#C9C1AE Hex Color
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A pale greige with a faded yellow undertone. #c9c1ae reads soft and ashy, which makes it a strong dominant base for minimal interiors, stationery, or luxury packaging. It flatters deep teal and espresso brown, but it can look washed out next to plain white, so give it darker neighbors. Black text on this hex code hits 11.7:1 contrast, well past AA.
Questions about #c9c1ae
What is #c9c1ae in RGB, HSL and CMYK?
In RGB, #c9c1ae is rgb(201, 193, 174), in HSL hsl(42, 20%, 74%) and in CMYK 0%, 4%, 13%, 21%.
What colors pair well with #c9c1ae?
Deep teal, espresso brown, and muted terracotta give #c9c1ae enough contrast to feel intentional. Avoid pale pastels, which disappear against its low saturation.
Is #c9c1ae readable on white or black?
#c9c1ae has a 1.79:1 contrast ratio on white and 11.72:1 on black. WCAG asks for 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text, so on white it is too faint for text and on black it works for body text. Try other pairs in the contrast checker.