Caramel #AF6F09
Caramel is a medium-dark, moderately saturated brown with hex code #AF6F09 and RGB rgb(175, 111, 9).
Aa
Black text reads best on this color (5.10:1).
About this color
#AF6F09 is a medium-dark, moderately saturated brown. In OKLCH its lightness is 60%, its chroma 0.127 and its hue 69°. Its hue sits on the warm side of the wheel. It is the named color Caramel. Black text reads best on it, at 5.10:1.
| Hue family | Browns |
| Lightness | medium-dark (60%) |
| Chroma | moderately saturated (0.127) |
| Temperature | warm |
| Nearest name | Caramel |
| Black text | 5.10:1 |
| White text | 4.11:1 |
Colors that go with Caramel
Matches found by rotating Caramel around the OKLCH hue wheel, each labelled with the closest name in our list.
Complementary
The opposite hue (180°).
Analogous
Neighbouring hues, 30° either side.
Triadic
Three hues spaced 120° apart.
Color palettes with Caramel
Curated color palettes that contain a color within ΔE 0.06 (OKLab) of Caramel, closest first.
Similar named colors
The eight named colors closest to Caramel, with their ΔE distance.
- Brown Orange #B96902 ΔE 0.022
- Leather #AC7434 ΔE 0.023
- Umber #B26400 ΔE 0.026
- Bronze #A87900 ΔE 0.028
- Golden Brown #B27A01 ΔE 0.030
- Tiger's Eye #BC6C25 ΔE 0.030
- Clay Brown #B2713D ΔE 0.034
- Orange Brown #BE6400 ΔE 0.035
More about Caramel
How to make Caramel
A starting recipe from common paint colors, found with a spectral paint model (the color mixer’s paint mode). Real pigments vary, so mix a small test batch and adjust.
- 3 parts orange
- 1 part red
- 1 part green
Recipe result: #AA7229, a difference of ΔE 0.016 from Caramel. That is very close: most people will not see the difference.
Codes for Caramel in every format
| HEX | #AF6F09 |
| RGB | rgb(175, 111, 9) |
| HSL | hsl(37, 90%, 36%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(59.6% 0.127 69.4) |
Contrast
WCAG 2 contrast ratios are the conformance target: AA needs 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text, AAA needs 7:1. APCA Lc values are supplementary guidance from the WCAG 3 drafts.
| Pair | WCAG 2 | Result | APCA | APCA guidance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White text on #AF6F09 | 4.11:1 | AA large text | Lc -73.5 | Content text, not long reading |
| Black text on #AF6F09 | 5.10:1 | AA | Lc 36.1 | Non-text elements, placeholder text |
| #AF6F09 text on white | 4.11:1 | AA large text | Lc 68.0 | Content text, not long reading |
| #AF6F09 text on black | 5.10:1 | AA | Lc -33.7 | Non-text elements, placeholder text |
Shades and tints of Caramel
A 50–950 scale built in OKLCH: the hue is held, lightness follows a Tailwind v4-like curve, and every step is kept inside the sRGB gamut. This color sits at step 500.
-
Step 50
50
#F9F5F0
oklch(97.2% 0.008 73.7)
-
Step 100
100
#F2E8DD
oklch(93.6% 0.018 70.2)
-
Step 200
200
#E9D6C1
oklch(88.6% 0.035 70.1)
-
Step 300
300
#DBBA95
oklch(80.8% 0.062 70)
-
Step 400
400
#C99559
oklch(70.7% 0.099 69)
-
Step 500
500 (this color)
#AF6F09
oklch(59.6% 0.127 69.4)
-
Step 600
600
#A06400
oklch(55.6% 0.121 69.2)
-
Step 700
700
#875400
oklch(49.2% 0.107 69.6)
-
Step 800
800
#6F4400
oklch(42.7% 0.093 69.4)
-
Step 900
900
#5D3800
oklch(37.7% 0.082 69.1)
-
Step 950
950
#372105
oklch(27% 0.053 68.7)
Caramel with color blindness
Simulated with the Machado et al. (2009) model. ΔE is how far the color moves: below about 0.02 you would not notice a change.
| Vision | Seen as | Shift (ΔE) |
|---|---|---|
| Protanopia (no red cones) | #847400 | 0.076 |
| Deuteranopia (no green cones) | #93830E | 0.068 |
| Tritanopia (no blue cones) | #C05F5E | 0.101 |
| Achromatopsia (no color) | #7D7D7D | 0.128 |
Use Caramel in your product
Turn it into light and dark UI roles checked for contrast, then export to Tailwind v4, shadcn/ui, CSS or design tokens.