Orange `#FFA500`

Orange (#FFA500) is a light, saturated orange with an OKLCH hue of 71°, lightness 0.79 and chroma 0.171. It sits on the warm side of the color wheel. In practice it behaves as an accent color: strong in focal moments, dominant over large fields.

Color values

HEX	`#FFA500`
RGB	`rgb(255, 165, 0)`
HSL	`hsl(39, 100%, 50%)`
HSV	`hsv(39, 100%, 100%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 35%, 100%, 0%)`
CIE Lab	`lab(74.9 23.9 78.9)`
OKLCH	`oklch(0.793 0.171 71)`

How Orange behaves under real light

Under warm 2700K interior light Orange shifts subtly: leans toward red; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 1.4), so it is a lighting-stable choice.

Warm interior (2700K incandescent / warm LED): → #ff9f00 — ΔE 1.4, shifts subtly: leans toward red
Neutral LED (4000K task and retail lighting): → #ffa500 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged
Daylight (6500K standard daylight (reference)): → #ffa500 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged
North light / shade (~7500K diffuse blue-sky light): → #ffa605 — ΔE 0.2, is virtually unchanged

Contrast & accessibility

Against white it measures 1.97:1 and against black 10.63:1, so black text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid white text on this color entirely.

Palettes built from Orange

Tonal

One color explored: close hues with real lightness and chroma structure, so the palette is the anchor through value rather than a set of colors.

#ffefdd · #ffa500 · #dd8e00 · #ab6d00 · #7c4e00 · #503000

Analogous

The anchor's neighbours on the wheel — everything shares an undertone, so the chord carries color without anything having to be muted to get along.

#f0e374 · #f8c542 · #ffa500 · #f38936 · #e0724e · #c75f5e

Shifted

The mid-gap pairing — sage and mustard, terracotta and olive. A foil rotated 40–65° toward warm or cool: too far to be kin, too near to argue, carried by temperature and a deliberate value offset.

#ffa500 · #92a569 · #ad6e00 · #556b00 · #623c00 · #263100

Contrast

One deliberately opposed voice — a single restrained counterpoint across the wheel, or temperature against temperature where the anchor is too muted to carry a loud opposite.

#f5dabb · #ffa500 · #2994f5 · #794e0d · #543300 · #301a00

Quiet Support

The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.

#e8f3ff · #ffa500 · #ad9c89 · #58616b · #34240f · #000105

Bright Accent

This color as a ground rather than a subject — its own restraint held across a narrow value band, carrying one saturated voice from the opposite temperature.

#eaf3fc · #c1cbd6 · #949fab · #1a2736 · #000613 · #ffa500

Complementary

The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.

#d1d8b4 · #ffa500 · #ce9b80 · #1e728d · #303a5b · #051111

Split-complementary

The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.

#b8e0cc · #ffa500 · #9da2d9 · #5e8fa2 · #2d3957 · #100e05

Triadic

Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.

#cbfefa · #ffa500 · #00b7b1 · #7e3aa6 · #3d0058 · #000202

Tetradic

Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.

#d5fde7 · #ffa500 · #3ab982 · #0061ac · #4a0039 · #000619

Tints, shades & muted variants

Tints

#FFB350 · #FFC175 · #FFCE94 · #FFDBB1 · #FFE7CC

Shades

#D18600 · #A56900 · #7B4D00 · #533200 · #2F1A00

Muted

#F2AB50 · #E4B173 · #D5B590

Using Orange

Its chroma is high enough to carry accents, calls to action, and focal moments; large fields of it will dominate a composition. In palettes it pairs most predictably with its tonal ramp and analogous neighbors; reserve the complementary hue for small, deliberate contrast.