Is #EBB402 accessible for body text on white?

#EBB402 has a contrast ratio of 1.9:1 against white, which is not sufficient for WCAG AA body text (4.5:1).

What is the complementary color of #EBB402?

The complement of #EBB402 is #0239EB.

#EBB402 Amber

rgb(235, 180, 2)

Color conversions

HEX: #EBB402
RGB: rgb(235, 180, 2)
RGBA: rgba(235, 180, 2, 1)
HSL: hsl(46, 98%, 46%)
HSV / HSB: hsv(46, 99%, 92%)
CMYK: cmyk(0%, 23%, 99%, 8%)

Wide-gamut spaces

XYZ: xyz(50.597, 50.313, 7.104)
LAB: lab(76.26 7.55 78.56)
LCH: lch(76.26 78.92 84.51)
OKLAB: oklab(79.81% 0.0105 0.1627)
OKLCH: oklch(79.81% 0.1631 86.3)
Nearest name: Amber

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

#ebb4021a

#ebb40233

#ebb4024d

#ebb40266

#ebb40280

#ebb40299

#ebb402b3

#ebb402cc

#ebb402e6

#ebb402ff

On white

1.9:1

Body text Fail · Large text Fail

On black

11.06:1

Body text AAA · Large text AA

White-on-color contrast is 1.9:1.

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-amber: #ebb402;
  --color-amber-rgb: 235 180 2;
  --color-amber-hsl: 46 98% 46%;
  --color-amber-oklch: 79.81% 0.1631 86.3;
}

.element {
  color: #ebb402;
  background-color: hsl(46, 98%, 46%);
  border: 1px solid rgb(235 180 2 / 40%);
}

SCSS

$amber: #ebb402;
$amber-light: #f5da81;
$amber-dark: #765a01;

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

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

LESS

@amber: #ebb402;
@amber-light: lighten(@amber, 12%);
@amber-dark: darken(@amber, 12%);

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

Tailwind CSS

/* Tailwind v4 — src/styles.css */
@theme {
  --color-amber-50: #fbf0cc;
  --color-amber-100: #f9e9b3;
  --color-amber-200: #f7e19a;
  --color-amber-300: #f3d267;
  --color-amber-400: #efc335;
  --color-amber-500: #ebb402;
  --color-amber-600: #d4a202;
  --color-amber-700: #a57e01;
  --color-amber-800: #765a01;
  --color-amber-900: #473601;
}

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

/* Arbitrary value, no config needed */
<div class="bg-[#ebb402]" />

Bootstrap

// Bootstrap 5 — _variables.scss (before importing bootstrap)
$amber: #ebb402;
$primary: $amber;

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

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

Flutter

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

const Color amber = Color(0xFFEBB402);

// As a MaterialColor swatch
const MaterialColor amberSwatch = MaterialColor(0xFFEBB402, <int, Color>{
  50: Color(0xFFFBF0CC),
  100: Color(0xFFF9E9B3),
  200: Color(0xFFF7E19A),
  300: Color(0xFFF3D267),
  400: Color(0xFFEFC335),
  500: Color(0xFFEBB402),
  600: Color(0xFFD4A202),
  700: Color(0xFFA57E01),
  800: Color(0xFF765A01),
  900: Color(0xFF473601),
});

Swift / SwiftUI

import SwiftUI

extension Color {
    /// #ebb402 — Amber
    static let amber = Color(
        red: 0.9216,
        green: 0.7059,
        blue: 0.0078
    )
}

// UIKit
extension UIColor {
    static let amber = UIColor(
        red: 0.9216,
        green: 0.7059,
        blue: 0.0078,
        alpha: 1.0
    )
}

Android

<!-- res/values/colors.xml -->
<resources>
    <color name="amber">#EBB402</color>
    <color name="amber_translucent">#80EBB402</color>
</resources>

<!-- Jetpack Compose -->
val Amber = Color(0xFFEBB402)

JavaScript

export const AMBER = {
  hex: "#ebb402",
  rgb: [235, 180, 2],
  hsl: [46, 98, 46],
  oklch: "oklch(79.81% 0.1631 86.3)",
};

JSON tokens

{
  "$schema": "https://design-tokens.org/schema.json",
  "amber": {
    "$type": "color",
    "$value": "#ebb402",
    "$description": "Amber — generated by ColorVerse AI"
  }
}