Near infrared reflectance, NIR, is a method largely used for rapid and robust determination of chemical compounds. It is currently used to support breeding programs to analyze protein, oil, starch, moisture and ash content, among others. Five hundred fifty four samples belonging to 24 races of pigmented maize (Zea mays L.) were used in the development and validation of mathematical models to estimate anthocyanin content by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), using UV-Vis spectroscopy as a reference method. The anthocyanins profile was determined through high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The highest anthocyanin contents were found in C11-IXT maize grain samples from Tlaxcala, México; containing up to 1989.97μg Pel g-1 DW. The highest percentages of cyanidin 3-glucoside, pelargonidin 3-glucoside and peonidin 3-glucoside were 48.79 %, 39.84 % and 12.14 %, respectively. Samples of the BOZM342 accession were outstanding for its cyanidin 3-glucoside content of 628.32 μg Pel g-1 PS. Thirty two calibration models were developed and analyzed, and two of them fulfilled the parameters for a robust NIR calibration, with high coefficients of determination for cross validations (0.64 and 0.65). The NIR models presented here can be used for determination of total anthocyanins and provide support for blue maize breeding programs.