Top 10 rarest eye colors in the world (2024)

FAQs

What is the 2 rarest eye color? ›

Hazel/amber is the next rarest color after green.

The vast majority of people in the world have brown eyes. The second most common color is blue, but people can also have hazel, green, or gray eyes.

Red and violet

Although the deep blue eyes of some people such as Elizabeth Taylor can appear purple or violet at certain times, "true" violet-colored eyes occur only due to albinism. Eyes that appear red or violet under certain conditions due to albinism are less than 1 percent of the world's population.

One thing these survey results have in common is that light-colored eyes — green, gray, blue, and hazel — are named as the most attractive eye colors in the world. In one large survey of more than 66,000 people, green was chosen as the most attractive eye color.

Without a doubt, grey eyes are one of the rarest eye colors in the world. But just how rare are grey eyes? We can estimate that less than 1% of people in the U.S. have them. Therefore, it's fair to say that the chances you've seen natural grey eyes in person are incredibly slim.

Where in the world are the most green eyes? The highest concentration of people with green eyes is found in Ireland, Scotland, and northern Europe. In fact, in Ireland and Scotland, more than three-fourths of the population has blue or green eyes – 86 percent!

According to an article by evolutionary biology professor Mark Elgar, PhD, of the University of Melbourne, blue-eyed redheads are the absolute rarest, with 0.17% of the population having that combination of hair and eye color. So if that describes you, you're most likely one in a million—or more!

At some point, you've probably wondered what the rarest eye color is. The answer is green, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). Only about 2 percent of the world's population sport this shade.

The allele for brown eyes is the most dominant allele and is always dominant over the other two alleles and the allele for green eyes is always dominant over the allele for blue eyes, which is always recessive.

To begin, let's consider eye colors in order from the rarest to the most common: Black: Truly black eyes only result from a condition called aniridia, where the eye lacks an iris so only the dark pupil is visible. The cause of aniridia is a rare chromosome mutation that only occurs in one of 60,000-90,000 births.

Can Asians have blue eyes? ›

There are plenty of blue-eyed Asians. This probably happens when the traditional blue-eyed allele comes into a family from a (possibly very distant) European ancestor. Blue eyes then resurface in a child generations later if they inherit the allele from both parents.

Amber eyes: A golden yellow or copper colour occurs due to higher quantities of the pigment lipochrome (yellow pigment) and very little melanin, and are considered very rare. Amber-coloured eyes are most often seen in Asian and South American areas of the world.

A black eye is a bruise in the tissues around your eye. The skin around your eye may look swollen, with a blue or purple colour. There are different causes of black eyes, such as trauma to your face. If you get a black eye, it's best to see a doctor to rule out any other issues.

People with albinism have little or no melanin in their eyes. When they have very little melanin in their irises, they can have very pale blue or gray eyes. When there's no melanin in either layer of their irises, the blood vessels in their retinas are a lot more visible, making their eyes look pink or red.

According to an article by evolutionary biology professor Mark Elgar, PhD, of the University of Melbourne, blue-eyed redheads are the absolute rarest, with 0.17% of the population having that combination of hair and eye color. So if that describes you, you're most likely one in a million—or more!

What is the rarest eye shape? The almond shape is often considered the most uncommon and is associated with a unique and captivating look.

Green eyes are the most rare eye color in the world. Only about 2 percent of people in the world have naturally green eyes. Green eyes are a genetic mutation that results in low levels of melanin, though more melanin than in blue eyes. Green eyes don't actually have any color.