Skip to content

#cdbe2f

a balanced, vivid yellow · warm · closest name: Dark Khaki

RGB
205, 190, 47
HSL
54°, 63%, 49%
CMYK
0, 7, 77, 20
Luminance
0.5001

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #cdbe2f is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#cdbe2f
Hue
54°
yellow
Saturation
63%
vivid
Lightness
49%
balanced
Brightness
80%
HSV value
Perceived
72%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5001
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
20/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
11.00:1
Closest name
Dark Khaki
ΔE2000 9
Where it sits
Hue54° of 360°
Saturation63%
Lightness49%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool20% cool

Reads warm. Warm and cool siblings keep the same lightness, so you can swap one in without redoing your contrast maths.

Every format

HEX#cdbe2f
RGBrgb(205, 190, 47)
HSLhsl(54, 63%, 49%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 7%, 77%, 20%)
LABlab(76.1 -9.8 68.5)
LCHlch(76.1 69.2 98.1)
OKLCHoklch(0.790 0.153 103.1)
Decimal13483567
Display P3color(display-p3 0.804 0.745 0.184)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #cdbe2f;
background-color: #cdbe2f;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#cdbe2f] bg-[#cdbe2f]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #cdbe2f;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.804, green: 0.745, blue: 0.184)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#cdbe2f")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFCDBE2F)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(47, 190, 205)

Best text color

Only one of black and white can be right. This is the one, with the number that proves it.

Readable at a glance#000000 on #cdbe2f · 11.00:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.91:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 11.00:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #cdbe2f as text scores 1.91:1 on white and 11.00:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#cdbe2f on white: 1.91:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#cdbe2f on black: 11.00:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #D0B809
deuteranopia · #D4BF3A
tritanopia · #DDB0A3

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #cdbe2f is pinned to step 600; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#FBFAF4
#F7F6E8
#F0EDCC
#EAE3A4
#E0D676
#D5C848
#cdbe2f
#A69A26
#857B1E
#615A1A
#3C3810
Base = 600Lightest = 50 · #FBFAF4Darkest = 950 · #3C3810
:root {
  --brand-50: #FBFAF4;
  --brand-100: #F7F6E8;
  --brand-200: #F0EDCC;
  --brand-300: #EAE3A4;
  --brand-400: #E0D676;
  --brand-500: #D5C848;
  --brand-600: #cdbe2f;
  --brand-700: #A69A26;
  --brand-800: #857B1E;
  --brand-900: #615A1A;
  --brand-950: #3C3810;
  --brand: #cdbe2f;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #cdbe2f

Not a palette — a role sheet. Each swatch answers one question you will hit while building the component.

Text on it#000000
Black wins here
Surface#FAFAF4
Tinted page background
Border#EDE8C0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B934B
Captions on the surface
Accent#2A64D2
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#686018
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FAF9EA
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242314
Dark-mode background
Light mode
Everything in its place

Surface, border, heading and body all derive from this one hue, so the screen stays coherent without a second palette.

Primary actionSecondaryBadge
Dark mode
Same hue, inverted

Lightness flips, hue holds. The accent stays the anchor in both themes.

Primary actionSecondaryAccent

How to use #cdbe2f

Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.

Works well for
  • Text and icons on dark surfaces
  • Primary buttons and calls to action
  • Focus rings, active and selected states
  • Brand accents, badges and data highlights
Use with care
  • Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
  • Full-page backgrounds — tiring over long sessions
  • Thin strokes and 1px borders — they disappear on light UI
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate

Similar colors

One move away from this hex in each direction. Every swatch is its own page.

Color relationships

The wheel positions with their names attached, so you can grab the one you actually need.

Complementary#2F3ECD
Analogous left#CD6F2F
Analogous right#8DCD2F
Split-complement 1#2F8DCD
Split-complement 2#6F2FCD
Triadic 1#2FCDBE
Triadic 2#BE2FCD
Tetradic#2FCD6F

RGB percentages

Red80.4%
Green74.5%
Blue18.4%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta7.3%
Yellow77.1%
Key (black)19.6%

Color previews

#cdbe2f text on a black background

contrast 11.00:1

Card sample

#cdbe2f text on a white background

contrast 1.91:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #cdbe2f;
Background color
Panel with #cdbe2f background
background-color: #cdbe2f;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #cdbe2f;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(205, 190, 47, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(205, 190, 47, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #cdbe2f;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #cdbe2f, #73CD2F);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #cdbe2f

Shades — darker

Tints — lighter

Color harmonies

Nearest named colors

Ranked with CIEDE2000 across all 139 CSS keywords. Under ΔE 2 the eye stops telling them apart; over ΔE 10 they are plainly different colors.

#cdbe2f in the real world

Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.

Industries
RetailLeisureEnergyWarning systems
Common UI roles
ButtonsLinksFocus statesCharts
Print note

Converts to four-color process without much drama. Proof it anyway.

#cdbe2f, answered

What color is #cdbe2f?

#cdbe2f is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Dark Khaki (ΔE2000 9). It sits at 54° on the hue wheel with 63% saturation and 49% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #cdbe2f?

rgb(205, 190, 47) — 205 red, 190 green and 47 blue out of 255, or 80.4% / 74.5% / 18.4% by channel.

Is #cdbe2f a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5001 and perceived brightness is 72%, so black text on it reaches 11.00:1.

Should I use black or white text on #cdbe2f?

Black. It scores 11.00:1 against #cdbe2f, versus 1.91:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #cdbe2f?

#2F3ECD sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #2F8DCD and #6F2FCD, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #cdbe2f?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #EDE8C0 for borders, #9B934B for secondary text, #2A64D2 as an accent and #686018 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #CD6F2F and #8DCD2F stays calm, while #2F3ECD is the loudest partner.

What is #cdbe2f in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 7%, 77%, 20%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #cdbe2f warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 20 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #CD912F; nudged cooler, #A3CF2C.

Work with #cdbe2f in the Color Lab