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A Visual List of
Awareness Ribbon Colors and Meanings

updated: May 18, 2023
Your Guide to Awareness Ribbon Colors and Promotional Items to Raise Awareness

Awareness promotional items are great ways for your business to show support for any given cause. But with so many colors and a range of meanings, it can be hard to keep track of them all. This guide to awareness ribbons and colors is an easy way to learn more about the common causes each one represents. Once familiar with the colors and meanings, you can create branded apparel items for your employees, gifts for clients, and giveaways for fundraisers and tradeshows to help promote the causes your company or organization is passionate about.

Awareness Ribbons: Colors and Meanings

First, let's explore awareness ribbon colors and their meanings. This list can help you understand often-used colors and the causes they're most often associated with:

Yellow Color Ribbon

Yellow is commonly associated with Suicide Prevention Awareness. World Suicide Prevention Day is September 10, 2023.It's also used to bring awareness to adoptive parents, missing children/persons, endometriosis, and several types of cancer.

Pink Color Ribbon

Pink is typically associated with Breast Cancer Awareness, but it can also bring awareness to women's health and certain types of cancer. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Purple Color Ribbon

Purple is most associated with Pancreatic Cancer Hope and Awareness. However, you'll also see it used to bring awareness to Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and cystic fibrosis.

Periwinkle Color Ribbon

Periwinkle is most associated with Pancreatic Cancer Hope and Awareness. However, you'll also see it used to bring awareness to Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and cystic fibrosis.

Gold Color Ribbon

Gold is most often associated with Childhood Cancer Awareness.

Teal Color Ribbon

Teal represents rape/sexual assault as well as Tourette Syndrome, ovarian cancer, and cervical cancer (with white).

Orange Color Ribbon

Orange is commonly associated with Leukemia Awareness. It's also used to bring awareness to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), hunger/malnutrition, and cultural diversity.

Blue Color Ribbon

Blue typically ties into Autism Spectrum Awareness. Sunday, April 2, 2023 is World Autism Awareness Day. Blue also signifies bullying and several congenital and genetic diseases and cancers.

Green Color Ribbon

Green is usually associated with Bipolar Disorder Awareness. However, it's also used to represent global warming and environmental causes, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), Celiac Disease (light green), cerebral palsy, and several types of cancer and genetic disorders.

Dark Blue Color Ribbon

Dark Blue is tied to child abuse and prevention. It also brings awareness to sex and human trafficking, and arthritis.

Light Blue Color Ribbon

LIght Blue is often associated with men's health and prostate cancer. It can also signify Graves' Disease and trisomy awareness.

Red Color Ribbon

Red is usually associated with Heart Disease Awareness. It can also bring awareness to HIV/AIDS, substance abuse and addiction (Red Ribbon Week), stroke, and blood cancers and disorders.

Black Color Ribbon

Black is typically associated with death, mourning, and funerals. Other issues this color brings to light are Missing in Action and Prisoners of War (MIA/POW), sleep disorders, skin cancer, and gang prevention.

Lime Green Color Ribbon

Lime Green is most associated with Mental Health Awareness but also brings awareness to depression, mood disorders, and Lyme Disease.

Silver Color Ribbon

Silver is generally associated with Parkinson's Disease Awareness. It also brings awareness to schizophrenia and brain disorders.

Gray Color Ribbon

Gray is commonly associated with brain cancer awareness but is also used to give support to diabetes and asthma patients (each of which also use shades of blue).

White Color Ribbon

White is often associated with peace and brings awareness to adoption, violence against women (White Ribbon Day campaign), and lung diseases.



Awareness Ribbon Colors by Month

JANUARY

  • Cervical Cancer Cervical Cancer
  • Sex and Human Trafficking Sex & Human Trafficking
  • Thyroid Disease Thyroid Disease

FEBRUARY

  • Heart Disease Heart Disease
  • Heart Disease Heart Disease

MARCH

  • Endometriosis Endometriosis
  • Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
  • Trisomy Trisomy
  • Traumatic Brains Injuries (TBI) Traumatic Brains Injuries (TBI)
  • Cerebral Palsy Cerebral Palsy
  • Kidney Cancer Kidney Cancer
  • Colorectal Cancer Colorectal Cancer

APRIL

  • Esophageal Cancer Esophageal Cancer
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
  • Autism Spectrum Autism Spectrum
  • Rape/Sexual Assault Rape/Sexual Assault
  • Child Abuse Prevention Child Abuse Prevention
  • Parkinson's Disease Parkinson's Disease
  • Limb Loss & Limb Difference Limb Loss & Limb Difference

MAY

  • Missing Children/Persons Missing Children/Persons
  • Women's Health Women's Health
  • Cystic Fibrosis Cystic Fibrosis
  • Stroke Stroke
  • Arthritis Arthritis
  • Celiac Disease Celiac Disease
  • Mental Health Mental Health
  • Lyme Disease Lyme Disease
  • Skin Cancer Skin Cancer
  • Brain Cancer Brain Cancer
  • Asthma Asthma
  • Tourette Syndrome Tourette Syndrome

JUNE

  • PTSD PTSD
  • Alzheimer’s Disease Alzheimer’s Disease
  • Scleroderma Scleroderma
  • Migraine/Headache Migraine/Headache

JULY

  • Graves' Disease Graves' Disease
  • Bone Cancer Bone Cancer
  • Sarcoma Sarcoma

AUGUST

  •  

SEPTEMBER

  • Suicide Prevention Suicide Prevention
  • Leukemia Leukemia
  • Ovarian Cancer Ovarian Cancer
  • Prostate Cancer Prostate Cancer
  • Childhood Cancer Childhood Cancer
  • Spinal Cord Injury Spinal Cord Injury
  • Muscular Dystrophy Muscular Dystrophy

OCTOBER

  • Breast Cancer Breast Cancer
  • Substance Abuse & Addiction Substance Abuse & Addiction
  • Global Diversity Global Diversity
  • Bullying Bullying
  • Depression Depression
  • Spina Bifida Spina Bifida
  • Domestic Violence Domestic Violence
  • ADD/ADHD ADD/ADHD
  • Liver Cancer Liver Cancer
  • Dyslexia Dyslexia
  • Disability Employment Disability Employment

NOVEMBER

  • Adoptive Parents Adoptive Parents
  • Pancreatic Cancer Pancreatic Cancer
  • Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's Disease
  • Epilepsy Epilepsy
  • Gastric Cancer Gastric Cancer
  • Stomach Cancer Stomach Cancer
  • Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
  • Diabetes Diabetes
  • Adoption Adoption
  • Violence Against Women (White Ribbon Day Campaign) Violence Against Women (White Ribbon Day Campaign)
  • Movember Movember
  • Homelessness Homelessness
  • Bone Marrow Transplant Bone Marrow Transplant
  • Lung Cancer Lung Cancer

DECEMBER

  • HIV/AIDS HIV/AIDS


Awareness Ribbons by Color

YELLOW

  • Suicide Prevention Suicide Prevention
  • Adoptive Parents Adoptive Parents
  • Missing Children/Persons Missing Children/Persons
  • Endometriosis Endometriosis
  • Bone Cancer Bone Cancer
  • Sarcoma Sarcoman
  • Spina Bifida Spina Bifida

PINK

  • Breast Cancer Breast Cancer
  • Women's Health Women's Health

PURPLE

  • Pancreatic Cancer Pancreatic Cancer
  • Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's Disease
  • Epilepsy Epilepsy
  • Cystic Fibrosis Cystic Fibrosis
  • Domestic Violence Domestic Violence
  • Homelessness Homelessness
  • Migraine/Headaurple Migraine/Headaurple

PERIWINKLE

  • Eating Disorders Eating Disorders
  • Esophageal Cancer Esophageal Cancer
  • Gastric Cancer Gastric Cancer
  • Stomach Cancer Stomach Cancer
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

RED

  • Heart Disease Heart Disease
  • HIV/AIDS HIV/AIDS
  • Substance Abuse and Addiction Substance Abuse and Addiction
  • Stroke Stroke
  • Burn Victims Burn Victims

ORANGE

  • Kidney Cancer Kidney Cancer
  • Leukemia Leukemia
  • ADD/ADHD ADD/ADHD
  • Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
  • Global Diversity Global Diversity
  • Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
  • Hunger Hunger
  • Malnutrition Malnutrition
  • Work Zone Safety Work Zone Safety

BLUE

  • Autism Spectrum Autism Spectrum
  • Bullying Bullying
  • Rectal Cancer Rectal Cancer
  • Malaria Malaria
  • Thyroid Disease Thyroid Disease
  • Paralysis Paralysis

TEAL

  • Rape/Sexual Assault Rape/Sexual Assault
  • Tourette Syndrome Tourette Syndrome
  • Ovarian Cancer Ovarian Cancer
  • Cervical Cancer Cervical Cancer
  • PTSD PTSD

DARK BLUE

  • Child Abuse Prevention Child Abuse Prevention
  • Sex and Human Trafficking Sex and Human Trafficking
  • Arthritis Arthritis
  • Colon Cancer Colon Cancer

LIGHT BLUE

  • Men's Health Men's Health
  • Prostate Cancer Prostate Cancer
  • Graves' Disease Graves' Disease
  • Trisomy Trisomy

Green

  • Bipolar Disorder Bipolar Disorder
  • Climate Change & Environmental Causes Climate Change & Environmental Causes
  • Traumatic Brains Injuries (TBI) Traumatic Brains Injuries (TBI)
  • Celiac Disease Celiac Disease
  • Cerebral Palsy Cerebral Palsy
  • Liver Cancer Liver Cancer
  • Bone Marrow Transplant Bone Marrow Transplant

Lime Green

  • Mental Health Mental Health
  • Depression Depression
  • Lyme Disease Lyme Disease
  • Muscular Dystrophy Muscular Dystrophy
  • Spinal Cord Injury Spinal Cord Injury

Lime Green

  • Death, Mourning and Funerals Death, Mourning and Funerals
  • Depression Depression
  • Missing in Action and Prisoners of War (MIA/POW) Missing in Action and Prisoners of War (MIA/POW)
  • Sleep Disorders Sleep Disorders
  • Skin Cancer/Melanoma Skin Cancer/Melanoma
  • Gang Prevention Gang Prevention

GOLD

  • Childhood Cancers Childhood Cancers
  • Hearing Disorders Hearing Disorders

SILVER

  • Parkinson's Disease Parkinson's Disease
  • Schizophrenia Schizophrenia
  • Brain Disorders Brain Disorders
  • Limb Loss & Limb Difference Limb Loss & Limb Difference
  • Disabled Children Disabled Children
  • Bell's Palsey Bell's Palsey
  • Dyslexia Dyslexia

GRAY

  • Brain Cancer Brain Cancer
  • Diabetes Diabetes
  • Asthma Asthma
  • Lead Poisoning Lead Poisoning

WHITE

  • Peace Peace
  • Adoption Adoption
  • Violence Against Women Violence Against Women
  • Lung Cancer Lung Cancer

BURGUNDY

  • Head & Neck Cancer Head & Neck Cancer
  • Myeloma Myeloma
  • Disabled Adults Disabled Adults
  • Meningitis Meningitis


How to Use Awareness Promotional Items to Highlight a Cause

How to Use Awareness Promotional Items to Highlight a Cause

Once you understand the ribbon color meanings, you can better plan your next charity event, fundraiser, or trade show. Consider how your organization can use branded items to support and bring awareness to an issue or cause. Whether you encourage your employees to wear colorful awareness bracelets or hand out custom awareness items to clients and customers, there are various ways to show your support. Consider these ideas:

Custom Awareness Pens

Hand out custom awareness pens to trade show attendees. They come in a range of colors to match various awareness campaigns and are a great way to start a conversation about the cause your company supports.

Promotional awareness braceletes

Ask employees to wear promotional awareness bracelets or include them in swag bags at charity events.

Custom awareness ribbon magnets

Custom awareness ribbon magnets in countless colors come in large and small sizes. Their durable design allows them to be displayed indoors or outdoors at home, at work, on company vehicles, anywhere you want to raise awareness. Ribbon magnets also make ideal giveaway items at fundraising events for any cause.

Custom awareness brochure

Create an awareness brochure promoting your company's cause to keep in your office reception area or on the checkout counter in your retail stores. Include a basket of personalized awareness bracelets or custom awareness pens as takeaways.


Breast Cancer Awareness Items
to Promote an Important Cause

Breast Cancer Awareness is one of the most well-known causes associated with an awareness ribbon. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but your company can use pink ribbon promotional items to promote the cause any time of year. Use informative Breast Cancer Awareness brochures and Breast Cancer Awareness gifts to emphasize the importance of self-checks and mammograms. Pink ribbon items for fundraising and Breast Cancer Awareness giveaways are also excellent ways for nonprofits and charities to raise money. As you brainstorm marketing strategies to raise awareness, use these promotional Breast Cancer Awareness accessories to get the word out:

The next time you're looking for ways to promote a cause to clients and customers, use this awareness ribbon color guide to bring attention to worthy causes supported by your company. Crestline's range of awareness promotional items includes colors and styles to suit any design taste and budget. Plus, you'll always save with our bulk pricing and wholesale discounts on custom products.