Supportsoft Glossary

Color Modes: Screen vs. Print

RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is for screens and uses light. CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) is for printing and uses ink. Mixing them up leads to muddy colors. 

This is the most common technical headache in design.

• RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is for screens. It’s "additive," meaning you mix colored light together. If you blast them all at 100%, you get white light. This is for websites, apps, and phones.
• CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key/Black) is for printers. It’s "subtractive" ink. If you mix them all, you get a muddy dark brown.