Muhammad seems to have had different beard colours, according to the hadith:
Beard – Yellow
Sunan al-Nasāʾī 5084
Abū Rimthah reported:
I came to the Prophet and saw that he had dyed his beard with yellow dye.
The Arabic phrase is:
لَطَّخَ لِحْيَتَهُ بِالصُّفْرَةِ
laṭṭakha liḥyatahu bi’l-ṣufrah
he had applied yellow dye to his beard.
This is the clearest report specifically describing the Prophet’s beard as yellow-dyed. The report is graded ṣaḥīḥ in the cited edition.
Sunan al-Nasāʾī 5243
A report from ʿUbayd says that Ibn ʿUmar dyed his beard yellow and explained:
I saw the Prophet dye his beard yellow.
The Arabic verb is yuṣaffiru — “he makes yellow” or “he dyes yellow.”
So, yellow is definitely one of the colours associated in hadith with the Prophet’s beard.
Beard – Red or reddish-orange
The traditional dye associated with henna (ḥinnāʾ) is generally orange, reddish-orange, copper, or red, depending on the preparation and the hair.
Sunan al-Nasāʾī 5083
Abū Rimthah reported:
I came to the Prophet, and he had dyed his beard with henna.
The Arabic is:
لَطَّخَ لِحْيَتَهُ بِالْحِنَّاءِ
laṭṭakha liḥyatahu bi’l-ḥinnāʾ
“He had applied henna to his beard.”
This is also graded ṣaḥīḥ in the cited edition.
Henna normally produces a reddish-orange/copper colour.
Beard – Reddish Brown
There is also a particularly important report involving henna and katam.
Sunan Ibn Mājah 3623
ʿUthmān b. Mawhab reported that Umm Salamah brought out a hair of the Prophet that had been:
مَخْضُوبًا بِالْحِنَّاءِ وَالْكَتَمِ
makhḍūban bi’l-ḥinnāʾ wa’l-katam
Dyed with henna and katam.
The report says the hair belonged to the Prophet.
Katam is a plant dye traditionally understood to produce a darker shade, especially when combined with henna. Thus, henna + katam is often understood as producing something like deep reddish-brown, auburn, or dark copper, rather than bright orange.
Other Beards – Yellow
There is also a report in Sunan Ibn Mājah 3627 in which the Prophet passes by people who have dyed their hair:
- with henna;
- with henna and katam;
- with yellow dye.
The report praises the appearance of the yellow-dyed hair above the others. However, the cited edition grades this particular report ḍaʿīf (weak), so it should not be treated with the same confidence as the stronger reports above.
Beard – Natural
The hadith evidence suggests that his natural hair and beard were dark, with a relatively small number of white hairs appearing later in life.
The strongest evidence is not usually phrased as “his beard was black.” Instead, the reports describe the appearance and amount of grey hair.
Sahih Muslim 2341a–e
Anas b. Mālik was asked whether the Prophet dyed his hair. The reports say, in substance:
- he had not reached the stage where extensive dyeing was necessary;
- he had only a few white hairs;
- whiteness appeared in his beard, temples, and a small amount on his head;
- another report says that the Prophet did not dye his hair.
One report states:
There was some whiteness in his hair at his chin, on his temples and very little on his head.
This implies that the overwhelming majority of his hair—including his beard—remained its natural darker colour
Sahih Muslim 2344b
Jābir b. Samurah reported that some whiteness had appeared at the front of the Prophet’s head and beard, but it was not always visible when he had applied oil. The report also describes him as having a thick beard.
Sahih Muslim 2342
Abū Juḥayfah saw some whiteness in the Prophet’s ʿanfaqah—the hair beneath the lower lip and around the chin.
Conclusion
The most precise conclusion is therefore: Muhammad’s natural beard appears to have been predominantly dark, probably black or very dark brown, with a small number of white hairs later in life; reports also describe him on particular occasions with yellow dye and with henna-based dye producing reddish or orange tones.
Koran Contradiction 