Ragdoll Colours: Colourpoint, Mitted and Bicolour

What colours do Ragdolls come in?

Every Ragdoll is pointed: a pale body with darker ears, mask, legs and tail. The Cat Fanciers' Association puts it plainly: “All Ragdolls have the colorpoint gene, meaning that the body is always lighter in color than the head, legs and tail.” Within that, a Ragdoll is described by two things: the colour of its points and the pattern of white over them. A “blue mitted” is blue points with white mittens; a “seal bicolour” is seal points with the bicolour white.

Pedigree cats in Australia are registered through several cat councils, and each has its own Ragdoll standard. The two we read in full differ:

Sources: CCCA Ragdoll standard (issue date November 2023) and ACF Ragdoll standard (updated 11 October 2023), both read 10 November 2026. Other councils (ANCATS, and TICA through its charter club) keep their own standards; ask a breeder which council registers their cats.

In plain colours: seal is a deep brown point on a cream body, blue a cold grey-blue point on a “glacial white” body, chocolate a milk-chocolate point on ivory, lilac a soft pinkish grey on off-white, red a rich apricot and cream a pale cream point, in the CCCA's descriptions. Blue, lilac and cream are the dilute versions of seal, chocolate and red; a 2006 study by Ishida and colleagues traced dilution in cats to a recessive variant of the MLPH gene, the gene that turns black fur grey. The CFA describes the same six point colours and adds that points may be solid, lynx (tabby, including tortie-lynx) or parti-coloured (tortie).

What is the difference between colourpoint, mitted and bicolour?

The amount of white. All three are pointed cats; mitted and bicolour add white spotting on top. The CFA says three of its four Ragdoll patterns “also have the bicolor gene,” and white spotting in cats sits on the KIT gene, according to a 2014 study by David and colleagues. It is a different variant from the dominant white of an all-white cat, which our white cats guide covers.

Sources: CCCA Ragdoll standard; CFA Ragdoll profile and standard, read 10 November 2026.

The bicolour V is the hardest marking to get right: the CCCA says it should start on the forehead and not extend beyond the outer corner of the eyes, and it allows white patches on the body “while not preferred.” Mitted cats are judged on how evenly matched the mittens are. None of this matters to a pet home; it matters to a show judge, and sometimes to a breeder's price.

Why are Ragdolls pointed, and why are their eyes blue?

Because of a temperature-sensitive version of one pigment gene. In 2005, Lyons and colleagues at UC Davis found that the Siamese “pointed” pattern comes from a variant of tyrosinase (TYR), the enzyme that starts melanin production, and that every pointed cat they tested carried two copies. They described the colouration as temperature-sensitive: the enzyme works where the body is cooler (ears, face, paws and tail) and barely works on the warm trunk. The Ragdoll is pointed in the same way, and the CFA says every Ragdoll has the colorpoint gene.

The gene is recessive. A 2006 paper by Imes and colleagues sets out the order at this gene as full colour, then Burmese, then Siamese (pointed), then albino. A cat needs two pointed copies to be pointed, which is also why two Ragdolls always have pointed kittens. The same reduced pigment in the iris gives the blue eyes, and the standards insist on it: the CFA disqualifies “eyes other than blue,” and the CCCA penalises pale eye colour.

Are Ragdoll kittens born white, and when does the colour come in?

They are born very pale. A kitten develops at body temperature in the womb, where the pointed enzyme barely works, so it starts out nearly white. National Geographic, reporting on the Siamese version of the same gene, describes kittens born white whose extremities cool after birth and darken as they mature. The points then keep deepening for years:

• The CCCA tells judges to make allowances for “lack of maturity of colour in kittens and younger cats (under three years)” and for incomplete masks, especially in chocolates and creams.
• ANCATS says Ragdolls are slow maturing, reaching full coat and colour in about three years (ANCATS).
• The CFA says Ragdolls “generally darken with age,” and asks judges to allow for darker colour in older cats.
• Red and cream kittens may show faint ghost barring or tabby marks, which the CCCA says should disappear as the kitten grows; tabby-point leg markings in chocolate and dilute colours can take up to 18 months.

In practice, telling seal from chocolate, or blue from lilac, in a very young kitten can be hard, and a breeder's colour call on a litter is sometimes revised as the kittens grow. If an exact colour matters to you, ask what the parents are. If it does not, an adult cat shows you its finished colour on day one.

What about mink, solid and other non-standard Ragdolls?

Ads sometimes offer “mink,” “sepia” or “solid” Ragdolls, often as rare colours at a higher price. Here is the registry view, from the standards themselves:

• Mink. Mink is the coat the CCCA Tonkinese standard describes, with aqua eyes, and the standard says the Tonkinese was originally the result of a Siamese to Burmese mating. The 2005 Lyons study found the Burmese pattern comes from a different, less temperature-sensitive variant of the same gene, which puts more colour on the body. No Ragdoll standard we read lists mink, sepia or aqua eyes.
• Solid (non-pointed). A cat that is not pointed carries at least one copy of a variant that is dominant over the pointed one, usually full colour (Imes 2006). The CCCA, ACF and CFA standards describe pointed Ragdolls only, and the CFA disqualifies “body and point color other than those listed.”
• Outcrosses. The CCCA Ragdoll standard lists its allowable outcross as “None.”

None of this says anything about the cat as a pet. A mink or solid cat with a Ragdoll-like build may be affectionate and healthy. It means the cat cannot be registered and shown as a Ragdoll under those standards, and a premium charged for a “rare” non-standard colour is buying a sales story. Ask which council registers the litter and check it yourself; our Ragdoll price guide explains how.

Does colour change the price or the personality?

Price: sometimes, by the breeder's choice. When we read the websites of eight cat council member breeders in November 2026 for our Ragdoll price guide, several charged more for bicolour kittens or for particular colours. No cat council sets prices or ranks colours by value. Treat any colour premium as the breeder's pricing, not a measure of quality.

Personality: no evidence. The standards describe one temperament for the whole breed. The CCCA asks for a cat that is “Placid, allowing easy handling at all times” and notes a Ragdoll may flop over on its side, “as suggested by the name.” We found no study linking Ragdoll colour or pattern to behaviour.

Health: no colour link we could source. The health questions that matter for a Ragdoll (the HCM heart mutation and PKD1 kidney test) apply to every colour; they are covered in the price guide and the Ragdoll health guide.

Is that pointed cat in rescue a Ragdoll?

Maybe, but colour cannot prove it. The pointed gene is not exclusive to any breed: the 2005 Lyons study analysed over 200 cats from 12 breeds as well as randomly bred cats, and found the same pointed mutation in different breeds. So a blue-eyed, pointed, semi-longhaired cat in a shelter could be a purebred Ragdoll, a Ragdoll cross, or a moggy that happens to carry two pointed copies. Without papers, careful rescues list it as a Ragdoll cross or a Domestic Longhair.

Clues that point towards Ragdoll ancestry are the ones in the standard: a large, long, heavy-boned cat with a semi-long silky coat, a broad head and a relaxed, easily handled nature. Clues against are a short coat, a fine Siamese-type build, or green or gold eyes. For the look-alikes, see Siamese and Birman, and our moggy colours guide.

How do you adopt a Ragdoll in a particular colour?

Be flexible on colour and set alerts. Purebred Ragdolls usually reach rescue as adults, and a particular colour-and-pattern combination is rarer still, so the useful filter is the cat, not the shade. Fees go by age and rescue, not colour. RSPCA NSW lists $220 for a cat over six months and $270 for a kitten, and the Cat Protection Society of NSW lists $150 per cat or kitten, or $250 for two (both checked 10 November 2026). These are reference figures, not quotes.

Two advantages of an adult: its colour is finished, and its temperament is known. If you want a papered kitten of an exact colour, a registered breeder is a reasonable choice; check the council membership and the parents' HCM and PKD1 results as the price guide explains. Rehoming owners list on our Ragdoll rehoming page. Still choosing a breed? Try the what cat breed am I quiz or the adoption readiness check.

Find a Ragdoll near you

• Sydney: Ragdolls and crosses, long-haired cats, Ragdoll adoption guide
• Melbourne: Ragdolls and crosses, long-haired cats, Ragdoll adoption guide
• Brisbane: Ragdolls and crosses, long-haired cats, Ragdoll adoption guide
• Perth: Ragdolls and crosses, long-haired cats, Ragdoll adoption guide
• Adelaide: Ragdolls and crosses, long-haired cats, Ragdoll adoption guide
• Australia-wide: the Ragdoll breed page, plus cream cats and white cats.