The Best Kinesiology Tape for Hot Weather

Kinesiology tape is perhaps the most well known sports tape today. What started as a tape used by elite athletes like David Beckham is today available to anyone who needs added flexible support for their muscles or joints. It's available in various colours and patterns, but apart from a form of identity expression, does the colour actually matter? In this article, we are going to look at what the best colours to choose in hot weather are.

What is kinesiology tape and how does it work?

Before we delve into the colours, if you're unfamiliar with it, kinesiology tape (also known as k tape, athletic tape or kinesio tape) has been designed to support the natural healing process of injured soft tissues and protect joints. Unlike conventional sports tapes (like Zinc Oxide) that are used to compress the injured area to restrict or immobilise the range of motion, kinesiology tape does the opposite. Taping with kinesiology tape works by lifting the skin away from the muscle, allowing improved circulation and reduced tension, which can be particularly effective for reducing swelling and improving lymphatic drainage.

Choosing the best kinesiology tape for hot weather

When temperatures climb and the sun is shining, most people naturally choose lighter clothing to stay as cool as possible. White shirts, light-coloured hats and breathable fabrics are popular because they reflect more sunlight compared to darker materials, which absorb it and therefore retain more heat.

But have you ever considered whether the colour of your kinesiology tape could have a similar effect?

If you regularly wear RockTape or any kinesiology tape during activities, rehabilitation or outdoor work, the colour you choose may influence how much energy from the sun the taped area absorbs when exposed to direct sunlight and therefore how much additional heat it may generate to the area. Although colour is often selected for appearance, team colours or self expression, there is some scientific evidence suggesting that lighter shades could be a more practical choice during warm weather.

How does colour influence heat absorption?

A 2021 study by Paminto, Fianti, and Yulianti explored how different colours responded to direct sunlight. During the experiment, researchers covered acrylic containers with coloured materials and monitored temperature changes using digital thermometers after exposure to sunlight.

Their findings demonstrated a clear trend: darker colours absorbed more solar energy and reached higher temperatures, while lighter colours reflected more sunlight and stayed comparatively cooler.

The colours ranked from the greatest to the lowest heat absorption were:

Black   →   Green   →   Red   →   Purple   →   Yellow   →   Pink   →   Blue   →   White

Black recorded the highest level of heat absorption, whereas white absorbed the least.

While the findings from Paminto et al. suggest that lighter colours generally absorb less solar energy than darker colours, more recent research on fabrics indicates that the relationship between colour and heat is not always straightforward.

A 2025 study by Zhen, Bian, and Bian examining 35 different fibres and coloured fabrics investigated how materials interacted with radiation sources that simulated both daylight and artificial heat. Importantly, the study's findings identified that a fabric's visible colour may not directly correspond to the heat generated when exposed to sunlight. Instead, the researchers concluded that a material's ability to reflect the specific wavelengths present in sunlight may be a better predictor of heating than its visible colour alone.

What does this mean for RockTape users?

RockTape is commonly applied during running, cycling, gym training, rehabilitation, team sports and everyday movement. Under normal conditions, the tape colour makes little practical difference beyond aesthetics.

However, when exercising or working outdoors in strong sunshine, colour may become more relevant. If kinesiology tape is applied to an area exposed to direct sunlight, for example the shoulder, knee, ankle, forearm or lower back; a darker colour could absorb more solar energy and therefore generate more heat than a lighter one.

This does not suggest that black or darker RockTape or kinesiology tape is unsafe. Instead, it indicates that choosing a lighter shade may be beneficial when trying to reduce additional heat build-up on exposed skin during hot weather.

Which RockTape colours should I use in the summer?

Based on the available research, lighter tape colours are likely to absorb less solar radiation than darker ones.

Therefore, if you're applying kinesiology tape to an exposed area and spending long periods outdoors during a sunny day or a heatwave, you may wish to consider colours such as:

• White
• Blue
• Pink
• Beige or lighter neutral shades

These colours may remain cooler in direct sunlight compared with darker options such as black, green or red.

While the difference may not always be noticeable during short periods outdoors, it could become more relevant during prolonged activity in warm, sunny conditions.

Should the colour of RockTape matter to me?

Choosing a lighter RockTape colour may be worth considering if you:

• Run outdoors during summer
• Cycle on exposed roads or trails
• Enjoy hiking or long-distance walking
• Play outdoor sports such as football, rugby, tennis or golf
• Work outside for extended periods
• Exercise during periods of hot weather or UK heatwaves
• Wear kinesiology tape on exposed areas of skin

Other considerations when wearing kinesiology tape in hot weather

Apart from considering which colour to choose when applying kinesiology tape in the heat, there are a few other things you may want to keep in mind to get the most out of each application.

1. Avoid applying lotions and sunscreens over the taped area as they may break down the glue.
2. Sweating and humidity can contribute to reduced adhesion and premature lifting.
3. Shaving the body area before application can improve the tape's staying power.
4. Always patch test your kinesiology tape on a small area before using it for the first time to avoid skin irritation or an allergic reaction.
5. Avoid applying kinesiology tape to open wounds, as this can cause an infection if the wound has not fully healed.
6. Round the edges of each tape strip with scissors before application to avoid snagging on clothing or peeling.

For more tips, including how to remove the tape, read our Kinesiology Tape guide.

The bottom line

If you are planning on using kinesiology tape in hot weather, you may want to consider not only the colour of the tape but also how you apply it.

Research over time has shown that darker colours generally absorb more energy from the sunlight than lighter colours. However, newer research shows us that a material's ability to reflect light may be just as important as its visible colour when considering how much it heats up. Neither of the two studies specifically examined RockTape or any kinesiology tape applied to human skin, nor did they assess temperature changes during exercise.

Nevertheless, from what's been outlined so far, choosing a lighter colour tape like white or beige during a hot sunny day is likely to be a sensible choice when you're looking to minimise additional heat absorption on exposed areas.

References

Paminto, J., Fianti, F., & Yulianti, I. (2021). The Effect of Surface Colour on the Absorption of Solar Radiation. Physics Communication, 5(1), 27–32.

Chen Y, Bian Z, Bian Y (2025), "Thermal reflectance of fabric in color temperature spectral domain". International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology, Vol. 37 No. 1 pp. 154–165