Maria Sibirtseva
Maria Sibirtseva

27\01\204 min

Cyberpunk Aesthetics: 15 Color Palettes

The cyberpunk aesthetic first appeared on the radar of trend hunters at the end of 2019, which was associated with Cyberpunk 2077 announcements. To everyone’s surprise, the neon color palette and cyberpunk style trend in music and fashion has proven to be extremely tenacious.

In the wake of businesses digitisation during global lockdowns, technology has become a new religion and a vital necessity for brands, bringing concepts by sci-fi writers of the past century to life.

In 2021, aesthetic color palettes inspired by retro cyberpunk films and novels are still relevant. The classic neon color scheme, dominated by red and blue, expanded with acidic shades of green and yellow. Global brands have also enhanced their communication with the new aesthetic color palette, mixing corporate and trending cyberpunk colors. 

To guide you through the Neon Dystopia trend and its aesthetic, we’ve designed 15 cyberpunk color palettes that will help you create trendy projects inspired by a utopian world in 2021. 

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What Is Cyberpunk? Exploring Cyberpunk Fashion and Digital Design

In brief, cyberpunk is a genre of science fiction that captures a utopian world where society is dominated by technology. It depicts the underground life of electronic-lead societies. Not surprisingly, the cyberpunk theme is mostly associated with video games, PCs, gaming consoles, and arcade machines.

According to the book “Cyberpunk and Visual Culture”, the cyberpunk aesthetic is determined by three markers:

  • shape – geometrical in particular.
  • cyberpunk colors – a typical cyberpunk color palette includes vibrant neon lights like cyberpunk yellow, red, and blue; dark color palettes may include black and purple.
  • space – dark, underground, but real-world environments.

This is a genre that has fueled the imagination of many, in an attempt to create futuristic designs for digital products, as well as cyberpunk aesthetic outfits. Considering this information and our cyberpunk color palettes, you will stand out from dozens of those using classical and minimalistic cyberpunk design. Images featuring neon cyberpunk fashion are also included in this selection.

Explore more on the topic of trending cyberpunk colors — 20 Trendy Neon Color Palettes for Bold Designs.

cyberpunk aesthetic stock illustration

 

15 Cyberpunk Aesthetic Color Palettes for Dystopian Designs

The cyberpunk art style is perfect for digital design and fashion. Backgrounds featuring a futuristic cyberpunk city will add an exotic element to your creative projects. And even a futuristic color palette alone, without any concrete references to neon cyberpunk city life, helps customers associate your solutions with something modern, trending, and progressive.

Explore aesthetic color hex codes that you can apply to any of these trending cyberpunk neon color palettes. Note that you can easily find neon cyberpunk art on Depositphotos too. Check out this featured collection to discover more cyberpunk dystopia images and cyberpunk patterns.

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette neon geometrical shapes

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette dystopian landscape

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette dystopian city

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette neon sun and cloud

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette artificial intellegence

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette planets and geometrical shapes

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette cyberpunk female character

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette cyberpunk reality illustration

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette font in cyberpunk aesthetic

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette cyberpunk girl eating sushi

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette technology taking over humans

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette sunset in cyberpunk city

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette artificial intelligence robot

cyberpunk aesthetic cyberpunk color palette man in VR glasses

Start searching for images, videos, or music featuring cyberpunk style by clicking here.

Where to Use Neon Cyberpunk Visuals and Futuristic Colors

Years ago, a cyberpunk color scheme was considered a solution for digital products. Today, neon color palettes are used by restaurants, hotels, food, furniture, and even children’s toy manufacturers.

The digital transformation of businesses in recent years changed audience attitudes towards cyberpunk 2077 themes. Previously, the cyberpunk aesthetic was associated with a dystopian world of the future, where humanity is declining amid the dominance of technology.

Nowadays, aesthetic color palettes in the cyberpunk style are symbols of a brighter future, because it was Internet technologies that turned out to be a lifeline for education and business during the pandemic.

More on the topic of the neon cyberpunk city — Liam Wong on the “TO:KY:OO” Book and Key Takeaways from Being a Photographer.

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To get free downloads, click the banner above, switch to «Annual Upfront» subscriptions, and press the «Free 7 Day Trial» button.

 

Good Luck in Going Beyond the Classic Sci-Fi Color Palette

Keep cyberpunk color schemes from this article at hand and resort to them every time you feel like creating bold and trendy designs. Don’t limit yourself to red and blue colors from the “Cyberpunk 2077” color palette; feel free to experiment with the inspiring dystopian cyberpunk aesthetic based on movies, literature, and even upcoming video games. You might even come up with your own interpretation of the genre and bring new energy to the aesthetic.

For more information about retro cyberpunk and sci-fi aesthetics, check out “Сyberpunk and Visual Culture” by Graham Murphy and Lars Schmeink. And in case you are looking for ideas on how to use these palettes in your creative projects, visit our Knowledge Hub

To keep on exploring color palettes, check out these projects:

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    Maria Sibirtseva
    Maria Sibirtseva

    Maria is a Head of Content Marketing at Depositphotos. She works on creative projects, curates content production, and manages the copywriting department. Maria explores the topics of visual trends, human creativity, and AI, sharing her knowledge at Europe-wide events.