Taupe #B9A281
Taupe is a medium-light, muted orange with hex code #B9A281 and RGB rgb(185, 162, 129).
Aa
Black text reads best on this color (8.54:1).
About this color
#B9A281 is a medium-light, muted orange. In OKLCH its lightness is 72%, its chroma 0.053 and its hue 77°. Its hue sits on the warm side of the wheel. It is the named color Taupe. Black text reads best on it, at 8.54:1.
| Hue family | Oranges |
| Lightness | medium-light (72%) |
| Chroma | muted (0.053) |
| Temperature | warm |
| Nearest name | Taupe |
| Black text | 8.54:1 |
| White text | 2.45:1 |
Colors that go with Taupe
Matches found by rotating Taupe 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 Taupe
Curated color palettes that contain a color within ΔE 0.06 (OKLab) of Taupe, closest first.
Similar named colors
The eight named colors closest to Taupe, with their ΔE distance.
- Mushroom #BA9E88 ΔE 0.017
- Stone #ADA587 ΔE 0.018
- Bland #AFA88B ΔE 0.020
- Dust #B2996E ΔE 0.032
- Putty #BEAE8A ΔE 0.033
- Cement #A5A391 ΔE 0.034
- Toupe #C7AC7D ΔE 0.037
- Camel #C69F59 ΔE 0.047
More about Taupe
How to make Taupe
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.
- 4 parts white
- 3 parts brown
- 1 part blue
Recipe result: #B8A67B, a difference of ΔE 0.016 from Taupe. That is very close: most people will not see the difference.
Codes for Taupe in every format
| HEX | #B9A281 |
| RGB | rgb(185, 162, 129) |
| HSL | hsl(35, 29%, 62%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(72.4% 0.053 76.7) |
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 #B9A281 | 2.45:1 | Fails | Lc -53.3 | Large or bold text, headings |
| Black text on #B9A281 | 8.54:1 | AAA | Lc 55.7 | Large or bold text, headings |
| #B9A281 text on white | 2.45:1 | Fails | Lc 48.3 | Large or bold text, headings |
| #B9A281 text on black | 8.54:1 | AAA | Lc -53.7 | Large or bold text, headings |
Shades and tints of Taupe
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 400.
-
Step 50
50
#F7F5F2
oklch(97.1% 0.005 78.3)
-
Step 100
100
#EDE9E3
oklch(93.5% 0.009 78.3)
-
Step 200
200
#E0D8CC
oklch(88.5% 0.018 78.2)
-
Step 300
300
#CDBEA9
oklch(80.8% 0.033 76.4)
-
Step 400
400 (this color)
#B9A281
oklch(72.4% 0.053 76.7)
-
Step 500
500
#A1845A
oklch(63% 0.068 76.3)
-
Step 600
600
#8C6E40
oklch(55.7% 0.074 77)
-
Step 700
700
#775B32
oklch(49% 0.068 75.5)
-
Step 800
800
#614B2A
oklch(42.8% 0.057 76.4)
-
Step 900
900
#4F3F26
oklch(37.8% 0.044 77.9)
-
Step 950
950
#2E2517
oklch(27.1% 0.028 78.2)
Taupe 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) | #ABA27F | 0.021 |
| Deuteranopia (no green cones) | #B1A882 | 0.019 |
| Tritanopia (no blue cones) | #C29C99 | 0.045 |
| Achromatopsia (no color) | #A5A5A5 | 0.053 |
Use Taupe 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.