Skip to content

#cdcf39

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

RGB
205, 207, 57
HSL
61°, 61%, 52%
CMYK
1, 0, 73, 19
Luminance
0.5790

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #cdcf39 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#cdcf39
Hue
61°
yellow
Saturation
61%
vivid
Lightness
52%
balanced
Brightness
81%
HSV value
Perceived
77%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5790
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
26/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
12.58:1
Closest name
Khaki
ΔE2000 9.7
Where it sits
Hue61° of 360°
Saturation61%
Lightness52%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool26% 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#cdcf39
RGBrgb(205, 207, 57)
HSLhsl(61, 61%, 52%)
CMYKcmyk(1%, 0%, 73%, 19%)
LABlab(80.7 -17.9 69.5)
LCHlch(80.7 71.8 104.5)
OKLCHoklch(0.827 0.163 110.3)
Decimal13487929
Display P3color(display-p3 0.804 0.812 0.224)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #cdcf39;
background-color: #cdcf39;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#cdcf39] bg-[#cdcf39]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #cdcf39;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.804, green: 0.812, blue: 0.224)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#cdcf39")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFCDCF39)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(57, 207, 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 #cdcf39 · 12.58:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.67:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 12.58:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #cdcf39 as text scores 1.67:1 on white and 12.58:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#cdcf39 on white: 1.67:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#cdcf39 on black: 12.58:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #DFC61B
deuteranopia · #E1CA45
tritanopia · #DBC2B2

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #cdcf39 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.

#FBFBF4
#F7F7E8
#EFF0CC
#E8E9A5
#DDDE78
#D1D34A
#cdcf39
#A3A428
#828320
#5F601B
#3B3C11
Base = 600Lightest = 50 · #FBFBF4Darkest = 950 · #3B3C11
:root {
  --brand-50: #FBFBF4;
  --brand-100: #F7F7E8;
  --brand-200: #EFF0CC;
  --brand-300: #E8E9A5;
  --brand-400: #DDDE78;
  --brand-500: #D1D34A;
  --brand-600: #cdcf39;
  --brand-700: #A3A428;
  --brand-800: #828320;
  --brand-900: #5F601B;
  --brand-950: #3B3C11;
  --brand: #cdcf39;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #cdcf39

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#ECEDC0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9A9B4B
Captions on the surface
Accent#345AD4
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#666719
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FAFAEA
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 #cdcf39

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#3B39CF
Analogous left#CF8639
Analogous right#82CF39
Split-complement 1#3982CF
Split-complement 2#8639CF
Triadic 1#39CDCF
Triadic 2#CF39CD
Tetradic#39CF86

RGB percentages

Red80.4%
Green81.2%
Blue22.4%

CMYK percentages

Cyan1.0%
Magenta0.0%
Yellow72.5%
Key (black)18.8%

Color previews

#cdcf39 text on a black background

contrast 12.58:1

Card sample

#cdcf39 text on a white background

contrast 1.67:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #cdcf39;
Background color
Panel with #cdcf39 background
background-color: #cdcf39;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #cdcf39;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(205, 207, 57, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(205, 207, 57, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #cdcf39;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #cdcf39, #69CF39);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #cdcf39

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.

#cdcf39 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.

#cdcf39, answered

What color is #cdcf39?

#cdcf39 is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Khaki (ΔE2000 9.7). It sits at 61° on the hue wheel with 61% saturation and 52% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #cdcf39?

rgb(205, 207, 57) — 205 red, 207 green and 57 blue out of 255, or 80.4% / 81.2% / 22.4% by channel.

Is #cdcf39 a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5790 and perceived brightness is 77%, so black text on it reaches 12.58:1.

Should I use black or white text on #cdcf39?

Black. It scores 12.58:1 against #cdcf39, versus 1.67:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #cdcf39?

#3B39CF sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #3982CF and #8639CF, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #cdcf39?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #ECEDC0 for borders, #9A9B4B for secondary text, #345AD4 as an accent and #666719 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #CF8639 and #82CF39 stays calm, while #3B39CF is the loudest partner.

What is #cdcf39 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(1%, 0%, 73%, 19%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #cdcf39 warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 26 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #CF9B39; nudged cooler, #97D237.

Work with #cdcf39 in the Color Lab