Which glow colour lasts longest?

Yellow-green, the base shade. Yellow-green, blue-green and blue glow for more than 10 hours in total darkness; after one to two hours the glow turns into a faint shimmer.

Are there red glow-in-the-dark pigments?

Only tinted ones, and a true red is technically not possible. Red and orange shades glow considerably less than yellow-green or blue-green.

Which glow colour is least noticeable in daylight?

Blue. In daylight it looks the most whitish and therefore the most colour-neutral, but it glows slightly less than yellow-green and blue-green.

Which Glow Colour Is Brightest?

In short: yellow-green

Yellow-green is the base shade of strontium aluminate glow pigments. It glows brightest and longest. All other glow colours are variants of it – and as a rule, the further they move away from the base shade, the weaker their afterglow.

Photoluminescent pigment, yellow-green, as a heap with a scoop, glowing in the dark — Glow pigments in daylight and in the dark – drag the slider, choose a colour.

Photoluminescent pigment, yellow-green, as a heap with a scoop, in daylight — Glow pigments in daylight and in the dark – drag the slider, choose a colour.

Glow colours at a glance

Glow colours compared – empirical values, not measurements
Glow colour	Brightness	Afterglow*	Characteristics
Yellow-green	brightest	more than 10 h	base shade; light yellow in daylight
Blue-green	bright	more than 10 h	more balanced, less "chemical" look
Blue	slightly weaker than yellow-green and blue-green	more than 10 h	most colour-neutral in daylight
Violet	considerably weaker	approx. 3 h	needs UV light to charge
Orange, red	considerably weaker	–	tinted; a true red is technically not possible
White	rather weak	only briefly	very white daylight colour, popular for certain requirements

* In total darkness after full charging. After one to two hours, the glow turns into a faint shimmer that remains visible for a long time.

Which colour for which purpose?

Maximum brightness: yellow-green

For safety signage, orientation in the dark and wherever the glow effect matters most. As an untinted pigment, yellow-green is also suitable for hot processes such as injection moulding or extrusion.

Balanced: blue-green

The most popular alternative. Blue-green looks more harmonious and also glows brightly and long – often the better choice for design and consumer goods.

Discreet in daylight: blue

In daylight, blue looks the most whitish and therefore the most colour-neutral. Good when the product should show as little body colour as possible during the day.

Truly white: white

White unfortunately glows only briefly and rather weakly. Thanks to its very white daylight colour, it is still very popular for certain requirements – wherever the product needs to look genuinely white in daylight.

Accents: violet, orange, red

These shades are tinted. In daylight they often look stronger, but they glow considerably less. Violet needs UV light to charge. A true red cannot be achieved technically.

Good to knowTinted pigments contain organic dyes and should not be used from approx. 150 °C; under permanent UV exposure they may be less stable. Untinted pigments are heat-resistant – recognisable by their light, whitish daylight colour with a slight tint, such as yellow-green and blue-green.

What else affects the result

Charging. UV content – daylight or UV from 365 nm – charges fastest, artificial light more slowly. Permanent UV does not harm the pigment.
Fluorescence. Under UV or black light, the pigments also fluoresce and look even more intense.
Mixing. Glow colours can be mixed, but the result is not homogeneous because of different particle sizes.
Photos. Glow colours look different depending on camera and charge level. It is best to judge colours on a sample.

Which glow colour is brightest?