# What Color Scrubs Do Nurses Wear? Department Colors Explained

*2026-08-27 · by qwebmaster · https://affordablescrubs.com/what-color-scrubs-do-nurses-wear/*

**The short answer:** there is no national rule. Each hospital sets its own colour policy, but strong conventions exist: nurses most often wear **navy, ceil blue or teal**, surgical teams wear **surgical green or ceil blue**, and support roles are colour-coded so patients can tell staff apart at a glance.

## Common colour conventions by role

| Role | Common colours |
| --- | --- |
| Registered nurses | Navy, ceil blue, teal |
| Surgical / OR staff | Surgical green, ceil blue |
| CNAs and techs | Wine, burgundy, grey |
| Imaging / radiology | Charcoal, pewter, black |
| Physicians | Black, navy, or a lab coat over any colour |
| Reception / admin | Wine, purple, or business wear |
| Students | Whatever the program specifies, often white or a set school colour |

Conventions, not rules. Always check your facility’s uniform policy first.

## Why hospitals colour-code

Two reasons: patients can identify who is who, and laundry sorting is trivial. That is also why teams buying in bulk standardise one colour per role, then reorder the same SKU. Our core styles run in more than 20 stocked colours, XXS to 5XL, so a colour policy set once stays available.

## Buying for a colour-coded team

Every product page here has a bulk grid: pick the colour, enter quantities per size, add the whole run at once. The minimum order is $250 across any mix. See [team uniform programs](/scrub-uniform-programs-for-teams/) or [request a bulk quote](/private-label/).