Yes, Color Can Hurt A Car's Resale Value - These Are The Ones To Steer Clear Of

A recent study by iSeeCars looked at more than 1.2 million model year 2022 used cars, adjusting their MSRPs to 2025 dollars, and then compared them to their current used-car list prices. This gave a percentage for each car's retained resale value over three years, which the study then grouped by body style and color. The analysis included pickup trucks, SUVs, sedans, minivans, coupes, and convertibles. These results give us insight into how color can affect the resale value of a car in general, while also giving us an idea of how color can affect the resale value of various types of cars.

Starting with the general vehicle results across all types of automobiles, the study found that yellow cars retain the most value, losing only 24.0% of their value after three years. Orange cars come in second at a 24.4% loss of value, with green cars coming in third at 26.3%. Filling out the remaining spots are beige (29.5%), red (29.8%), silver (29.8%), brown (30.4%), gray (30.5%), and blue (30.9%). You should stay away from the below-31% average resale colors of black (31.9%), white (32.1%), and last-place gold (34.4%). 

When compared to the five most popular car colors in the US, there is generally an inverse relationship between resale value and popularity. For pickup trucks, the most resale-friendly colors are orange, losing 16.0%, and green, dropping 19.3%. White, beige, and red are in the last three places with the worst resale value. 

When it comes to SUVs, colors that best boost resale value are orange, green, and yellow, with white, brown, and black coming in last. So if you're shopping for an SUV with a high resale value, you might want to consider color, too. In the sedan category, the three top colors for resale were orange, yellow, and beige, while brown, green, and gold placed in the bottom three spots. 

The next vehicle covered in the iSeeCars study is minivans, where green, brown, and silver take the top spots, with black, gray, and white coming in last. Orange and yellow likely have zero demand among minivan buyers. But for coupes, the colorful trend returns, with yellow, orange, and blue taking the first, second, and third resale-value places, reflecting these cars' sporty natures. Black, green, and white come in last among coupes. Finally, we have the convertible category, where bright colors reign supreme. Among convertibles, the top colors are orange, yellow, and green, with white, black, and silver grouped at the bottom, as you might expect for the most exhibitionistic cars in the marketplace. Going beyond color, it's also helpful to know which car brands have the best resale value.

Keep in mind that a higher resale value does not indicate that the majority of used car buyers are searching for orange or yellow cars. It just reflects an imbalance between supply and demand for these colors, since white, black, gray, and silver cars are so common.