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#f2ec96

a light, electric yellow · warm · closest name: Khaki

RGB
242, 236, 150
HSL
56°, 78%, 77%
CMYK
0, 3, 38, 5
Luminance
0.8107

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #f2ec96 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#f2ec96
Hue
56°
yellow
Saturation
78%
electric
Lightness
77%
light
Brightness
95%
HSV value
Perceived
90%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.8107
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
22/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Electric
Best ink
Black
17.21:1
Closest name
Khaki
ΔE2000 1.8
Where it sits
Hue56° of 360°
Saturation78%
Lightness77%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool22% 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#f2ec96
RGBrgb(242, 236, 150)
HSLhsl(56, 78%, 77%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 3%, 38%, 5%)
LABlab(92.2 -10.2 42.4)
LCHlch(92.2 43.6 103.5)
OKLCHoklch(0.929 0.107 104.9)
Decimal15920278
Display P3color(display-p3 0.949 0.925 0.588)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #f2ec96;
background-color: #f2ec96;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#f2ec96] bg-[#f2ec96]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #f2ec96;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.949, green: 0.925, blue: 0.588)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#f2ec96")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFF2EC96)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(150, 236, 242)

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 #f2ec96 · 17.21:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.22:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 17.21:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #f2ec96 as text scores 1.22:1 on white and 17.21:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#f2ec96 on white: 1.22:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#f2ec96 on black: 17.21:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #FAE690
deuteranopia · #FDEB9A
tritanopia · #FFE1D7

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #f2ec96 is pinned to step 300; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#FCFBF3
#F9F8E6
#F5F2C7
#f2ec96
#ECE469
#E6DB37
#DACD1B
#B6AB16
#918912
#696311
#423E0B
Base = 300Lightest = 50 · #FCFBF3Darkest = 950 · #423E0B
:root {
  --brand-50: #FCFBF3;
  --brand-100: #F9F8E6;
  --brand-200: #F5F2C7;
  --brand-300: #f2ec96;
  --brand-400: #ECE469;
  --brand-500: #E6DB37;
  --brand-600: #DACD1B;
  --brand-700: #B6AB16;
  --brand-800: #918912;
  --brand-900: #696311;
  --brand-950: #423E0B;
  --brand: #f2ec96;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #f2ec96

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#EDEAC0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B964B
Captions on the surface
Accent#1347B9
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#716B0E
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FCFBE8
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242314
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 #f2ec96

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
  • Card and section backgrounds
  • 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
  • White text placed on it
  • 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#969CF2
Analogous left#F2BE96
Analogous right#CAF296
Split-complement 1#96CAF2
Split-complement 2#BE96F2
Triadic 1#96F2EC
Triadic 2#EC96F2
Tetradic#96F2BE

RGB percentages

Red94.9%
Green92.5%
Blue58.8%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta2.5%
Yellow38.0%
Key (black)5.1%

Color previews

#f2ec96 text on a black background

contrast 17.21:1

Card sample

#f2ec96 text on a white background

contrast 1.22:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #f2ec96;
Background color
Panel with #f2ec96 background
background-color: #f2ec96;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #f2ec96;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(242, 236, 150, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(242, 236, 150, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #f2ec96;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #f2ec96, #BBF296);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #f2ec96

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.

#f2ec96 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
SurfacesBadgesHighlightsEmpty states
Print note

Sits outside most CMYK gamuts — expect a duller press result, or specify a spot ink.

#f2ec96, answered

What color is #f2ec96?

#f2ec96 is a light electric yellow, closest to Khaki (ΔE2000 1.8). It sits at 56° on the hue wheel with 78% saturation and 77% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #f2ec96?

rgb(242, 236, 150) — 242 red, 236 green and 150 blue out of 255, or 94.9% / 92.5% / 58.8% by channel.

Is #f2ec96 a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.8107 and perceived brightness is 90%, so black text on it reaches 17.21:1.

Should I use black or white text on #f2ec96?

Black. It scores 17.21:1 against #f2ec96, versus 1.22:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #f2ec96?

#969CF2 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #96CAF2 and #BE96F2, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #f2ec96?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #EDEAC0 for borders, #9B964B for secondary text, #1347B9 as an accent and #716B0E for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #F2BE96 and #CAF296 stays calm, while #969CF2 is the loudest partner.

What is #f2ec96 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 3%, 38%, 5%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — a color this saturated sits outside most CMYK gamuts and will print duller than it looks here.

Is #f2ec96 warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 22 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #F2CB96; nudged cooler, #D7F395.

Work with #f2ec96 in the Color Lab