14 Types of Patterns on Cats' Fur (with Pictures)

Learn to identify both common & unique fur patterns

Co-authored by Nadia Lee and Maryana Lucia Vestic, MFA, M.Phil.

Last Updated: December 20, 2025 Fact Checked

Cats come in many different colors and markings, known as fur patterns. You may think of a cat’s coloring as its breed, but this isn’t the case; the fur pattern refers specifically to the visual markings on a cat’s coat, while the breed includes different physical and behavioral traits. In this article, we’ll explain the 16 different types of fur patterns and variations so you know exactly what kind of kitty you’ve got (or want to adopt).

Types of Cat Fur Patterns

An illustration of cats with different fur patterns, markings, and colors

Solid: Has a single color with no patterns or spots.
Tabby: Has stripes around their eyes and on their legs and tail.
Tuxedo: Has white paws, and a white belly and face.
Tortoiseshell: Has an evenly distributed mix of orange and black.
Colorpoint: Has a darker color on the face, paws, and tips of the tail.

1

Solid

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Solid-colored cats have fur in a single color, with no patterns or spots. The tone of a cat's fur may change slightly in direct sunlight; for example, a black cat may look reddish-brown. The color of a solid cat can include the following:^{[1]
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- White
- Black
- Orange (Ginger)
- Grey/Smoke
- Blue (For example, a Russian Blue)
- Silver
- Cream or Buff
- Brown
- Cinnamon
- Sable

2

Tabby

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Tabbies have stripes around their eyes and on their legs and tail. They are famous for having an “M” shape in the center of their forehead, along with various patterns. Tabbies are the most common pattern a cat’s coat can have, and have multiple variations.^{[2]
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- Type: Bicolor (refers to a coat of white and 1 other color)
- Classic (Blotched): Has solid black markings on its shoulders and a round bullseye marking on its sides.
- Striped: Has different color spots all over their fur that can vary; breeds include Maine Coon and Bengal.
- Spotted: Has spots and various markings instead of stripes; breeds include Bengal and Ocicat.
- Ticked: Has a gradient of color (light at the base to a dark tip) in each fur follicle; may also have a long dark line along their spine. Their breeds include Somali and Abyssinian.
- Mackerel (Fishbone): Has dark stripes running vertically along its body, with lighter orange or grey coats underneath.
- Curious which breed of cat you are? Take our fun “What kind of cat am I” quiz!

3

Harlequin

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A harlequin has a mostly white coat with roughly 25% of another color. Their other color may include large, irregular patches of any cat color. No two harlequin cats are the same—they each have a different pattern (but always have a colored tail). Harlequin cats can also have tabby markings within their colored patches.^{[3]
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- Type: Bicolor
- Variations: The magpie cat has spotting, but has a white tail, while a moo cow cat’s markings resemble a cow.

4

Van

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A van is mostly white, with patches of color on the head and tail. The color on their head is often between the ears, while they may also have a patch of color between their shoulder blades. Their colors include red, cream, black, blue, or tortoiseshell.^{[4]
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- Type: Bicolor
- Variations: Increased vans also have additional patches of color on the body and legs.
- They are often linked with the Turkish van cat, although not all van-patterned cats are Turkish vans.

5

Tuxedo

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A tuxedo is black with a white belly, chest, paws, and sometimes face. Tuxedos can sometimes have a small white patch or dot on their chin. The dominant black color and white markings give the overall look of a tuxedo; they look like they’re wearing a vest or a bow tie, or have a mustache.^{[5]
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- Type: Bicolor
- Variations: Salmiak (Grey tuxedo)
- “Locket” cats usually have black or grey fur on their chest, “mittens" have it on their paws, and "buttons" have patches on their abdomen.

6

Tortoiseshell

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Tortoiseshells have an even mix of orange and black (or cream and blue). They’re always female, because the genes for the orange and black fur are carried on the XX chromosome. Male cats can only have one of those 2 colors. Tortoiseshell cats are also called "torties” and can also exhibit an underlying tabby pattern.^{[6]
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- Type: Tricolor
- Dilute Tortie: Has a muted, pastel-colored coat, with diluted black to grey or blue and diluted orange to cream.^{[7]
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- Lilac Tortie: Has diluted lilac (pale, pinkish-gray) and cream patches.^{[8]
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7

Torbie

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Torbies are tortoiseshell cats with an additional tabby pattern. They have stripes, swirls, or spots within the different black and orange patches of color. Unlike regular tortoiseshell cats, torbies have the tabby "M" or "eyeliner" marking. They are a combination of tortoiseshell and tabby pattern types and are also called patched tabbies.^{[9]
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- Type: Tortoiseshell/Tabby
- Dilute: Has softer colors like blue and cream. A dilute torbie with white is sometimes called a "blue mackerel torbie and white.”
- Brown Torbie: Has patches of brown tabby and red tabby.

8

Calico

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Calico patterns come in white, black, and red (orange). They can also appear in other diluted variations, like cream and blue, and as “tabicos, which also have tabby stripes. Calicos have roughly equal parts of their 3 colors; calicos with more white than red or black are called a “white calico.” The more white fur a calico cat has, the more defined their patches of red and black are.^{[10]
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- Type: Tricolor
- Dilute calico: Has faded blue/grey, cream, and white shades
- Caliby: Has a calico and tabby coat pattern with a mix of solid tri-colored patches and tabby stripes.

9

Colorpoint (Pointed)

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Colorpoints have a darker color on the face, paws, and tail tips. The pattern develops because of a genetic mutation that affects the cat’s production of pigment based on temperature—the cooler extremities get darker while their warmer mid-body stays white/light. There are many kinds of colorpoint variations, which are listed here:^{[11]
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- Type: Bicolor
- Lynx-Point: A combination of the tabby and the colorpoint pattern
- Seal-Point: Has dark brown points and a lighter cream or fawn colored body.
- Chocolate-Point: Has warm milk-chocolate points and a pale, ivory colored body.
- Flame-Point: Has orange/reddish points with a creamy white colored body.
- Blue-Point: Has slate-gray points and a white or cream colored body.
- Sepia: Has barely visible darker "points” against a deep underlying coat color.
- Do fur patterns affect eye color? Colorpoint fur patterns are linked to blue eyes, while most types of cat fur patterns can include different colored eyes.

10

Mink

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Mink cats have darker points on the face, ears, legs, and tail. Their underlying fur color is much lighter than a traditional colorpoint cat. Minks are also a specific bloodline within the ragdoll cat breed and typically have blue-green or aquamarine eyes. Their fur is said to be as soft as a mink stole or coat.^{[12]
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- Type: Solid, bicolor, tricolor

11

Smoke

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Smoke cats have mostly dark hair with a light undercoat. The lighter color of the undercoat can make it appear as if the cat is moving. The smoke effect is more visible on long-haired cats; on short-haired cats, you might need to part their hair to notice the effect. Overall, a smoke cat’s face might look as if it’s wearing white powder makeup.^{[13]
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- Type: Solid
- Black smoke: Has a white or silver coat with black hair tips.
- Blue smoke: Has a white or silver coat with blue or gray hair tips.
- Chocolate smoke: Has a white or silver coat with brown hair tips.
- Cinnamon smoke: Has a white or silver coat with light reddish-brown tips.
- Cream smoke: Has a white or silver coat with cream tips.
- Lilac smoke: A silver coat with pale grayish-brown tips.

12

Shaded

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Shaded cats have individual hair shafts with shaded tips. The color ratio for a shaded cat includes roughly half light fur and half dark. They differ from bicolor cats because shaded cats have individual hair shafts, whereas bicolor cats have large patches across their body.^{[14]
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- Type: Shaded
- Shaded silver: Has a white or silver coat with black tips.
- Shaded golden: Has a warm, golden coat with black or brown tips.
- Shaded tortoiseshell: Has a white or silver coat with a mix of black and red tips.
- Shaded golden tortie: Has a warm, golden, apricot, or buff coat with black and red or chocolate and cream tips.

13

Chinchilla

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Chinchillas look almost completely white with an even silvery shimmer. Their fur has lighter-colored tips and a darker base, and they are sometimes called a shell cat. Chinchillas have lighter tips than a traditional shaded cat.^{[15]
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- Type: Shaded
- Silver and golden: Has dark black or blue-gray tips.
- Silver: Has black tips on a silvery-white coat.
- While golden: Has black or other darker tips on a pale honey or apricot coat.
- Blue silver: Has blue-grey tips.
- Blue Golden: Has blue-grey tips on an ivory or honey coat.

14

Mask-and-Mantle

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Mask-and-mantles are two-toned with colored fur on their head and backs. They also usually have white fur on the lower part of their face, along with their chest, belly, and legs. The resulting look makes mask-and-mantles appear as if they’re wearing a dark mask and cape.^{[16]
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- Type: Bicolor
- Variations: The mask-and-mantle may also look like a cap on the head and a saddle on the back.