The official Cleveland Cavaliers colors are wine, gold and black. The primary color is Cavaliers wine (#860038), paired with Cavaliers gold (#FDBB30) and black (#000000). These colors run across the team’s logo, uniforms and merchandise, with navy blue dropped from the palette in the 2022 rebrand.
Cleveland Cavaliers color codes: HEX, RGB, CMYK, Pantone
| Color | Swatch | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cavaliers Wine | #860038 | 134, 0, 56 | 0, 100, 34, 53 | PMS 209 C (approx.) | |
| Cavaliers Gold | #FDBB30 | 253, 187, 48 | 0, 29, 91, 0 | PMS 1235 C (approx.) | |
| Black | #000000 | 0, 0, 0 | 30, 0, 0, 100 | PMS Black 6 C (approx.) | |
| Cavaliers Navy (legacy, 2003-2022) | #041E42 | 4, 30, 66 | 100, 90, 13, 68 | PMS 282 C (approx.) |
A note on the Pantone values. The Cavs don’t publish a public brand book with confirmed PMS numbers for the current wine/gold/black colorway. The codes above are the industry-standard matches that circulate across licensed print work and third-party color databases, approximated from the HEX. Treat them as close references, not gospel. If you’re printing anything commercial, ask the team’s licensing contact.
Every color in the Cavaliers palette, broken down
Cavaliers wine (#860038)
Wine is the primary. It’s a deep maroon that sits closer to oxblood than to a true red, which is exactly why it never reads as “another red team.” Wine fills the C in the shield mark, dominates the Icon uniform, and shows up as the dominant tone in nearly all Cavs merchandise.
The shade has moved around more than people assume. The 2010 uniforms pulled it back toward the original 1970-1983 wine after a run in the 2000s where it carried a crimson, almost scarlet tint. Current wine is the darker, drier version.
Cavaliers gold (#FDBB30)
Gold is the secondary and the trim color. It handles outlines, wordmarks, numbers, and the accent stroke around the C. The current value is a metallic gold, and the 2022 refresh specifically reverted to the metallic tone the team used from 1980 to 1983 and again from 2003 to 2010, backing away from the brighter, more saturated yellow-gold of the 2010-2017 era.
Worth knowing if you’re building a palette: this gold is warm enough that it clashes with cool grays. Test it before you commit. And if you need a full set of companions, browse some gold color palettes rather than eyeballing it.
Black (#000000)
Black is the newest permanent member. It became an official brand color in the 2017-18 season, added as a nod to the black sleeved jersey the team wore in Game 7 of the 2016 Finals. Since the 2022 identity, black carries the shield itself.
Pure #000000, not a soft off-black. That matters for print, where a rich black build usually looks better than 100K alone.
Navy blue (#041E42), the color that left
Navy was part of the palette from the 2003-04 season through 2022. It appeared in home jersey numerals, on the sword logo backdrop, and across the popular navy alternates. The 2022-23 rebrand removed it. Plenty of color sites still list it, so if a client hands you a spec sheet with navy blue in it, check the date on that file.
Cavaliers jersey colors
Association (home): white, with wine lettering and gold trim.
Icon (road): wine, with white lettering and gold trim.
Statement: black with dark gray pinstripes, a wine C outlined in gold, gold names on the back.
City Edition: changes yearly and often ignores the core palette entirely. The 2017-18 version was gray on gray with “The Land” across the chest.
Classic Edition: for 2025-26, the team brought back the navy alternate worn from 2005 to 2010, a tip of the hat to the 2007 Finals run.
How the palette got here
Wine and gold arrived with the franchise itself. The name came out of a 1970 fan contest run by The Plain Dealer, and the colors were locked in for the inaugural season.
Then came the detour. From 1994 to 2003 the Cavs wore blue, black and orange, tied to the move into Gund Arena. Honestly, that era gets more nostalgic love now than it did at the time.
2003-04 brought a return to wine and gold with LeBron’s arrival, plus navy blue as a third color and a crimson-leaning wine. The 2010 uniforms walked the shades back toward the 1970-1983 originals. In 2017 black entered the palette. In 2022, under creative director Daniel Arsham, the team dropped the sword, dropped navy, and settled on the wine/gold/black shield used today.
Using the colors in your own work
For screens, use the HEX values. For print, use the CMYK or the Pantone approximations above and proof them. Wine on black needs a gold separator or the contrast collapses. Gold on white fails accessibility contrast for body text at normal sizes, so keep it decorative.
“ :root { --cavs-wine: #860038; --cavs-gold: #FDBB30; --cavs-black: #000000; --cavs-navy-legacy: #041E42; } `
My workflow: set wine as the dominant surface, gold at roughly 10 to 15 percent coverage, black for structure. Going 50/50 wine and gold makes everything look like a wine label.
Related color references
- The full league reference: NBA team color codes
- Cleveland’s other big palette: Cleveland Indians colors
- Ohio neighbors: Cincinnati Reds colors
- Deep, moody companions for wine: dark color palettes
- If you want the whole league on one page: baseball team color codes
FAQ on The Cleveland Cavaliers Colors
What are the Cleveland Cavaliers colors?
The Cleveland Cavaliers use wine, gold and black. Wine (#860038) is the primary, gold (#FDBB30) handles trim, black (#000000) carries the shield. Navy blue was part of the palette until the 2022 rebrand removed it.
What are the Cavaliers color codes in HEX and RGB?
Wine: #860038, RGB (134, 0, 56). Gold: #FDBB30, RGB (253, 187, 48). Black: #000000, RGB (0, 0, 0). Legacy navy: #041E42, RGB (4, 30, 66). Use these for web and screen work.
What are the Cavaliers CMYK values for print?
Wine prints at CMYK (0, 100, 34, 53). Gold sits at (0, 29, 91, 0). Black uses (30, 0, 0, 100) as a rich build. Proof on your actual stock, because gold shifts badly on uncoated paper.
What is the Cleveland Cavaliers Pantone color?
The common matches are PMS 209 C for wine, PMS 1235 C for gold, PMS Black 6 C for black, and PMS 282 C for the retired navy. The team does not publicly publish these, so treat them as approximations.
What is the primary color of the Cavaliers?
Wine. It dominates the Icon road uniform, fills the letter C in the logo, and anchors nearly all Cavs merchandise. It is a deep oxblood shade, darker and drier than the crimson-tinted wine used during the mid-2000s.
When did the Cavaliers adopt their current colors?
Wine and gold date to the 1970 founding. Black joined officially in 2017-18. The current three-color scheme was locked in for the 2022-23 season, when Daniel Arsham’s redesign removed navy blue and the sword.
Why are the Cavs called the Wine and Gold?
Because those were the original 1970 expansion colors, chosen alongside the Cavaliers name from a Plain Dealer fan contest. The nickname stuck through the blue-and-orange years and outlasted every logo change since.
What were the Cavaliers blue and orange colors?
From 1994 to 2003 the team wore blue (#5C88DA), orange (#E35205) and black, tied to the move into Gund Arena. That palette was retired in 2003 when wine and gold returned with LeBron James.
Are the Cavaliers colors the same as the Los Angeles Lakers?
No. Both are gold-forward, but the Lakers pair gold with purple. Cleveland pairs it with wine, a dark maroon. Side by side, the Cavaliers palette reads far heavier and less saturated than the Lakers scheme.
What are the Cavaliers jersey colors right now?
Association is white with wine lettering. Icon is wine with white and gold trim. Statement is black with dark gray pinstripes. The 2025-26 Classic Edition revives the navy alternate from the 2007 Finals era.
Conclusion
The Cleveland Cavaliers colors come down to three values you can copy straight into a swatch panel: #860038, #FDBB30, #000000.
Keep the Pantone matches labeled as approximations in any client file. That small bit of honesty saves arguments at press check.
And check the date on whatever brand sheet you inherit. Navy still shows up in old assets from the Rocket Arena era, and it has not been part of the palette since 2022.
Renowned for his expertise in logo design and visual branding, Bogdan has developed a multitude of logos for various clients.
His skills extend to creating posters, vector illustrations, business cards, and brochures. Additionally, Bogdan's UI kits were featured on marketplaces like Visual Hierarchy and UI8.
He also wrote in the past years on sites like Design Your Way, WebDesignerDepot, WPDean, Designmodo, Speckyboy, Slider Revolution, and more.
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Bogdan Sandu is a seasoned designer who has been designing websites since 2008. Renowned for his expertise in logo design and visual branding, Bogdan has developed a multitude of logos for various clients. His skills extend to creating posters, vector illustrations, business cards, and brochures. Additionally, Bogdan's UI kits were featured on marketplaces like Visual Hierarchy and UI8. He also wrote in the past years on sites like Design Your Way, WebDesignerDepot, WPDean, Designmodo, Speckyboy, Slider Revolution, and more.
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