Candle Colour Meanings: What Every Spell Candle Colour Is For, Day by Day

Candle colour meanings for spells and rituals: what every colour is for, which day of the week suits it, how to prepare a candle, and why white can always stand in

Choosing a candle colour is one of the simplest and most satisfying parts of any ritual. The colour becomes part of the intention: pink for love, green for growth, black for protection, white for almost anything. This guide gathers the traditional meanings in one place, matches each colour to its day of the week and its planet, and shows you how to prepare and burn a spell candle properly.

Candle Colours at a Glance

Why Candle Colour Matters

Candle magic is one of the oldest and simplest forms of spellwork. A candle brings the element of fire into a ritual, and a small flame is a wonderful thing to focus on. Choosing a colour adds another layer: the colour carries the intention, so the candle becomes a little picture of what you are asking for.

In older traditions, colour followed the planets. Each of the seven classical planets had its own colours, and each also ruled a day of the week, so a spell could be timed to the matching day. Choosing a candle colour for a particular purpose became especially popular in the twentieth century, building on those much older planetary colours. Our own chime candles are also named after the chakra colours, a rainbow scheme that became popular in the West from the 1970s.

Candle Colour Meanings, One by One

White

For: cleansing, purity, protection, peace, truth, spirituality and new beginnings. White can be used for any purpose at all.

Day: Monday, the day of the Moon. Chime candle: Protection White.

Black

For: protection, strong boundaries, breaking through obstacles, patience, endurance, grounding and quiet power. Black is a serious colour, kept for when you need firm walls rather than everyday use.

Day: Saturday, the day of Saturn, ideally under a waning moon. Chime candle: Transformation Black.

Red

For: courage, energy, strength, passion, enthusiasm and conquering fear. Use red with care: it is a strong, fiery colour and its effects can be unpredictable, so many people pair it with white.

Day: Tuesday, the day of Mars. Chime candle: Root Chakra Red.

Pink

For: love of every kind, self love, friendship, family, joy, romance, affection and peace. Pink is the traditional colour for weddings and engagements. It is for strengthening love, never for drawing in a particular person against their will.

Day: Friday, the day of Venus. Chime candle: Goddess Pink.

Orange

For: confidence, joy, encouragement, success, career and business goals, attracting good luck and new ideas.

Day: Sunday, the day of the Sun, or Wednesday. Chime candle: Sacral Chakra Orange.

Yellow

For: communication, study, exams, concentration, memory, writing, creativity, friendship, travel and breaking old habits.

Day: Wednesday, the day of Mercury, or Sunday. Chime candle: Solar Plexus Chakra Yellow.

Green

For: abundance, money, luck, growth, employment, harmony, calm and renewal. Green is often paired with orange for business and career.

Day: Friday, the day of Venus. Chime candle: Heart Chakra Green.

Light blue

For: calm, peace, patience, understanding, honest communication and a settled mind. Light blue is a soft, spiritual blue.

Day: Monday, the day of the Moon. Chime candle: Throat Chakra Light Blue.

Dark blue

For: wisdom, intuition, loyalty, reflection and deeper spiritual values. Strong blues are said to sharpen clear thought.

Day: Thursday, the day of Jupiter. Chime candle: Third Eye Chakra Dark Blue.

Purple and violet

For: intuition, wisdom, spiritual and psychic work, ambition, dignity and authority. Violet is linked with higher thought and spiritual questions.

Day: Thursday, the day of Jupiter. Chime candle: Crown Chakra Violet.

Brown, gold and silver

Brown is for grounding, home, steadiness, friendship, finding lost things and protecting animals; its day is Saturday. Gold is for success, confidence and quick luck; its day is Sunday. Silver and grey are for intuition, dreams and calm; their day is Monday. If you do not have these colours, use white with a matching crystal beside it.

Candle Colours and the Days of the Week

The seven days of the week are named after the seven planets of old astrology, and each has its own colours and themes. Matching your colour to its day is a simple way to add strength to a spell.

• Sunday, the Sun: yellow, gold, orange; success, confidence, ambition
• Monday, the Moon: white, lavender, grey, silver; home, family, peace, intuition, protection
• Tuesday, Mars: red; courage, energy, facing challenges
• Wednesday, Mercury: yellow and purple; communication, study, writing, short journeys
• Thursday, Jupiter: dark blue and purple; luck, growth, generosity, learning
• Friday, Venus: pink, with green; love, friendship, beauty, money
• Saturday, Saturn: black, brown, grey; protection, boundaries, big changes

One small tradition to know: Saturday is not usually a day for making amulets or charms you will carry.

How to Prepare a Spell Candle

1. Use a fresh candle. A new candle that has not been used for anything else is best, and ideally one candle for one purpose.
2. Cleanse it. Roll the candle gently in a saucer of sea salt and brush it clean, asking out loud that it be cleared.
3. Dress it. With a drop of olive oil or grapeseed oil, rub from the top of the candle down to the middle, then from the bottom up to the middle. Feel the wax warm under your fingers and say what the candle is for. You can roll it lightly in a pinch of a matching dried herb: rosemary for protection, rose petals for love, basil for money.
4. Light it with intention. Set it safely in a holder, take a few slow breaths, light it, and speak your intention out loud.
5. Let it burn. Stay with it. Small chime candles usually burn down in an hour or two, which makes them ideal for one sitting.
6. Snuff, never blow. If you need to stop, snuff the candle or pinch it out with wet fingertips rather than blowing it out. Traditionally, blowing a spell candle out scatters the intention.

Some people like to picture their intention in the flame as it burns; others prefer to listen to the faint crackle of the wick, or hold a crystal and feel it warm in their hand. Each is a lovely way to stay with the candle.

A Simple Chime Candle Spell for Any Intention

1. Choose your colour from the guide above, and if you can, wait for its day of the week.
2. Write your intention on a small slip of paper in a single sentence.
3. Cleanse and dress the candle, then set it in a candle holder with the folded slip underneath the holder.
4. Light it and say your intention aloud three times.
5. Sit with it for a few minutes, breathing slowly.
6. Let it burn down safely while you are in the room, or snuff it and finish another evening.
7. Keep the slip in a notebook and look back at it at the next full moon.

Questions People Ask About Candle Colours

What colour candle is for protection?

White for everyday protection and cleansing, black for strong boundaries. Our home protection spell uses either.

What colour candle is for love?

Pink for love, self love and friendship, with red, used carefully, for passion. Friday is the traditional day.

What colour candle is for money?

Green, often paired with orange or gold. Thursday and Friday are the traditional days.

Can I use a white candle instead?

Yes. White can stand in for any colour.

Why should you not blow out a spell candle?

Traditionally, blowing out a spell candle is said to scatter the intention, so candles are snuffed or pinched out instead. If a candle goes out on its own during a spell, some take it as a sign to wait.

What does a black candle mean?

Protection, boundaries, endurance and quiet strength. It is a protective colour, not a harmful one.