Is #BBBC50 accessible for body text on white?

#BBBC50 has a contrast ratio of 2.01:1 against white, which is not sufficient for WCAG AA body text (4.5:1).

What is the complementary color of #BBBC50?

The complement of #BBBC50 is #5150BC.

#BBBC50 Brass

rgb(187, 188, 80)

Color conversions

HEX: #BBBC50
RGB: rgb(187, 188, 80)
RGBA: rgba(187, 188, 80, 1)
HSL: hsl(61, 45%, 53%)
HSV / HSB: hsv(61, 57%, 74%)
CMYK: cmyk(1%, 0%, 57%, 26%)

Wide-gamut spaces

XYZ: xyz(39.926, 47.111, 14.578)
LAB: lab(74.26 -14.59 53.31)
LCH: lch(74.26 55.27 105.31)
OKLAB: oklab(77.31% -0.0438 0.1231)
OKLCH: oklch(77.31% 0.1306 109.59)
Nearest name: Brass

Shades, tints and tones

Shades

Tints

Tones

Color harmonies

Complementary

The hue directly opposite on the color wheel. Maximum contrast, ideal for a single accent against a dominant brand color.

Analogous

Neighbouring hues that share a temperature. The safest harmony for calm, cohesive interfaces.

Triadic

Three hues evenly spaced 120 degrees apart. Vibrant and balanced — use one as dominant and the other two sparingly.

Split Complementary

The complement split into two adjacent hues. Nearly the contrast of complementary with noticeably less tension.

Square (Tetradic)

Four hues at 90-degree intervals. A rich set for illustration, data visualisation, and category coding.

Rectangle (Tetradic)

Two complementary pairs offset by 60 degrees. Gives two warm and two cool options in one system.

Monochromatic

A single hue across five lightness levels. The foundation of most UI scales and the most accessible starting point.

Similar colors

Closest matches

Opacity variations

#bbbc501a

#bbbc5033

#bbbc504d

#bbbc5066

#bbbc5080

#bbbc5099

#bbbc50b3

#bbbc50cc

#bbbc50e6

#bbbc50ff

On white

2.01:1

Body text Fail · Large text Fail

On black

10.42:1

Body text AAA · Large text AA

White-on-color contrast is 2.01:1.

Color blindness preview

Protanopia

No red cones — ~1% of men

Protanomaly

Reduced red sensitivity — ~1% of men

Deuteranopia

No green cones — ~1% of men

Deuteranomaly

Reduced green sensitivity — ~5% of men

Tritanopia

No blue cones — very rare

Tritanomaly

Reduced blue sensitivity — very rare

Achromatopsia

No color perception — ~1 in 30,000

Achromatomaly

Partial color perception — rare

Meaning, psychology and brand usage

Optimism that demands careful contrast handling

Yellow is the most luminous hue, which makes it excellent for highlights and terrible for text. Its very high relative luminance means yellow type on white almost never reaches WCAG AA — always pair it with a dark surface or use it as a fill behind dark text.

Sunshine, caution, and intellect in most markets. In parts of Latin America it carries mourning associations, and in Japan it historically signalled courage.

Yellow ochre sits alongside red as one of the earliest pigments. Chrome yellow, beloved by Van Gogh, was toxic and prone to browning — modern replacements are stable but chemically unrelated.

Best as an accent or brand signature rather than a UI primary. When used at scale, anchor it with near-black type and generous white space so it reads confident rather than cheap.

Common industries: Retail, Energy, Children's products, Delivery, Agriculture. Pairs well with near-black for legibility, deep violet for a modern contrast, white for airiness.

Code exports

CSS

:root {
  --color-brass: #bbbc50;
  --color-brass-rgb: 187 188 80;
  --color-brass-hsl: 61 45% 53%;
  --color-brass-oklch: 77.31% 0.1306 109.59;
}

.element {
  color: #bbbc50;
  background-color: hsl(61, 45%, 53%);
  border: 1px solid rgb(187 188 80 / 40%);
}

SCSS

$brass: #bbbc50;
$brass-light: #dddea8;
$brass-dark: #5e5e28;

.element {
  color: $brass;
  background: rgba($brass, 0.12);

  &:hover {
    color: darken($brass, 8%);
  }
}

LESS

@brass: #bbbc50;
@brass-light: lighten(@brass, 12%);
@brass-dark: darken(@brass, 12%);

.element {
  color: @brass;
  background: fade(@brass, 12%);
}

Tailwind CSS

/* Tailwind v4 — src/styles.css */
@theme {
  --color-brass-50: #f1f2dc;
  --color-brass-100: #ebebcb;
  --color-brass-200: #e4e4b9;
  --color-brass-300: #d6d796;
  --color-brass-400: #c9c973;
  --color-brass-500: #bbbc50;
  --color-brass-600: #a8a948;
  --color-brass-700: #838438;
  --color-brass-800: #5e5e28;
  --color-brass-900: #383818;
}

/* Usage */
<div class="bg-brass-500 text-brass-50 ring-brass-600" />

/* Arbitrary value, no config needed */
<div class="bg-[#bbbc50]" />

Bootstrap

// Bootstrap 5 — _variables.scss (before importing bootstrap)
$brass: #bbbc50;
$primary: $brass;

$theme-colors: map-merge($theme-colors, (
  "brass": $brass
));

// Generates .text-brass, .bg-brass, .btn-brass
@import "bootstrap/scss/bootstrap";

Flutter

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

const Color brass = Color(0xFFBBBC50);

// As a MaterialColor swatch
const MaterialColor brassSwatch = MaterialColor(0xFFBBBC50, <int, Color>{
  50: Color(0xFFF1F2DC),
  100: Color(0xFFEBEBCB),
  200: Color(0xFFE4E4B9),
  300: Color(0xFFD6D796),
  400: Color(0xFFC9C973),
  500: Color(0xFFBBBC50),
  600: Color(0xFFA8A948),
  700: Color(0xFF838438),
  800: Color(0xFF5E5E28),
  900: Color(0xFF383818),
});

Swift / SwiftUI

import SwiftUI

extension Color {
    /// #bbbc50 — Brass
    static let brass = Color(
        red: 0.7333,
        green: 0.7373,
        blue: 0.3137
    )
}

// UIKit
extension UIColor {
    static let brass = UIColor(
        red: 0.7333,
        green: 0.7373,
        blue: 0.3137,
        alpha: 1.0
    )
}

Android

<!-- res/values/colors.xml -->
<resources>
    <color name="brass">#BBBC50</color>
    <color name="brass_translucent">#80BBBC50</color>
</resources>

<!-- Jetpack Compose -->
val Brass = Color(0xFFBBBC50)

JavaScript

export const BRASS = {
  hex: "#bbbc50",
  rgb: [187, 188, 80],
  hsl: [61, 45, 53],
  oklch: "oklch(77.31% 0.1306 109.59)",
};

JSON tokens

{
  "$schema": "https://design-tokens.org/schema.json",
  "brass": {
    "$type": "color",
    "$value": "#bbbc50",
    "$description": "Brass — generated by ColorVerse AI"
  }
}