What color is #B9B497?

#B9B497 is a light, grayish yellow, closest to the named color Lush. It belongs to the yellow family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #B9B497?

The RGB value is 185, 180, 151: 185 red, 180 green and 151 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #B9B497?

The complementary color is #979CB9, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #B9B497?

Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 10.04:1 and white text 2.09:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#B9B497 color

#B9B497 rgb(185, 180, 151)

Shades of yellow

The hex color #B9B497 is a light, grayish yellow.

In the RGB color model it is made of 72.5% red, 70.6% green and 59.2% blue (185, 180, 151).

Its hue angle is 51°, with 20% saturation and 66% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 3% magenta, 18% yellow and 27% black.

The closest named color is Lush (#C5BDA0), a difference of 2.9 ΔE, a small difference.

Black text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 10.04:1).

#B9B497 color codes

HEX	`#B9B497`
RGB	`rgb(185, 180, 151)`
RGB percent	`rgb(72.5%, 70.6%, 59.2%)`
HSL	`hsl(51, 20%, 66%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(51, 18%, 73%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 3%, 18%, 27%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(73.02, -3.12, 15.46)`
CIE LCH	`lch(73.02, 15.77, 101.41)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(41.914, 45.192, 35.787)`
Decimal	`12170391`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #B9B497, based on their position on the color wheel.

Complementary

The color opposite on the color wheel (180°). Strongest contrast.

Analogous

Neighbors 30° either side. Calm, natural combinations.

Split complementary

The two colors next to the complement (150° and 210°).

Triadic

Three colors evenly spaced, 120° apart.

Tetradic (square)

Four colors 90° apart.

Shades, tints and tones

Shades (darker, mixed with black)

Tints (lighter, mixed with white)

Tones (mixed with gray)

Contrast and accessibility

Text on #B9B497	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	10.04:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	2.09:1	Fail	Fail	Fail

#B9B497 as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	2.09:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	10.04:1	Pass	Pass	Pass

WCAG 2 asks for 4.5:1 for normal text (AA), 7:1 for AAA, and 3:1 for large text. Check other pairs.

Color blindness simulation

How #B9B497 looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #b9b497; }
.text { color: #b9b497; }
.border { border: 2px solid #b9b497; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(185 180 151 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #b9b497, #adb997); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Sage.

Questions

What color is #B9B497?: #B9B497 is a light, grayish yellow, closest to the named color Lush. It belongs to the yellow family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #B9B497?: The RGB value is 185, 180, 151: 185 red, 180 green and 151 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #B9B497?: The complementary color is #979CB9, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #B9B497?: Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 10.04:1 and white text 2.09:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.