What color does black and white make when mixed as paint?

A gray close to Grey (#808080). Pigments subtract light, so the mix is darker and duller than either parent; exact results vary by brand and binder.

What do black and white make as light?

A color near Robo Master (#ACACAC). Light mixes additively, so overlapping sources brighten instead of darkening, which is why screens and paint disagree about the same pair.

What happens with more black than white?

The result slides toward Black along the mixing curve; the live slider on this page computes the paint and light result at any ratio, with the hex code of every step.

What does black and white make?

In paint, black and white make a gray close to Grey (#808080). Mixed as light, the same pair gives a result near Robo Master, because light adds while pigment subtracts.

50% Black · 50% White

As paint

#808080

As light

#ACACAC

Theory

Why paint and light disagree

Pigments work by absorbing light: each paint removes part of the spectrum, so combining black and white removes more light than either alone and the result darkens. Screens and stage lights work the other way. Each light adds energy, so overlapping them moves the result toward white. The slider above computes both models at any ratio: the paint result uses red-yellow-blue pigment interpolation, the light result uses additive blending.

Reference

The 50/50 paint result, specified

HEX: #808080
RGB: rgb(128, 128, 128)
HSL: hsl(0, 0%, 50%)
CMYK: cmyk(0%, 0%, 0%, 50%)

Closest named color: Grey. Real pigments vary by brand and binder, so treat these values as the screen approximation of a physical mix.

FAQ

Quick answers

What color does black and white make when mixed as paint?: A gray close to Grey (#808080). Pigments subtract light, so the mix is darker and duller than either parent; exact results vary by brand and binder.
What do black and white make as light?: A color near Robo Master (#ACACAC). Light mixes additively, so overlapping sources brighten instead of darkening, which is why screens and paint disagree about the same pair.
What happens with more black than white?: The result slides toward Black along the mixing curve; the live slider on this page computes the paint and light result at any ratio, with the hex code of every step.