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#c4c621

a balanced, vivid yellow · warm · closest name: Yellow Green

RGB
196, 198, 33
HSL
61°, 71%, 45%
CMYK
1, 0, 83, 22
Luminance
0.5223

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #c4c621 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#c4c621
Hue
61°
yellow
Saturation
71%
vivid
Lightness
45%
balanced
Brightness
78%
HSV value
Perceived
73%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5223
WCAG relative
Temperature
Warm
26/100 cool
Color family
Yellow
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
11.45:1
Closest name
Yellow Green
ΔE2000 10.2
Where it sits
Hue61° of 360°
Saturation71%
Lightness45%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool26% 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#c4c621
RGBrgb(196, 198, 33)
HSLhsl(61, 71%, 45%)
CMYKcmyk(1%, 0%, 83%, 22%)
LABlab(77.4 -18.1 73.2)
LCHlch(77.4 75.4 103.9)
OKLCHoklch(0.799 0.168 110.4)
Decimal12895777
Display P3color(display-p3 0.769 0.776 0.129)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #c4c621;
background-color: #c4c621;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#c4c621] bg-[#c4c621]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #c4c621;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.769, green: 0.776, blue: 0.129)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#c4c621")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFC4C621)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(33, 198, 196)

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 #c4c621 · 11.45:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 1.83:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 11.45:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #c4c621 as text scores 1.83:1 on white and 11.45:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#c4c621 on white: 1.83:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#c4c621 on black: 11.45:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #D6BD00
deuteranopia · #D8C132
tritanopia · #D2B9A9

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #c4c621 is pinned to step 600; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#FCFCF3
#F8F8E7
#F2F3C9
#EEEF9F
#E6E76F
#DDDF3F
#c4c621
#ADAF1D
#8B8C17
#646515
#3F3F0D
Base = 600Lightest = 50 · #FCFCF3Darkest = 950 · #3F3F0D
:root {
  --brand-50: #FCFCF3;
  --brand-100: #F8F8E7;
  --brand-200: #F2F3C9;
  --brand-300: #EEEF9F;
  --brand-400: #E6E76F;
  --brand-500: #DDDF3F;
  --brand-600: #c4c621;
  --brand-700: #ADAF1D;
  --brand-800: #8B8C17;
  --brand-900: #646515;
  --brand-950: #3F3F0D;
  --brand: #c4c621;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #c4c621

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#ECEDC0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#9A9B4B
Captions on the surface
Accent#1C46CB
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#6C6D12
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#FBFBE9
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#242414
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 #c4c621

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#2321C6
Analogous left#C67521
Analogous right#72C621
Split-complement 1#2172C6
Split-complement 2#7521C6
Triadic 1#21C4C6
Triadic 2#C621C4
Tetradic#21C675

RGB percentages

Red76.9%
Green77.6%
Blue12.9%

CMYK percentages

Cyan1.0%
Magenta0.0%
Yellow83.3%
Key (black)22.4%

Color previews

#c4c621 text on a black background

contrast 11.45:1

Card sample

#c4c621 text on a white background

contrast 1.83:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #c4c621;
Background color
Panel with #c4c621 background
background-color: #c4c621;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #c4c621;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(196, 198, 33, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(196, 198, 33, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #c4c621;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #c4c621, #56C621);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #c4c621

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.

#c4c621 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.

#c4c621, answered

What color is #c4c621?

#c4c621 is a balanced vivid yellow, closest to Yellow Green (ΔE2000 10.2). It sits at 61° on the hue wheel with 71% saturation and 45% lightness, which reads as warm.

What is the RGB value of #c4c621?

rgb(196, 198, 33) — 196 red, 198 green and 33 blue out of 255, or 76.9% / 77.6% / 12.9% by channel.

Is #c4c621 a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5223 and perceived brightness is 73%, so black text on it reaches 11.45:1.

Should I use black or white text on #c4c621?

Black. It scores 11.45:1 against #c4c621, versus 1.83:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #c4c621?

#2321C6 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #2172C6 and #7521C6, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #c4c621?

For interface work: #FAFAF4 as the surface, #ECEDC0 for borders, #9A9B4B for secondary text, #1C46CB as an accent and #6C6D12 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #C67521 and #72C621 stays calm, while #2321C6 is the loudest partner.

What is #c4c621 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(1%, 0%, 83%, 22%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #c4c621 warm or cool?

Warm — it scores 26 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #C68F21; nudged cooler, #88C81F.

Work with #c4c621 in the Color Lab