Pulsing Cowslip
Pulsing Cowslip (#9BAD18) is a true yellow with a warm character. It leans warm, pulling light toward red, orange, and yellow. Naturally inviting, it suits editorial and hospitality contexts. Its HSL profile (67°, 76%, 39%) places it in the highly saturated band at a mid lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary blue. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.
Etymology
The progressive participle of pulse, to throb. Used as a color modifier for hues that read as if they were alternating between two states of luminance — the vibration of a high-saturation color against a contrasting background. Sits in the bright-bucket center alongside electric, with the implication of optical motion rather than static luminance.
Primula veris, the European meadow primrose whose yellow flower clusters appear in late spring. The name traces to Old English cū-slyppe, cow-slop (i.e., cow dung — for where it grew). The color refers to fresh cowslip in May meadow: a soft, slightly red-shifted pale yellow with the matte finish of small five-petaled flowers in tight clusters.
Closest matches
The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.
Variations
Click any swatch to exploreHarmonies
Accessibility
How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.
The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.