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#cdcd5e

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

RGB
205, 205, 94
HSL
60°, 53%, 59%
CMYK
0, 0, 54, 20
Luminance
0.5745

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #cdcd5e is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#cdcd5e
Hue
60°
yellow
Saturation
53%
vivid
Lightness
59%
balanced
Brightness
80%
HSV value
Perceived
77%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5745
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
25/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
12.49:1
Closest name
Dark Khaki
ΔE2000 7.3
Where it sits
Hue60° of 360°
Saturation53%
Lightness59%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool25% 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#cdcd5e
RGBrgb(205, 205, 94)
HSLhsl(60, 53%, 59%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 0%, 54%, 20%)
LABlab(80.4 -14.7 54.3)
LCHlch(80.4 56.3 105.1)
OKLCHoklch(0.826 0.134 109.0)
Decimal13487454
Display P3color(display-p3 0.804 0.804 0.369)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #cdcd5e;
background-color: #cdcd5e;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#cdcd5e] bg-[#cdcd5e]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #cdcd5e;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.804, green: 0.804, blue: 0.369)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#cdcd5e")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFCDCD5E)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(94, 205, 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 #cdcd5e · 12.49:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.68:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 12.49:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #cdcd5e as text scores 1.68:1 on white and 12.49:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#cdcd5e on white: 1.68:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#cdcd5e on black: 12.49:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #DCC553
deuteranopia · #DDC964
tritanopia · #DAC2B4

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #cdcd5e is pinned to step 500; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#FAFAF4
#F6F6E9
#EDEDCF
#E4E4A9
#D7D77F
#cdcd5e
#BBBB3A
#9C9C30
#7D7D27
#5B5B20
#393914
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #FAFAF4Darkest = 950 · #393914
:root {
  --brand-50: #FAFAF4;
  --brand-100: #F6F6E9;
  --brand-200: #EDEDCF;
  --brand-300: #E4E4A9;
  --brand-400: #D7D77F;
  --brand-500: #cdcd5e;
  --brand-600: #BBBB3A;
  --brand-700: #9C9C30;
  --brand-800: #7D7D27;
  --brand-900: #5B5B20;
  --brand-950: #393914;
  --brand: #cdcd5e;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #cdcd5e

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#ECECC1
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B9B4B
Captions on the surface
Accent#5A78D1
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#61611E
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#F9F9EC
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242414
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 #cdcd5e

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#5E5ECD
Analogous left#CD955E
Analogous right#95CD5E
Split-complement 1#5E95CD
Split-complement 2#955ECD
Triadic 1#5ECDCD
Triadic 2#CD5ECD
Tetradic#5ECD95

RGB percentages

Red80.4%
Green80.4%
Blue36.9%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta0.0%
Yellow54.1%
Key (black)19.6%

Color previews

#cdcd5e text on a black background

contrast 12.49:1

Card sample

#cdcd5e text on a white background

contrast 1.68:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #cdcd5e;
Background color
Panel with #cdcd5e background
background-color: #cdcd5e;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #cdcd5e;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(205, 205, 94, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(205, 205, 94, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #cdcd5e;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #cdcd5e, #83CD5E);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #cdcd5e

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.

#cdcd5e 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.

#cdcd5e, answered

What color is #cdcd5e?

#cdcd5e is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Dark Khaki (ΔE2000 7.3). It sits at 60° on the hue wheel with 53% saturation and 59% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #cdcd5e?

rgb(205, 205, 94) — 205 red, 205 green and 94 blue out of 255, or 80.4% / 80.4% / 36.9% by channel.

Is #cdcd5e a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5745 and perceived brightness is 77%, so black text on it reaches 12.49:1.

Should I use black or white text on #cdcd5e?

Black. It scores 12.49:1 against #cdcd5e, versus 1.68:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #cdcd5e?

#5E5ECD sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #5E95CD and #955ECD, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #cdcd5e?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #ECECC1 for borders, #9B9B4B for secondary text, #5A78D1 as an accent and #61611E for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #CD955E and #95CD5E stays calm, while #5E5ECD is the loudest partner.

What is #cdcd5e in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 0%, 54%, 20%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #cdcd5e warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 25 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #CDA45E; nudged cooler, #A5CF5C.

Work with #cdcd5e in the Color Lab