Why are font color values negative?

[JenniferMurphy]

While working on a macro to do some highlighting, I had the need to change both the fill color and the font color. Using the macro recorder, I learned that I can set the fill color to red (255,0,0) using this code:

With Selection.Interior
  .Pattern = xlSolid
  .PatternColorIndex = xlAutomatic
  .color = 256
  .TintAndShade = 0
  .PatternTintAndShade = 0
End With

I then learned that I can set the font color to red using this code:

With Selection.Font
  .color = -16776961
  .TintAndShade = 0
End With

It turns out that -16776961 = 256^3 - the RGBcolor value.

Why is the font color not just the RGB value, like the fill color is?

 

[Scott Huish]

256 shouldn't give you red, that number appears visually to be black. But if you want to use RGB representations of numbers just use the RGB function.

.Color=RGB(255,0,0)

That value also isn't 256^3. That is equal to 16777216

Here's a link I found out about it: https://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/office/en-US/df8a1e1e-e974-4a9c-938a-da18ae9f5252/vba-excel-2010-rgb-to-long-color-value-convertor?forum=exceldev

but I would just use the RGB function personally.

There are also eight named color constants which you can also use:

vbBlack
vbRed
vbGreen
vbYellow
vbBlue
vbMagenta
vbCyan
vbWhite

Selection.Font.Color=vbRed

 

[V_Malkoti]

Color property takes a value supplied by RGB function. Range of values returned by RGB function is 0 to 16777215.

When you provide -16776961 as a value for Color property it exceeds the acceptable value range. Therefore the value wraps around and the actual value assigned to the Color property is 16777215 + (-16776961) + 1 = 255.
If you read the value of that object again with Selection.Font.Color, it will return 255.

All .Color properties take RGB values as input : Border, Borders, Font, Interior, Tab.
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vba/excel-vba/articles/interior-color-property-excel