This invention provides a magenta ink composition that, when recorded, is excellent in color development, graininess, and gloss, is less likely to cause clogging in an ink jet recording head, and is excellent in color reproduction in a high-chroma and high-lightness red region. The magenta ink composition has an L* value of not less than 60 and a b* value of not more than -17 when the a* value in CIE standard calculated from a visible absorption spectrum in a not more than 10000-fold diluted aqueous solution is 80.