Best Braces Colors: For Work, School, and to Make Teeth Whiter

Best Braces Colors for School, Work, or to Make Teeth Look Whiter

Choosing colors for your braces used to be a tedious affair. The only color options for those tiny elastic bands were dull and served no greater purpose than helping you get straighter teeth.

Thankfully, those days are past, and you now have access to hundreds of different shades, from maroon to glow-in-the-dark green bands.

If you’re planning on getting braces or changing your elastics soon, you may be wondering which colors suit you best, make your teeth look whiter, or match a holiday or event.

This article covers all the best braces colors to ensure you have fun and express yourself on the way to a perfectly beautiful smile.

Key Takeaways

  • Darker colors suit people with lighter skin tones, while lighter colors suit darker complexions.

  • Clear or silver braces and color combinations are the least noticeable options.

  • White or pale yellow braces could make your teeth look yellow.

  • Black, green, or brown braces may make it look like something is stuck in your teeth.

  • Invisible aligners make good alternatives for people who don’t want to maintain or wear metal braces.

What Are the Best Braces Colors?

Gone are the days when the only colors you could pick for your braces’ rubber bands were white, black, pink, or blue.

Nowadays, many braces color combinations are available for you to choose from, and there’s a good chance your orthodontist has a braces color wheel with all the shades you can use. The most popular shades are maroon and blue-black for adults and brightly colored bands for teens [1].

Whether you choose bright colors, a color combination, or clear bands, here are some of the best braces colors available.

Best Braces Colors for Girls

There is no limit to your creativity when choosing the colors and color combinations for the rubber bands around your braces. However, there are a few shades that are very popular among girls, including:

Best Braces Colors

  • Dark purple: Purple is on the opposite side of yellow on the color wheel, which means it could help your teeth look whiter, especially if darker shades of purple are chosen.
  • Light blue: Light blue is a classic braces color for both girls and boys.
  • Light pink: Light pink colored braces look cute, especially if you like the color and match it with your clothes.
  • Red: Red-colored braces are eye-catching, bold, and an excellent choice for an equally outgoing girl.
  • Neon colors: If you’re looking for a fun, playful option, neon green, pink, or yellow could be an excellent choice.

Best Braces Colors for Boys

Although many boys like braces colors such as dark blue or black, many other shades would look great, including:

Best Braces Colors

  • Light blue: Light blue is preferred by both boys and girls as the color is relatively neutral and fits with almost everything.
  • Dark blue: Dark blue or blue-black colored braces are trendy among boys, especially if they’re looking for a more neutral shade.
  • Dark purple: Dark blue or violet is another great option, especially if you want their teeth to look whiter.
  • Black: Black could be a good choice for boys if they are still in school and don’t want their braces to clash with their uniform or school colors.

Best Braces Color for Adults

Adult braces wearers often choose a neutral color or clear or silver bands. The best options for adults who need to look professional while wearing braces include:

Best Braces Colors

  • Dark colors: A darker shade, although striking, can help make your teeth look whiter while not drawing too much attention.
  • Clear bands: Clear bands can help your braces look plain and simple, which is advantageous for adults, especially if you’re a professional who wants to stick with your braces’ natural color.
  • Silver: Silver bands are a great way to bring a little sparkle to your braces without looking unprofessional or mismatching with your uniform or office wear.

Many adults in need of teeth alignment opt for clear braces or aligners, which are discussed in detail further below.

What Braces Colors Make Teeth Look Whiter?

One of the best ways to make your teeth look whiter is by opting for darker colors or neutral color combinations. Dark shades of colors on the opposite side of yellow and orange on the color wheel make excellent options for braces bands if you’re looking to enhance the whiteness of your teeth.

What Braces Colors Make Your Teeth Yellow?

Although there’s no limit on the color braces you can choose, some shades can enhance the yellow tint of your tooth enamel.

The braces color options that make your teeth look yellow include:

  • White bands: White braces or those that are an off-white color could make your teeth seem extra yellow compared to the bands.
  • Lighter colors: Beige, pale yellow, and other light colors can poorly contrast with your teeth, especially if they are even slightly yellow.

How to Choose the Best Braces Color for You

Choosing the best colors for the rubber bands around your braces’ metal brackets doesn’t follow any specific rules. However, even though you’re free to pick any color you like, some shades may suit you better, or particular color combination ideas could fit special events or holidays.

Some of our favorite options are listed below.

Skin Tones

Choosing the color of your rubber bands according to your skin tone could complement your complexion.

Darker Skin Tones

Darker complexions are well-complemented by lighter colors like:

  • Light blue.
  • Light pink.
  • Violet.
  • Pale green.
  • Hot pink.

Lighter Skin Tones

Lighter complexions suit braces with darker colors. Some of the best options include:

  • Dark green: Although you should be careful they don’t make it seem like something is stuck in your teeth.
  • Navy blue.
  • Dark purple.
  • Maroon.

Holiday Themed

Matching your braces to the closest holiday can also be a lot of fun. Try a red and green combination for Christmas, blue and red for the fourth of July, or even glow-in-the-dark braces bands for Halloween.

Other holiday colors to choose from include:

  • Valentine’s Day: Red and white could make a cute combination.
  • New Year’s Eve: Opt for gold or silver elastics.
  • April Fool’s Day: Bright colors fit well with this fun, lighthearted holiday.
  • St. Patrick’s Day: Bright green would be perfect for St Paddy’s day.

Eye Color

If you’re looking for braces color combinations to complement your eyes, consider the following:

  • Brown eyes: Green, purple, and navy compliment brown eyes the best.
  • Green eyes: Purple, red, green, and bright orange make green eyes stand out.
  • Blue eyes: Blue, pink, lilac, and coral go perfectly with blue eyes.

School and Sport Themed

If you play with or support a sports team, consider showing your team spirit by matching your brace bands to their colors.

If you’re still in school and want to show school pride, matching the colors of your uniform, school flag, or crest could be a great option, too.

Advantages of Clear Aligners vs. Braces

If you’re not interested in choosing colors or having metal and rubber as semi-permanent fixtures on your teeth, clear braces or aligners may be the right choice for you, with benefits including:

Best Braces Colors

  • All but invisible.
  • Removable for convenience.
  • Faster treatment.
  • Can be more effective.
  • Fewer trips to the dentist.

Unlike traditional metal braces, invisible aligners are made of strong, BPA-free plastic molded to help align your teeth and ensure you end up with a beautiful smile. Although they are effective, not all transparent aligner brands are FDA-approved, and many orthodontists and dentists warn against using mail-order aligners without proper consultation.

There are various clear aligner brands around, but each works quite similarly and allows you to order either through your dentist or online after taking at-home dental impressions.

Some of the advantages of using invisible aligners include:

All But Invisible

Invisible aligners are almost impossible to see as they are made with transparent plastic. This makes them an excellent choice for working professionals or people who want to straighten their teeth without drawing attention to the fact.

Some of the best invisible braces are listed in our comprehensive review.

Removable for Convenience

Invisible aligners are removable and only need to stay in your mouth for a specific number of hours each day. This makes it easy to maintain your oral health and allows you to eat and drink whatever you want without anything getting stuck in your teeth.

Faster Treatment

Invisible aligners are typically meant for mild to moderate orthodontic treatment and can, therefore, decrease your treatment time from years to just a few months.

Some invisible aligners have products specialized for nighttime use, making teeth alignment a less disruptive process.

For more information on these invisible braces, take a look at our nighttime clear aligners review.

Can Be More Effective

Invisible aligners can be more effective than braces in segmented teeth movement [2]. For mild to moderately crowded or widely spaced teeth, aligners could work faster and be more successful in long-term maintenance if the provided clear retainers are worn as directed.

best braces colors Treatment effectiveness of clear aligners compared to fixed braces
Clear aligners showed to result in a better OGS score than fixed braces for mild cases

Fewer Trips To the Dentist

Achieving teeth straightening with invisible aligners requires far fewer dentist trips as each aligner is custom-made to fit a dentist-approved treatment plan. There is no need for check-ups unless you need something about the alignment process changed and need to visit a dentist for a new scan or impression.

Clear Aligner Cons

Although aligners offer a good alternative to traditional metal braces, they do have their disadvantages, including:

  • More brushing and flossing.
  • Not ideal for severe issues.
  • Might require buttons.

More Brushing and Flossing

Most invisible aligners require brushing your teeth up to four times a day, regular flossing, and using denture tablets to clean each aligner tray after use.

For some, this level of maintenance can be a disadvantage compared to braces, despite regular braces being more prone to getting food stuck in them.

Not Ideal for Severe Issues

Invisible aligners are not effective for severe cases calling for teeth straightening or issues such as crossbite correction. In this case, surgery or traditional braces may be the best and only viable option.

Might Require Buttons

Buttons are small tooth-colored attachments fixed to your teeth to assist the movement and alignment during use for a clear aligner.

Braces Alternatives: Best Invisible Aligners

Below is a summary of the best invisible braces on the market.

1. Byte

Byte manufactures both daytime and nighttime invisible braces. They can be ordered from home after using an at-home impressions kit, and each package comes with a customized aligner tray, HyperByte alignment accelerator, teeth whitening agent, and access to five years worth of retainers once your treatment is complete. 

  • Cost: $1,895 once-off, or $83 a month for 29 months after a $349 deposit.
  • Treatment duration: 3–4 months.
  • Wear time: 22 hours a day.

For more information about Byte daytime or nighttime aligners, check out our Byte Aligners review.

>>Check out the best price for Byte aligners

2. AlignerCo

AlignerCo also produces both daytime and nighttime aligners. Each aligner package comes with an impression kit, clear aligners, and a set of retainers to use once your treatment is complete.

AlignerCo doesn’t take insurance, so if that’s a dealbreaker, Byte may be the best option for you.

  • Cost: $1,145 once-off, or $81 a month for a year after a $275 deposit.
  • Treatment duration: 4–6 months.
  • Wear time: 22 hours a day.

If you want more information on AlignerCo clear braces, check out our AlignerCo review.

>>Check out the best price for AlignerCo

3. Invisalign

Invisalign is arguably the most well-known and most expensive clear aligner brand around. They can only be recommended by a dentist after an in-person consultation and cost much more than any other option on this list. Your aligner trays are replaced every two weeks to keep your teeth moving and straightening.

  • Cost: Between $4,800 and $7,000, partly covered by insurance and with the option of monthly payments for the remainder of the price.
  • Treatment duration: Minimum of six months.
  • Wear time: 22 hours a day.

Invisalign can take much more time and end up being less affordable than other invisible aligners. Byte offers similar results in a much shorter period and at a much lower price.

Read this article if you’re looking for an Invisalign alternative.

>>Check out the best price for Invisalign

FAQ

Here are the most commonly asked questions about braces band colors.

What Are the Best Colors for Braces?

What Are the Worst Colors for Braces?

What Are the Best Colors for Braces to Make Your Teeth Look Whiter?

What Color Braces Are Cute?

What Color Braces Are Most Attractive?

What Color Braces Should I Not Get?

What Is the Least Noticeable Color on Braces?

 

Conclusion

Choosing colors for your braces can be a fun way of expressing your personality and creativity. There is no absolute right or wrong choice, and as long as the band colors don’t make your teeth look yellow or leave people wondering if you have a piece of spinach stuck in your teeth, the sky’s the limit.

>>Check out the best price for Byte aligners

References:

  1. T;, Elekdag-Turk S;Ozkalayci N;Isci D;Turk. “Color Preferences of Patients Receiving Elastic Ligatures.” European Journal of Dentistry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20396449/.
  2. Ke, Yunyan, et al. “A Comparison of Treatment Effectiveness between Clear Aligner and Fixed Appliance Therapies.” BMC Oral Health, BioMed Central, 23 Jan. 2019, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6343314/#:~:text=Conclusion,controlling%20teeth%20torque%2C%20and%20retention.

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