Guide to Choosing Colorful Turf for Your Artificial Turf Sports Field

Did you know that artificial turf sports fields come in colors other than green? The field is your canvas. Colorful synthetic turf fields outside greens are not standard, but they are becoming more popular each year. Field colors overall are trending toward bright, bigger, and bolder, with design elements. 

Custom designs of color create an ambiance and “home turf” setting that cultivates team spirit and community. Let’s look at the color options and the crucial information you need to know about the installation, maintenance, and lifecycle of fields with the custom design of colored turf. 

Key points to consider as you plan a custom design of color for your artificial turf sports field

If you’re ready to deviate from the standard green turf field, it’s essential to consider how the colors you’re pondering interact with field markings, other lines, and regulations. You can choose any color as long as a) it is not interfering with the regulation markings (for example, it is strongly recommended that football markings are white), and b) it is not disruptive of the field of play (for example, no light colors or white around field markings, which would impede visibility and blend in). If you have a particular field color in mind, make sure it’s not trademarked, like the iconic blue field at Boise State’s Albertsons Stadium.

If your athletic turf field is multi-use and hosts various sports at different times, there are more markings to consider than there are on fields dedicated to one sport only. Turf fields that host football and soccer require overlapped markings and will impact the color in the end zones or team boxes.

We recommend you pick either another color or shadow lining. A thorough, professional design phase will help you visualize different options. Concept drawings will flag issues and showcase your field’s images with state guidelines and all color design alternatives available to you. Keep in mind that guidelines can be state-regulated at the high school level; however, within professional sports and collegiate sports or other leagues, the league or officiating body will typically govern markings (i.e., NCAA Div 1 or NFL).

Ask your turf installer for recommendations and concerns from the perspective of referees and athletes positioned at the ends of the field. This proactive measure will prevent the additional cost of changing newly installed turf colors because they don’t work from certain vantages.

Design options for colorful synthetic turf sports fields

Are you looking for your entire field to be colored, to incorporate pops of color, or have alternating panels? Maybe you’d like to accent your field with different end zone colors, football border hues, or 25-yard line logos. Will your field design have a low or high contrast effect? The most common field colors for alternating panels are field green and field green, and lime blend. For a high contrast design, consider using field green and lime in alternating panels. Ask the turf installer for recommendations. 

When it comes to baseball and softball turf fields, consider a colorful warning track or clay “dirt” areas. Typical colors used for these areas are brown or terra cotta, but schools can use tan or vegas gold to align better with their school colors and create a bold aesthetic.

Consider how all of your field colors will compliment each other. Sometimes adding too many colors does not provide the anticipated look and can be too distracting. As you think about colors for your field, consider how those colors may look in eight, ten, twelve, or more years. The vibrancy of colored areas may change over time due to the wear of the fiber as it is played on and exposed to the elements. The desired result may look great initially, however over time, a bright pop of color may appear to lose its “pop” late in the life of the turf.

Timeline, installation, and budget for a colorful artificial turf field design

The standard colors available will often work in nearly every color combination, so ​​adding a colorful custom design to your field will not necessarily add time to your project. However, if the standard colors available from your turf provider do not meet your needs, and you plan to order custom colors made for your facility, be aware of the cost and time implications. Getting a precise custom color potentially adds multiple months to lead times. Depending on the product and custom color process needed, it could push your timeline out as far as six months. 

If you’re installing turf in a non-infilled system (like a batting cage, bullpen, walkway, or sideline), your color choices may be limited. These systems may not have the same color options.

Often, custom colors require order minimums. You may want to order extra turf square footage to get the best return on your investment. The additional material can be used on other fields or replace high wear areas. Having the extra material on hand makes the process quicker and smoother. 

The cost of customized turf color and design

Let’s talk budget. Green and alternating green panels are sold at no cost increase. Colors outside of green are more expensive, regardless of the quantity ordered, and will increase your turf’s cost per square footage.  Some colors are more costly to manufacture than others, and color upcharges may not be the same, depending on your color or provider. If repairs are needed to turf with colors or custom colors, the cost and time of those repairs may increase.

Field Examples

Take a look at the following examples of well-executed fields with custom colors:

Gilmour Academy (tan infield and blue warning track)

Penn High School (Vegas gold infield)

Kentucky Country Day (medium blue and yellow field)

Harrison Central High School (all gray field)

East Allen County Schools (colorful borders)

Fairmont High School (ghosted letters)

Work with Motz for expert field design and custom turf colors

Determining what is possible depends on what type of system you have and how bold an appearance you would like to create. Motz can work with you to design your field with various color selections and other design elements. Our team will show you CAD drawings, renderings, and real-life fields with selected colors. 

Request a free consultation with our Field Consultants to determine the best color options and design for your upcoming field. Contact our team today to get started!