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#dfbf56

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

RGB
223, 191, 86
HSL
46°, 68%, 61%
CMYK
0, 14, 61, 13
Luminance
0.5362

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #dfbf56 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#dfbf56
Hue
46°
yellow
Saturation
68%
vivid
Lightness
61%
balanced
Brightness
87%
HSV value
Perceived
76%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5362
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
13/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
11.72:1
Closest name
Goldenrod
ΔE2000 8.4
Where it sits
Hue46° of 360°
Saturation68%
Lightness61%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool13% 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#dfbf56
RGBrgb(223, 191, 86)
HSLhsl(46, 68%, 61%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 14%, 61%, 13%)
LABlab(78.2 -0.6 55.9)
LCHlch(78.2 55.9 90.6)
OKLCHoklch(0.812 0.129 92.4)
Decimal14663510
Display P3color(display-p3 0.875 0.749 0.337)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #dfbf56;
background-color: #dfbf56;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#dfbf56] bg-[#dfbf56]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #dfbf56;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.875, green: 0.749, blue: 0.337)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#dfbf56")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFDFBF56)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(86, 191, 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 #dfbf56 · 11.72:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.79:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 11.72:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #dfbf56 as text scores 1.79:1 on white and 11.72:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#dfbf56 on white: 1.79:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#dfbf56 on black: 11.72:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #D2BC4B
deuteranopia · #DAC55B
tritanopia · #F0B1A8

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #dfbf56 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.

#FBFAF3
#F8F4E8
#F2E8CA
#EDDBA1
#E4C971
#dfbf56
#CEA727
#AC8B20
#896F1A
#645217
#3E330E
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #FBFAF3Darkest = 950 · #3E330E
:root {
  --brand-50: #FBFAF3;
  --brand-100: #F8F4E8;
  --brand-200: #F2E8CA;
  --brand-300: #EDDBA1;
  --brand-400: #E4C971;
  --brand-500: #dfbf56;
  --brand-600: #CEA727;
  --brand-700: #AC8B20;
  --brand-800: #896F1A;
  --brand-900: #645217;
  --brand-950: #3E330E;
  --brand: #dfbf56;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #dfbf56

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#FAF9F4
Tinted page background
Border#EDE2C0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B884B
Captions on the surface
Accent#1C64B0
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#6B5714
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FBF7EA
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242114
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 #dfbf56

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#5676DF
Analogous left#DF7B56
Analogous right#BBDF56
Split-complement 1#56BBDF
Split-complement 2#7B56DF
Triadic 1#56DFBF
Triadic 2#BF56DF
Tetradic#56DF7B

RGB percentages

Red87.5%
Green74.9%
Blue33.7%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta14.3%
Yellow61.4%
Key (black)12.5%

Color previews

#dfbf56 text on a black background

contrast 11.72:1

Card sample

#dfbf56 text on a white background

contrast 1.79:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #dfbf56;
Background color
Panel with #dfbf56 background
background-color: #dfbf56;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #dfbf56;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(223, 191, 86, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(223, 191, 86, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #dfbf56;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #dfbf56, #A4DF56);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #dfbf56

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.

#dfbf56 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.

#dfbf56, answered

What color is #dfbf56?

#dfbf56 is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Goldenrod (ΔE2000 8.4). It sits at 46° on the hue wheel with 68% saturation and 61% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #dfbf56?

rgb(223, 191, 86) — 223 red, 191 green and 86 blue out of 255, or 87.5% / 74.9% / 33.7% by channel.

Is #dfbf56 a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5362 and perceived brightness is 76%, so black text on it reaches 11.72:1.

Should I use black or white text on #dfbf56?

Black. It scores 11.72:1 against #dfbf56, versus 1.79:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #dfbf56?

#5676DF sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #56BBDF and #7B56DF, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #dfbf56?

For interface work: #FAF9F4 as the surface, #EDE2C0 for borders, #9B884B for secondary text, #1C64B0 as an accent and #6B5714 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #DF7B56 and #BBDF56 stays calm, while #5676DF is the loudest partner.

What is #dfbf56 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 14%, 61%, 13%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #dfbf56 warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 13 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #DFA256; nudged cooler, #CEE154.

Work with #dfbf56 in the Color Lab