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#fd8c2e

a balanced, electric orange · warm · closest name: Dark Orange

RGB
253, 140, 46
HSL
27°, 98%, 59%
CMYK
0, 45, 82, 1
Luminance
0.3984

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #fd8c2e is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#fd8c2e
Hue
27°
orange
Saturation
98%
electric
Lightness
59%
balanced
Brightness
99%
HSV value
Perceived
69%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.3984
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
2/100 cool
Color family
Orange
Tone
Electric
Best ink
Black
8.97:1
Closest name
Dark Orange
ΔE2000 3.5
Where it sits
Hue27° of 360°
Saturation98%
Lightness59%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool2% 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#fd8c2e
RGBrgb(253, 140, 46)
HSLhsl(27, 98%, 59%)
CMYKcmyk(0%, 45%, 82%, 1%)
LABlab(69.4 36.7 64.7)
LCHlch(69.4 74.4 60.4)
OKLCHoklch(0.749 0.169 54.8)
Decimal16616494
Display P3color(display-p3 0.992 0.549 0.180)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #fd8c2e;
background-color: #fd8c2e;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#fd8c2e] bg-[#fd8c2e]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #fd8c2e;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.992, green: 0.549, blue: 0.180)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#fd8c2e")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFFD8C2E)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(46, 140, 253)

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 #fd8c2e · 8.97:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 2.34:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 8.97:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #fd8c2e as text scores 2.34:1 on white and 8.97:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#fd8c2e on white: 2.34:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#fd8c2e on black: 8.97:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #AD9A1D
deuteranopia · #C8B32D
tritanopia · #FF737A

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #fd8c2e 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.

#FDF7F1
#FCEFE3
#FBDBC1
#FEC290
#FDA358
#fd8c2e
#F26F02
#CA5D02
#A24A02
#743806
#492304
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #FDF7F1Darkest = 950 · #492304
:root {
  --brand-50: #FDF7F1;
  --brand-100: #FCEFE3;
  --brand-200: #FBDBC1;
  --brand-300: #FEC290;
  --brand-400: #FDA358;
  --brand-500: #fd8c2e;
  --brand-600: #F26F02;
  --brand-700: #CA5D02;
  --brand-800: #A24A02;
  --brand-900: #743806;
  --brand-950: #492304;
  --brand: #fd8c2e;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #fd8c2e

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#FAF7F4
Tinted page background
Border#EDD4C0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9B6F4B
Captions on the surface
Accent#00A3CC
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#7E3A01
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FFF1E6
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#241B14
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 #fd8c2e

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
  • 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#2E9FFD
Analogous left#FD2E38
Analogous right#FDF32E
Split-complement 1#2EFDF3
Split-complement 2#2E38FD
Triadic 1#2EFD8C
Triadic 2#8C2EFD
Tetradic#38FD2E

RGB percentages

Red99.2%
Green54.9%
Blue18.0%

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.0%
Magenta44.7%
Yellow81.8%
Key (black)0.8%

Color previews

#fd8c2e text on a black background

contrast 8.97:1

Card sample

#fd8c2e text on a white background

contrast 2.34:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #fd8c2e;
Background color
Panel with #fd8c2e background
background-color: #fd8c2e;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #fd8c2e;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(253, 140, 46, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(253, 140, 46, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #fd8c2e;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #fd8c2e, #E4FD2E);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #fd8c2e

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.

#fd8c2e in the real world

Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.

Industries
E-commerceFood deliveryLogisticsCreator tools
Common UI roles
ButtonsLinksFocus statesCharts
Print note

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

#fd8c2e, answered

What color is #fd8c2e?

#fd8c2e is a balanced electric orange, closest to Dark Orange (ΔE2000 3.5). It sits at 27° on the hue wheel with 98% saturation and 59% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #fd8c2e?

rgb(253, 140, 46) — 253 red, 140 green and 46 blue out of 255, or 99.2% / 54.9% / 18% by channel.

Is #fd8c2e a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.3984 and perceived brightness is 69%, so black text on it reaches 8.97:1.

Should I use black or white text on #fd8c2e?

Black. It scores 8.97:1 against #fd8c2e, versus 2.34:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #fd8c2e?

#2E9FFD sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #2EFDF3 and #2E38FD, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #fd8c2e?

For interface work: #FAF7F4 as the surface, #EDD4C0 for borders, #9B6F4B for secondary text, #00A3CC as an accent and #7E3A01 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #FD2E38 and #FDF32E stays calm, while #2E9FFD is the loudest partner.

What is #fd8c2e in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(0%, 45%, 82%, 1%). 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 #fd8c2e warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 2 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #FD9747; nudged cooler, #FF3E2C.

Work with #fd8c2e in the Color Lab