---
title: "Flag of Chile: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Chile flag stands for, its official 2:3 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted. Plus the flags it gets mistaken for."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/chile/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of Chile

**The flag of Chile: A white band over a red band, with a blue square at the hoist covering the full height of the white band only, bearing a single white five-pointed star.**

Ratio 2:3 · current design adopted 1817

The blue canton is a square, and its height equals the white band only — that is the whole difference from the flag of Texas, where the blue is a vertical band running the full height of the flag. Chile's design predates the Texan one by about twenty-two years, which settles the question of who copied whom, though there is no evidence either was aware of the other. The design is credited to Antonio Arcos or Gregorio de Andía y Varela and was adopted in October 1817. Chilean law is unusually strict about correct display and prosecutions for misuse do happen.

## Flags it gets confused with

| Flag | How to tell them apart |
| --- | --- |
| Texas (US state) | Texas has a blue vertical band running the full height of the flag at the hoist. Chile's blue is a square confined to the upper band. |

## What the colours mean

*Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.*

- **White** (#FFFFFF) — The snow of the Andes
- **Blue** (#0039A6) — The sky and the Pacific
- **Red** (#D52B1E) — The blood spilled fighting for independence

## The symbols on it

| What | What it stands for |
| --- | --- |
| La Estrella Solitaria | The lone star — a guide to progress and honour |

- **Ratio:** 2:3
- **Current design adopted:** 1817
- **Colours:** white, blue, red

## Common questions

### What does the flag of Chile look like?

A white band over a red band, with a blue square at the hoist covering the full height of the white band only, bearing a single white five-pointed star.

### What do the colours of the Chile flag mean?

White: the snow of the Andes. Blue: the sky and the Pacific. Red: the blood spilled fighting for independence.

### How do you tell the Chile flag from the Texas (US state) one?

Texas has a blue vertical band running the full height of the flag at the hoist. Chile's blue is a square confined to the upper band.

### When was the Chile flag adopted?

The current design dates from 1817, and its official ratio is 2:3.

## Related pages

- [Chile](https://atoneplace.net/country/chile/)
- [Every flag with white in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/white/)
- [The flag of United States](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-states/)
- [The flag of India](https://atoneplace.net/flag/india/)
- [The flag of United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-kingdom/)
- [The flag of Canada](https://atoneplace.net/flag/canada/)
- [The flag of Japan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/japan/)
- [The flag of France](https://atoneplace.net/flag/france/)
- [The flag of Russia](https://atoneplace.net/flag/russia/)
- [The flag of Brazil](https://atoneplace.net/flag/brazil/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]