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#dfb359

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

RGB
223, 179, 89
HSL
40°, 68%, 61%
CMYK
0, 20, 60, 13
Luminance
0.4865

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #dfb359 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#dfb359
Hue
40°
yellow
Saturation
68%
vivid
Lightness
61%
balanced
Brightness
87%
HSV value
Perceived
73%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.4865
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
9/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
10.73:1
Closest name
Goldenrod
ΔE2000 5.8
Where it sits
Hue40° of 360°
Saturation68%
Lightness61%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool9% 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#dfb359
RGBrgb(223, 179, 89)
HSLhsl(40, 68%, 61%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 20%, 60%, 13%)
LABlab(75.2 5.9 51.1)
LCHlch(75.2 51.5 83.4)
OKLCHoklch(0.789 0.119 83.3)
Decimal14660441
Display P3color(display-p3 0.875 0.702 0.349)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #dfb359;
background-color: #dfb359;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#dfb359] bg-[#dfb359]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #dfb359;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.875, green: 0.702, blue: 0.349)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#dfb359")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFDFB359)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(89, 179, 223)

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 #dfb359 · 10.73:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.96:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 10.73:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #dfb359 as text scores 1.96:1 on white and 10.73:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#dfb359 on white: 1.96:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#dfb359 on black: 10.73:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #C6B350
deuteranopia · #D1BE5C
tritanopia · #F0A59F

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #dfb359 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.

#FBF9F3
#F8F2E8
#F2E5CA
#EDD4A1
#E4BE72
#dfb359
#CD9728
#AB7E21
#89651A
#634A17
#3E2E0E
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #FBF9F3Darkest = 950 · #3E2E0E
:root {
  --brand-50: #FBF9F3;
  --brand-100: #F8F2E8;
  --brand-200: #F2E5CA;
  --brand-300: #EDD4A1;
  --brand-400: #E4BE72;
  --brand-500: #dfb359;
  --brand-600: #CD9728;
  --brand-700: #AB7E21;
  --brand-800: #89651A;
  --brand-900: #634A17;
  --brand-950: #3E2E0E;
  --brand: #dfb359;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #dfb359

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#FAF8F4
Tinted page background
Border#EDDEC0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B814B
Captions on the surface
Accent#1D71AF
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#6B4F15
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FBF5EA
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#241F14
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 #dfb359

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#5985DF
Analogous left#DF7059
Analogous right#C8DF59
Split-complement 1#59C8DF
Split-complement 2#7059DF
Triadic 1#59DFB3
Triadic 2#B359DF
Tetradic#59DF70

RGB percentages

Red87.5%
Green70.2%
Blue34.9%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta19.7%
Yellow60.1%
Key (black)12.5%

Color previews

#dfb359 text on a black background

contrast 10.73:1

Card sample

#dfb359 text on a white background

contrast 1.96:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #dfb359;
Background color
Panel with #dfb359 background
background-color: #dfb359;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #dfb359;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(223, 179, 89, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(223, 179, 89, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #dfb359;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #dfb359, #B2DF59);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #dfb359

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.

#dfb359 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.

#dfb359, answered

What color is #dfb359?

#dfb359 is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Goldenrod (ΔE2000 5.8). It sits at 40° on the hue wheel with 68% saturation and 61% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #dfb359?

rgb(223, 179, 89) — 223 red, 179 green and 89 blue out of 255, or 87.5% / 70.2% / 34.9% by channel.

Is #dfb359 a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.4865 and perceived brightness is 73%, so black text on it reaches 10.73:1.

Should I use black or white text on #dfb359?

Black. It scores 10.73:1 against #dfb359, versus 1.96:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #dfb359?

#5985DF sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #59C8DF and #7059DF, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #dfb359?

For interface work: #FAF8F4 as the surface, #EDDEC0 for borders, #9B814B for secondary text, #1D71AF as an accent and #6B4F15 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #DF7059 and #C8DF59 stays calm, while #5985DF is the loudest partner.

What is #dfb359 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 20%, 60%, 13%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #dfb359 warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 9 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #DF9E59; nudged cooler, #DCE157.

Work with #dfb359 in the Color Lab