The severe urban heat island effect emphasizes the heightened importance of reducing building energy consumption. Cool pigments with higher near-infrared reflectivity contribute to the overall coating performance of the building. In this work, a novel intense blue pigment with superior infrared reflectance based on Ni-doped Zn 2 SiO 4 was successfully synthesized via the simple solid-state method. The crystal structure, oxidation states, and optical properties are analyzed. The oxidation state of Ni was confirmed to be +2 using magnetic analysis and XPS. The intense blue color exhibited by the solid solution is due to the 3 T 1 ( 3 F) → 3 T 1 ( 3 P) transition of Ni 2+ at the tetrahedral sites. UV−vis−NIR spectra demonstrate that this pigment exhibits superior near-infrared reflectance compared to cobalt blue in the range of 900−1700 nm, indicating its potential application in the realm of building energy conservation.