The use of a specific ink color on a printed piece. Also used as "2 spot colors" or "3 spots" to distinguish from 4-color process. Spot colors are sometimes used in addition to process colors, usually to print a specific color in a logo.

PMS inks are spot colors. These inks are used for offset printing and will separated independently from CMYK inks. Spot colors are never used in on-screen applications such as Web graphics or PowerPoint displays.

A second color added to parts of a page or flat to highlight and emphasize certain copy. If a job runs in two colors with no black, the color of the majority of the text is referred to as the base color and the second color for the lesser amount of copy is the spot color.

Any color used for printing that has been "custom mixed" for the job, as opposed to one of the four standard process colors.

Requires that separate plates are made for each color being printed.

In printing, the application of one or more "inks" to enhance certain areas of the subject. Most spot colors can be simulated with process inks during printing (i.e. PanTone, TruMatch, etc.).

Color reproduced on press by using a special ink of the exact color wanted, rather than being reproduced by mixing different percentages of the primary colors Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black. Since each spot color requires a special ink and an additional pass through the printing press, most color on press is reproduced by using PROCESS COLOR instead. Spot color can be combined with process color for additional impact, or where a special color (such as a company logo color) is required. See also PANTONE.

A premixed colored ink that is not one of or a combination of the four process color inks.

When two or more colors are used in an ad but never touch each other.

Requires making separate plates for each color being printed.

A solid ink color in addition to black or process color. Spot color is often the accent color in two-color printing. In CMYK, or process color, spot color is used for small text or other areas where process color is not appropriate.

A second color, usually in addition to black, to add color to your printed piece. The ink is usually Pantone Matching System (PMS) consisting of named or numbered colors

The use of an extra color for emphasis – generally, in addition to a basic black-and-white layout.

see color definitons

One (generally non-process) color other than black.

Spot colors are printed with special premixed inks, used instead of, or in addition to, CMYK inks (process colors). Spot color printing requires a separate plate for every spot color, whereas process color printing only uses four plates, one for each of the four basic CMYK colors. Spot colors are especially well suited for offset printing, but should be used with caution when creating documents for four-color printing.. See also RGB and CMYK.

1, 2 and 3 color Pantone inks commonly used in offset printing - which is less expensive than full color ( CMYK) printing.

An extra color ink added to a page; also called flat color.

a color that either cannot by reproduced by CMYK or used when printing with colors fewer than four

an exactly defined full tone color

a solid color (red, blue green, black, etc)

a specially mixed ink that is applied on the printing press, as opposed to a mix of the four inks which make up process printing

a specially mixed ink using in printing

a special premixed ink that is used instead of, or (less commonly) in addition to, CMYK process inks, and that requires its own printing plate on a printing press

a specified ink color that printers can use to reproduce a color exactly

A custom mixed ink color used in printing. A separate plate is used to print each spot color. Pantone is a commonly used spot color matching system. (See Process color) Each spot channel holds data for an individual custom color.

When printing in color, it is ink from a can that produces only one specific color.

The color used to print a small area that is different from the other ink color on the piece.

This refers to a color that does not go through the CMYK process to obtain color values. Instead, each color in a document is created using that exact color, not a mixture of CMYK halftone values. Spot colors are used most often in limited color jobs where the cost of ink is too high for 4 color CMYK printing, or where a particular color (say for a logo) used must be exact.

Refers to the process of applying color to a specific area of a printed sheet in order to highlight a particular page element or to most accurately reproduce a particular color such as found in a company logo (Coca Cola Red, for example). Spot colors are often times specified by the PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM (PMS).

(see Multi-Color)

Localized color assigned to a graphic or block of text, prepared with a color break and printed without the use of color separations. Usually process color is not assigned to the spot color areas. Spot color is frequently printed with non-process color inks, although process inks can be used as well.

On a standard printed page, the use of colored ink to highlight an area. If this page were printed it would have yellow and blue spot color.

A solid color, such as those specified by the Pantone Matching System; the opposite of a process color.

Solid and halftone dot printing of specific ink colors. Generally used for cartoon type designs with broad coverage of inks.

A color that is printed in an ink of that specific color, rather than creating the color by combing CMYK inks.

A color applied to text or graphics (rather than derived through color separation). A spot color can be achieved by the addition of a specially mixed ink (often as a second color with black), or simulated by specifying percentages of cyan, magenta, yellow and black inks (in a four-color job). When printing using processes that do not rely on 4-color process, spot colors are often chosen from swatch libraries, such as Pantone or Toyo. Some printers offer their own "house" colors.

A single color ink or varnish applied to printed material. Primarily used when process colors are not appropriate. The effective use of spot color can add heightened interest to printed materials without incurring the cost of process colors.

is a technique in which the dot size is varied to produce different shades. This creates the illusion of multiple color printing.

Overlays a page prepared so that each color on the page is printed separately and then combined by a commercial printer to form the completed page.

Single colors applied to printing when process color is not necessary (ie. one, two and three color printing), or when process colors need to be augmented (ie. a fluorescent pink headline or a metallic tint).

A special ink added to a job as a solid color rather than a combination of the four process colors. When the job is color separated, each spot color has its own image.

Color used usually for accent

Small area printed in a second color.

also referred to as "picked color," a specifically formulated ink printed alone or as a supplement to other layers. May be used to enhance four-color process.

Colors printed in PMS inks rather than the four process colors (CMYK).

Color printed in pure color (ink straight out of the container), as opposed to four-color process, where colors are composed of percentages of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. Spot color separations for printing involve one plate for each color on the page, unlike process color, which requires four separate plates.

A spot color is an 'extra', or 'special' color that is used in addition to the CMYK four color process. The extra ink is added to its own roller on the printing press, so as to more accurately print certain colors that are hard to reproduce with CMYK inks. There are a number of companies that manufacture and specify spot colors, most common of these is the Pantone color matching system. Spot colors are often also used in predominantly black and white publications, where it would be too expensive to add a CMYK graphic element. Advertising is often sold this way and a charge is made for each extra spot color. It is for these reasons that companies often have several versions of their company logo as part of their corporate identity, full color, mono and a spot color version.

The method of applying color to a printed project that uses specially mixed inks to depict the color. There are hundreds of these colors and the most common reference system for selecting them is the Pantone Matching System.

Ink colors designated by the Pantone or similar system, in which the ink used is the actual color desired (I.e., green ink rather than the process yellow and process cyan to simulate green). to top

A single consistent color used throughout an area.

Pre-mixed inks (such as Pantone colors) used on a separate plate. Please convert all spot colors in your files to CMYK process colors before submitting your ad.

Using two or more non-contiguous colors in an ad

A color that cannot be created with the standard methods of the CMYK color scale. Examples are fluorescent colors, gold and silver.

small amounts of color applied to specific areas of a printed document.

Use of one additional color in printing.

Ink color(s) other than black, used as a highlight or attention-getter

If your project only uses one, two or three colors - including black - you'll want to use spot color process. This uses custom mixed inks to reproduce specific colors (like Pantone colors) rather than a full-color process used to reproduce photographs through color separations.

Any specific ink colors, for multiple color jobs other than CMYK process such as Pantone® colors for example.

Use of a single color throughout an area.

A single solid (or screened) color printed using one separation plate, as opposed to a process color printed using two or more separation plates.

A specific color in a design, usually designated to be printed with a specific matching ink, rather than through process CMYK printing.

Printing using black and one or two additional colors of ink.

In offset printing, a spot color is any color generated by an ink (pure or mixed) that is printed using a single run.