Cats are available in extensive fur colors and patterns, ranging from solid colors to tortoiseshell, smoky, and calico patterns. Every one-of-a-kind coat tells your cat’s genetic past and where they come from.
Have you ever seen a beautiful cat with extraordinary markings and thought, first, how lovely its markings are, and second, what are those things called, anyway? This easy read will help you appreciate how amazing your feline friend looks!
Let’s delve into the wonderful world of cat coats.
1. Solid
Take solid-colored cats, for example. They wear a single color of fur all over. Though most sports have solid coloring, some have a small amount of white on the chest, paws, face, or belly. If the cat has white on more than 25%, it is bicolor, not solid.
2. Bicolor
The distinctive cats blend white fur with another color (black, gray, orange, or cream) in a striking contrast. For two-tone cats to be considered bicolor, at least a third of their fur should be white, while the other part shows their different color, which can have tabby stripes or spots.
Each bicolor cat is unique in this way:
- The relative percentage of white fur
- Here’s where on their body the white is located
- How do you distribute the colored portions
This ratio of white to color produces some unique pattern variations that form the bicolored cats’ unique appearance.
3. Tuxedo
These cats are so sharp, they must have been dressed up for a black-tie affair! Tuxedo cats wear a predominantly black (or black and white) coat with a pristine white design that appears very similar to a tuxedo suit:
- Classic white “shirtfront” on the chest
- White “spats” on the paws
- White belly like a waistcoat
- Frequently white whiskers and sometimes a white muzzle or chin
The striking contrast between their dark “jacket” and white “shirt” is their unmistakable signature. Though most are black and white, tuxedo cats can be gray, orange, or even blue (dilute gray) versions of the pattern.
4. Mask-and-Mantle
Mask-and-mantle cats, though, have a visually two-toned coat, with solid dark fur on their back, head, and lower face, and lower body and legs, like a mask and cape; the fur on their upper face, chest, belly, and legs is clean white. This crisp colour block gives a fitted tux look. The pattern will differ for each cat (some are completely symmetrical, and some are more “feathered” around the edges). Most often in black-and-white, it may also be gray, orange, or tabby colored. Their unique “masked” faces, in particular, are quite expressive and photogenic.
5. Cap-and-Saddle
These handsome bicolor cats have a one-of-a-kind “painted” pattern:
- Head: (SK) A solid-colored “cap” covers only the top of the head.
- Rear: A small colored ”saddle” patch is located between the shoulders
- Body: The remainder is clean white (de whiter than mask-and-mantle pattern cats)
What makes them special:
- The color blocks look as though someone has dabbed them in paint
- Mandrel and saddle may or may not be interconnected
- Frequently feature random white “socks” on their paws
- Usually black-and-white, also available in colors
Their whimsical patterns ensure that each tabby-and-white cap-and-saddle cat is unique – some are ‘wearing’ a little beret, some look like they have a backpack on! The pattern is produced when the white spotting gene permits only these little spots to be coloured.
6. Harlequin
Chiefly white cats with a few sizable, randomly placed colored patches that give them a one-of-a-kind “painted” appearance, a unique variant of calicos because they have fewer, but more striking, color blocks. The abstract patterns on their face often end up creating photogenic asymmetrical faces.
7. Van
Van cats are predominantly white with only two colored areas on the body: the tail and a few markings on the head. Known for their unique “swimming cat” stereotype and lovely yet subtle patterning from the wild, these stunning coats are among the most beautiful and original cat patterns.
8. Tabby
Tabby isn’t a breed but a pattern that can be stripes, swirls, or spots, and usually a mark bearing an “M” appears on the forehead. These patterns everything from classic marble to mackerel stripes reign supreme among the domestic cat population because of the camouflage worn by their wild ancestors.
9. Tortoiseshell
Torties shimmer with their multi-coloured coats of lustrous black and vivid orange in a hypnotic, asymmetrical mosaic reminiscent of polished tortoiseshell. Each cat canvas exhibits a unique design as color swirls, speckles, and streaks like molten amber and onyx – no two torties have the same pattern, so each one is a furred work of art.
This fetching coloration is a result of an interesting genetic dance:
- X-chromosome magic: The mix needs two X chromosomes, and, well, 99.9 per cent of tortoises are female
- Random shutdown: Each cell in the body randomly silences (turns off) its orange or black genes while it develops.
- Cellular mosaics: It gives us those signature blended patches where colors vie for dominance.
10. Calico
Calico describes a blotched or diluted color pattern of black, orange, and white. Like tortoiseshell cats, calico cats are nearly all female. This is because the genes that give them unique coloration are tied to the X chromosome.
11. Colorpoint (Pointed)
Colorpoint cats also have the same pattern of light body color and darker “points” on their face, ears, paws, and tail, as Siamese cats do. The traditional point colors are seal (dark brown), chocolate (lighter brown), blue (gray), and lilac (pink-gray). Other color points include red/orange, cream, cinnamon, and fawn points. Some cats have patterned points, such as those of a tortoiseshell (mixed colours) or a lynx (tabby stripes), and the body is a related solid colour. That pattern is found in breeds like the Siamese, Balinese, Himalayan, and Tonkinese, with the breed’s trademark bright blue eyes.
12. Mink
Mink-patterned cats have aqua eyes like colorpoint but with a more delicate contrast between body and points. This pattern is present in Burmese and Tonkinese breeds in warm colors such as natural (similar to sable brown), platinum, champagne, or blue. Some Bengal cats also show the mink variation with a cream/beige background and brown/chocolate pattern, always with aqua eyes.
13. Sepia
The sepia pattern is a subset of the colorpoint gene and minimizes the contrast between the body and the points, giving colorpoint cats their beautiful light-body/dark-points appearance. This faint imprint presents itself in breeds such as the Burmese and Tonkinese with lush, warm colors, including natural (sable brown), platinum, champagne, and blue. What distinguishes the sepia pattern is its almost solid appearance, but the sides should be slightly darker than the body.
14. Smoke
Considering them in fresh fallen suit, at first glance, smoke patterned cats may appear to be solid colored cats, but their fur hides a delightful surprise – their roots are white or silver, and only the outer 50-80% of each hair shaft is pigmented. When the coat moves, this results in a glistening, two-tone appearance. Smoke These variations are typical in breeds such as Persians, British Shorthairs, and Maine Coons. Smoke is distinguished by the following:
- Classic smokes: black, blue, red, cream, chocolate, lilac, cinnamon, and fawn (all with white/silver undercoat, and colour-tipped fur)
- Tortie smokes Black tortie (black x red mix) & blue-cream (dilute tortie)
- Tabby cigarettes/silver and brown: silver tabby (black stripes) and brown tabby (brown stripes), with markings limited to the tips of the hair.
- As they step, a glimmer of hidden silver shines, turning smoke cats into sleekly dynamic.
15. Shaded Pattern
Although producing a gentle graduation of color, the shaded pattern is carried out in only 25-50% of each hair (less than with smoke-patterned cats). This darker color of the back, flanks, and tail area grades into near-white on the ventral body. Most common in British shorthairs, Persians and Maine coons, popular patterns include:
- Silver shaded (white with black tips)
- Shaded golden (apricot base with black/brown tips)
- Tortoiseshell (black, red-tipped hairs mixed in)
- Shaded tabby (including less striped markings)
16. Chinchilla Pattern
The most subtle of the tipped patterns, chinchilla cats have only 1/8 of each hair tip colored, producing a sparkling “frosted” sparkle. They are most commonly seen in Persians and British Shorthairs, and there are two primary types:
- Silver chinchilla (white ground with black tips)
- Golden chinchilla (apricot with black tipped fur)
- Salmiak (Grey Tuxedo) Pattern
- Found in Finnish feral cats (2007) and genetically characterised in 2024, this rare pattern colours each hair dark at the root and white at the tip- a smoke effect in reverse. The resulting ”salt-and-pepper” look resembles Swedish salty licorice (salmiak).
17. Salmiak
The origin is found in the feral cats of Finland, first identified in 2007 and decoded in 2024. The salmiak provides a stunning reverse-smoke pattern. Salmiak cats, unlike conventional smoke cats (light roots/dark tips):
- Unique Coloration: There is a dark basal color and a whiter subapical color on the hair shafts
- Looks White or Ivory Coats: Black or tuxedo coats look like they have been dusted with salt or sugar
- Namesake: Named after Swedish salty licorice (salmiak) for its freckled appearance
The particular genetic mutation responsible for this phenomenon was revealed by researchers at the University of Helsinki, who hailed it as a milestone for feline genetics. The salmiak pattern is still very scarce but does show nature’s infinite range of possibilities where coat patterns are concerned.
18. Cat Fur Colors
Cats come in all sorts of beautiful colors! Here’s an easy guide to cat coat colors:
Basic Colors
- Black (solid dark)
- White (pure white)
- Gray (called “blue” in some breeds)
- Orange (ginger/red)
- Cream (light peachy color)
Special Colors
- Chocolate (warm brown)
- Cinnamon (reddish-brown)
- Lilac (soft purple-gray)
- Silver (sparkly light gray)
- Golden (shimmery yellow-gold)
Rare Colors
- Fawn (pale pinkish-beige)
- Platinum (very light silvery gray)
- Champagne (warm honey color)
