Background: Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is an oilseed with demand for direct and industrial consumption due to its nutritional value and phytochemical components. The color of the coat appears to be related to the seed biochemical properties, antioxidant activity and biological properties. Objective: To identify and generate knowledge on seed coat color variability in sesame accessions from central and northwestern Mexico. Methodology: 73 sesame populations were collected in the Mexican states of Oaxaca, Michoacán, Guerrero, Sinaloa and Sonora. Color parameters L*, a*, and b* were recorded through readings in a Hunter-Lab miniScan XEPLUS colorimeter. The tone (hue) was calculated by means of arctan expression (b*/a*) and chroma as: [(a*)2 + (b*)2]1/2. Readings were taken in triplicate on a 10-g seed sample. The data were processed by analysis of variance (ANOVA), principal components (PCA) and hierarchical clusters. Results: Low coefficients of variation were found in the parameters of the HunterLab scale, 0.64, 1.85, 0.91, 0.97 and 1.06% for L*, a*, b*, chroma and hue, respectively, indicating that the color information of the seed coat is consistent, allowing to identify groups of populations by color as follows: 5 light color populations, 37 cream color, 23 brown and 8 dark color. The PCA, based on L*, hue and chroma, indicated that the first PC explains 95% of the total variation among populations, and the cluster analysis allowed differentiation among non-dark coat populations. Implications: Complete chemical and proximal determinations are required with special interest in black sesame due to its nutraceutical quality. Conclusions: Producers preserve genetic diversity by cultivating different local genotypes based mainly on yield and grain color diversity.