#A52A2ABrown reads as a moderately saturated red with a warm temperament. Colors in this range are commonly associated with energy, urgency and appetite, which makes brown a natural fit for call-to-action buttons, sale badges and anywhere you need immediate attention.
With a 7.08:1 contrast ratio against white, brown is dark enough to carry white text at any size — use it confidently for buttons, headers and filled UI elements. Against black text it manages 2.96:1, so stick with white type on brown surfaces.
For pairings, the complement of brown sits at 180° — #2BA6A6, close to lightseagreen — and delivers the strongest possible hue contrast; use it sparingly, in roughly a 90/10 split, so the two don't fight. For calmer schemes, the analogous colors 30° to either side keep the same warm temperature, while the triadic pair gives you a balanced three-color palette. All of these are computed for brown in the palettes below, with copy-ready codes.
Every palette below is computed from brown's position on the color wheel (hue 0°). Hover any swatch to see its code; click to copy.
Tints mix brown toward white; shades mix it toward black. Use the scale for hover states, borders and depth without leaving the hue.
WCAG 2.1 requires 4.5:1 for normal text (AA) and 3:1 for large text. Here's how brown performs, plus how it appears under the three main types of dichromatic color blindness (simulated approximation).
| Pairing | Ratio | Normal text | Large text |
|---|---|---|---|
| White text on Brown | 7.08:1 | AAA | AAA |
| Black text on Brown | 2.96:1 | Fail | Fail |
#706F2A#77802A#9F2A2ACopy-ready snippets. In CSS you can also use the keyword brown directly.
:root {
--brown: #A52A2A;
--brown-rgb: 165, 42, 42;
--brown-tint: #CE8A8A;
--brown-shade: #5B1717;
}
.btn-brown {
background: var(--brown);
color: #ffffff;
}// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
'brown': {
DEFAULT: '#A52A2A',
light: '#CE8A8A',
dark: '#5B1717',
},
}The closest CSS named colors by perceptual (Lab) distance.