Does Bowstring Colour Matter?

Does bow string colour matter? Mostly not. Deer vision research doesn't show that any string colour spooks deer, and we found no independent test showing colour alone changes speed or accuracy. The one real difference is physical: string makers report that some dyes, especially fluorescents, make a string slightly thicker or heavier.

Deer vision basics

The key study is a 1994 paper by Gerald Jacobs and colleagues, including deer researchers K. V. Miller and R. L. Marchinton. Measuring the retinas of white-tailed and fallow deer, they found "a rod pigment with maximum sensitivity" of about 497 nm and "two classes of photopic receptors": a short-wavelength cone at 450–460 nm and a middle-wavelength cone at about 537 nm in whitetails. Their conclusion was that deer have "two classes of cone pigment and, thus, the requisite retinal basis for dichromatic color vision."

In plain terms, deer see colour, but with two cone types rather than our three, and neither peaks at the red end of the spectrum. More recent University of Georgia work, published in 2025, found that deer rubs and scrapes glow under ultraviolet light, and that this glow "would be visible to deer based on previously described deer visual capabilities."

None of that research looked at bowstrings. A string is thin, sits behind the riser, and moves at the shot; whether a deer notices its colour, rather than the movement of the archer drawing, hasn't been tested anywhere we could find. There's no evidence that a camo string hides you, and none that a bright one gives you away. For what does cause busted hunts, our first-season mistakes guide is a better place to start.

Dye, diameter and weight

String makers disagree on how much colour matters, and the difference comes down to the dye. BCY Fibers, which makes bowstring material, explains that "coloring is achieved by coating the fibers with a color pigment," giving "a very minor diameter difference except for fluorescent colors which need heavy pigment." Asked whether coloured material is any less durable than black or white, BCY answers simply: "No."

OCD Strings, a custom string builder, measured its own samples and argues the effect is bigger than most archers assume. It reports 8125 material ranging from .070 in to .087 in across colours, with a flo orange sample weighing 24% over the average. Its reasoning is that "lighter strings will put more energy into the arrow," making it fly weaker, while heavier strings make it fly stiffer.

We found no independent test of colour alone on arrow speed or group size. OCD's figures show the dye can change string weight; whether that matters for a given archer depends on the bow and how finely it's tuned. Many archers on forums say colour makes no practical difference; that's untested too.

Choosing a colour

If you shoot a finely tuned target bow, take OCD's advice seriously: change string colour when you reset the bow for the season, and be ready to change nock size if the new string is thicker. For most bows, pick what you like or what helps you see the string clearly against your background.

Whatever the colour, the string's condition matters more. Check it before every session, using our guide to frayed bowstrings, and see changing a bowstring for when a swap needs a press.

If you're ordering a replacement, you can browse custom-colour recurve strings on Amazon. Treat listings as examples to consider and match the string length and strand count to your bow maker's spec.

Frequently asked questions

Does bow string color matter for hunting?

Not on the evidence we found. Research shows deer have two-cone, dichromatic colour vision, but no study we found has tested whether deer react to bowstring colour. Pick a colour for your own reasons, not to fool deer.

Do bowstring colours affect speed?

Possibly, slightly, through weight. OCD Strings measured colours of the same material that differed by up to 24% in weight and says lighter strings send arrows faster. We found no independent test confirming a measurable speed or accuracy difference from colour alone, so treat it as a tuning detail.