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Beaming Amber

#efaf03
Notes

Beaming Amber (#EFAF03) is a true amber with a neon character. It sits at the high-saturation edge of its family. Use it sparingly, as signage, accent, or highlight against darker surfaces. Its HSL profile (44°, 98%, 47%) 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 azure. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#efaf03
RGB
rgb(239, 175, 3)
HSL
hsl(44, 98%, 47%)
HWB
hwb(44 1% 6%)
OKLCH
oklch(79.3% 0.163 82.0)
P3
color(display-p3 0.8993 0.6966 0.2391)
HSV
hsv(44, 99%, 94%)
LAB
lab(75.46% 11.91 78.10)
LCH
lch(75.46% 79.00 81.33)
CMYK
cmyk(0%, 27%, 99%, 6%)

Etymology

Beaming
adjective

The progressive participle of beam, to emit a directional light — used as a color word since the nineteenth century for hues that read as if focused and projecting. Beaming yellow, beaming pink: the implication is luminance combined with directionality. Sits at the bright-bucket center alongside radiant and glowing.

Amber
noun

Fossilized tree resin — pine and conifer sap that flowed sixty million years ago and slowly polymerized in Baltic and Dominican forests. The color refers to a polished cabochon of true Baltic amber: a warm, slightly translucent gold-orange with the depth of resin and the occasional inclusion of trapped insects. Softer than honey, deeper than topaz, with the mineral light of a fossil that still feels organic.

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 explore

Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

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.

#efaf03
Original
#c9b000
Protanopia
#d8c018
Deuteranopia
#ff9c95
Tritanopia
#b0b0b0
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

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.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
Failon White
1.94:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAAon Black
10.80:1

Wide gamut

Display P3 representation

The CSS Color 4 wide-gamut form of this color. Both swatches render the same color on every display — the P3 form only diverges from sRGB when a designer pushes channels outside sRGB's reach.

sRGB hex
sRGB hex
##EFAF03
Display P3
Display P3
color(display-p3 0.8993 0.6966 0.2391)
P3 has subtle headroomOKLCH chroma 0.163

Moderately saturated colors gain a small bump in P3 — the difference is usually visible side-by-side on wide-gamut hardware but won't change the character of the color.

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