OK, so this post is not actually going to go over 50 different shades of white, though we easily could. Not all shades of white are created equal, so you’ve probably experienced buying a white shirt at one store that is a different shade of white as a white shirt from a different brand.

Strictly speaking, a shade of white is defined as a neutral gray, but shades can range from pure white to different hues of off-white.

Pure White

The purest shade of white is achromatic, meaning that all the red, green, and blue tones are exactly equal, resulting in a perfect white. This is the starting point of all achromatic (off-white) shades.

Here are some of the most well-known shades of white:

• Ghost white: white with a blue hue
• White smoke: white with a grey hue
• Baby powder: white with a pink tone
• Ivory: white with a yellow tone
• Linen: white with an orange tone

Why does this matter?

The shade of your lab coat should be as close to pure white as possible, so that the bright color is not diluted by a sallow or blueish tone. Not only are all these shades of off-white not particularly flattering on every skin tone, they also don’t look that professional on a lab coat that is supposed to represent cleanliness and purity.