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#dfcb3f

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

RGB
223, 203, 63
HSL
53°, 71%, 56%
CMYK
0, 9, 72, 13
Luminance
0.5876

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #dfcb3f is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#dfcb3f
Hue
53°
yellow
Saturation
71%
vivid
Lightness
56%
balanced
Brightness
87%
HSV value
Perceived
78%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5876
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
19/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
12.75:1
Closest name
Gold
ΔE2000 7
Where it sits
Hue53° of 360°
Saturation71%
Lightness56%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool19% 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#dfcb3f
RGBrgb(223, 203, 63)
HSLhsl(53, 71%, 56%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 9%, 72%, 13%)
LABlab(81.2 -8.1 68.4)
LCHlch(81.2 68.8 96.7)
OKLCHoklch(0.835 0.154 100.9)
Decimal14666559
Display P3color(display-p3 0.875 0.796 0.247)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #dfcb3f;
background-color: #dfcb3f;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#dfcb3f] bg-[#dfcb3f]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #dfcb3f;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.875, green: 0.796, blue: 0.247)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#dfcb3f")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFDFCB3F)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(63, 203, 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 #dfcb3f · 12.75:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.65:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 12.75:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #dfcb3f as text scores 1.65:1 on white and 12.75:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#dfcb3f on white: 1.65:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#dfcb3f on black: 12.75:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #DEC527
deuteranopia · #E4CD48
tritanopia · #F0BCB0

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #dfcb3f 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.

#FCFBF3
#F8F6E7
#F3EDC9
#EFE59F
#E7D86F
#dfcb3f
#D2BC23
#AF9D1D
#8C7D17
#655B15
#3F390D
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #FCFBF3Darkest = 950 · #3F390D
:root {
  --brand-50: #FCFBF3;
  --brand-100: #F8F6E7;
  --brand-200: #F3EDC9;
  --brand-300: #EFE59F;
  --brand-400: #E7D86F;
  --brand-500: #dfcb3f;
  --brand-600: #D2BC23;
  --brand-700: #AF9D1D;
  --brand-800: #8C7D17;
  --brand-900: #655B15;
  --brand-950: #3F390D;
  --brand: #dfcb3f;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #dfcb3f

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#EDE7C0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B914B
Captions on the surface
Accent#3B7AE3
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#6D6212
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FBF9E9
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242214
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 #dfcb3f

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#3F53DF
Analogous left#DF7B3F
Analogous right#A3DF3F
Split-complement 1#3FA3DF
Split-complement 2#7B3FDF
Triadic 1#3FDFCB
Triadic 2#CB3FDF
Tetradic#3FDF7B

RGB percentages

Red87.5%
Green79.6%
Blue24.7%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta9.0%
Yellow71.7%
Key (black)12.5%

Color previews

#dfcb3f text on a black background

contrast 12.75:1

Card sample

#dfcb3f text on a white background

contrast 1.65:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #dfcb3f;
Background color
Panel with #dfcb3f background
background-color: #dfcb3f;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #dfcb3f;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(223, 203, 63, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(223, 203, 63, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #dfcb3f;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #dfcb3f, #88DF3F);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #dfcb3f

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.

#dfcb3f 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.

#dfcb3f, answered

What color is #dfcb3f?

#dfcb3f is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Gold (ΔE2000 7). It sits at 53° on the hue wheel with 71% saturation and 56% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #dfcb3f?

rgb(223, 203, 63) — 223 red, 203 green and 63 blue out of 255, or 87.5% / 79.6% / 24.7% by channel.

Is #dfcb3f a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5876 and perceived brightness is 78%, so black text on it reaches 12.75:1.

Should I use black or white text on #dfcb3f?

Black. It scores 12.75:1 against #dfcb3f, versus 1.65:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #dfcb3f?

#3F53DF sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #3FA3DF and #7B3FDF, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #dfcb3f?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #EDE7C0 for borders, #9B914B for secondary text, #3B7AE3 as an accent and #6D6212 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #DF7B3F and #A3DF3F stays calm, while #3F53DF is the loudest partner.

What is #dfcb3f in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 9%, 72%, 13%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #dfcb3f warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 19 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #DFA03F; nudged cooler, #BAE13D.

Work with #dfcb3f in the Color Lab