Short answer
No. Islam does not set a colour for hijab. Any colour is allowed as long as the hijab covers properly and is not itself an eye-catching display in front of non-mahram men. Many women prefer dark or plain colours for modesty, which is good, but bright or light colours are not haram.
All colours of clothing are permitted for women. The condition is that the outer covering is not a display of adornment in itself; flashy, glittering or attention-seeking hijabs in front of non-mahram men go against its purpose.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
When the verse on outer garments was revealed, Umm Salamah said the women of the Ansar came out looking as if they had crows on their heads, from the dark cloaks they wore. That shows dark covering was common. But the Sunnah also records women wearing other colours: Aishah described a woman who came to the Prophet's house wearing a green khimar. Nothing in the texts makes black a requirement.
The real conditions of hijab are about what it does, not its colour. It covers the hair, ears, neck and chest; it is not see-through; and it is not adornment in itself, since the Quran tells women not to show their adornment except what appears of necessity.
In practice:
- Plain colours: black, navy, grey, brown, white, beige, soft pastels: all fine.
- Bright colours and prints: allowed, though very loud ones attract attention in public.
- Glitter, sequins and heavy embellishment: keep for women's events and home.
- Local custom: in some places black is so standard that bright colours stand out; in others the opposite. Choose what is modest where you live.
See the hijab guide for styles, and hijab, niqab, burqa and abaya for the different garments.
The evidence
Quran, Surah An-Noor 24:31
وَقُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنَٰتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَٰرِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا ۖ وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّ ۖ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ أَخَوَٰتِهِنَّ أَوْ نِسَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَٰنُهُنَّ أَوِ ٱلتَّٰبِعِينَ غَيْرِ أُو۟لِى ٱلْإِرْبَةِ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ أَوِ ٱلطِّفْلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمْ يَظْهَرُوا۟ عَلَىٰ عَوْرَٰتِ ٱلنِّسَآءِ ۖ وَلَا يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِن زِينَتِهِنَّ ۚ وَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴿٣١﴾
And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.
Hijab should not itself be a display of adornment.
Sunan Abi Dawud 4101
Grading to be checked... كأن على رءوسهن الغربان من الأكسية ...
"As if there were crows on their heads, from the cloaks they wore."
The women of the Ansar wore dark outer garments.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5825
Sahih... وعليها خمار أخضر ...
"And she was wearing a green head covering."
Women of that time also wore coloured head coverings.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya, Kitab al-Karahiyya, chapter on clothing. Women may wear all colours.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.