Whether you own a truck or you’re looking to buy one, a truck’s color may not be the most important thing to you. However, a truck’s color can actually have impacts on its resale value, the chances of it getting stolen, and its fuel economy. Here’s everything you need to know about choosing a color for your truck.

The economics behind truck color

The color of your truck can actually have an effect on your fuel economy, but it’s not too big of a deal. This happens because of the truck’s heater and A/C. If you use either of those features, then your truck will burn a bit more fuel in order to run. But certain colors will keep your car warmer or cooler due to physics. As a result, you won’t have to use your heater or A/C as often with those colors.

VEHQ mentions that darker colors are better in colder climates while lighter colors are better in warmer climates. However, because your A/C and heater won’t use too much fuel, this won’t have too big of an impact on your fuel mileage.

What can have a big impact on your wallet though, is the depreciation of certain colors. This only matters if you plan on selling your truck eventually. In a study by iSeeCars, the average value of a car depreciated by about 30% over 3 years. However, the value of two colors depreciated the least. 

Orange and yellow only depreciated by about 22% over 3 years. Green was the runner-up, and it depreciated by 24.5% in that timespan. In comparison, the color that depreciated the most was gold, which depreciated by 33.5%. Black and white tones were about average in depreciation.

Safety and security

A truck’s color can also impact how often it gets stolen, according to VEHQ. The truck colors that are most often stolen are black and white color tones. However, notably, green and gold are also frequently stolen colors. On the other end of that spectrum, however, light green, light yellow, and orange are the least likely colors of trucks to get stolen. 

A truck’s safety isn’t just from car thieves, either, it’s also from other cars. Although most modern trucks are pretty safe, the color of a truck can also have an impact on how likely it’ll get into an accident. This again has to do with physics. Lighter colors will reflect light easier, meaning they’ll be easier to see at night. The opposite is true for darker colors.

The more light the paint reflects, the more visible the car will be, and thus, the less likely it is that they’ll get into an accident. The safest colors, according to VEHQ, are colors like white, yellow, and beige. The least safest colors are black, grey, or even red. 

Uniqueness and final choice

In regards to uniqueness, unsurprisingly, black and white color tones tend to be the most popular colors, according to CarMax. Unsurprisingly, colors like orange, yellow, and green aren’t very popular, either. In terms of trucks only, white is the most popular color, as almost a quarter of all trucks are just plain white.

However, asides from how rare a color is, there are also factors that can’t be quantified by a study. At the end of the day, everyone has their own favorite color, and these facts about car colors may not matter to you. A truck’s color can also say something about its driver, but those opinions will vary from person to person. 

With that said, going by the evidence presented, the best colors are either yellow or orange. They’re not very popular colors, probably because most people don’t like those colors. However, they’ll make your truck safer, retain its value longer, and your truck will stick out like a sore thumb, which can be a good thing.