time.^{[6]
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- If you’re painting a lighter shade of red, adding a second coat will make it more vibrant, which could actually make it look lighter.
2
Apply a coat of maroon, burgundy or crimson to a lighter shade to deepen the hue. If your red is too bright, you can deepen the hue by adding a deeper color. Choose a red that is a few shades darker than your current red and apply it on top of your first coat to create a stronger color. This method works best with paints that are water-based or translucent.^{[7]
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- Watercolor paints don’t often come in different shades. If you’re painting with watercolors, use less water to make a color darker.
- You can use color swatches to identify the color of your wall. Hold up shades of red against the wall until you find a swatch that blends with your wall perfectly.
- Color swatches are normally organized with the lightest tone of a color on top of a slide and the darkest tone of color on the bottom. Move down 2-3 boxes on a slide to choose a tone that will mix well with your first coat.
3
Cover glossy reds with flat reds to change the texture of a wall. Glossy paint reflects light, which can make glossy reds look lighter than they actually are. Cover a coat of glossy paint with a coat of flat paint to reduce the amount of light that reflects off of it.^{[8]
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- Oil-based paint tends to be more reflective than latex paints.
- If you’re painting interior walls, this is easily done by taking your can of gloss paint to the store that you purchased it from and asking for a flat latex version of the same color.
- Oil-based glossy paints may require multiple layers to cover.
4
Switch from oil to acrylic paint if you’re working on a canvas. Generally speaking, oil paints provide richer, brighter colors. Acrylic paint is often flatter, and will darken after it dries. If you’re trying to use a certain shade of red but need it to be deeper, switch out an oil paint for an acrylic paint.^{[9]
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Warning: You’ll need to switch up your creative process if you switch from oil to acrylic. Oil paint takes days to fully dry, while acrylic starts drying within minutes.