Booking.com Color Psychology & Meaning
Booking.com blue signals maximum trust during a high-anxiety purchase decision. The yellow accent adds the urgency of a limited-time deal without feeling alarming.
#FFFFFF
#003580
#FEBA02
#333333
Background
Primary Accent
Secondary
Body Text
Booking.com Color Palette
#FFFFFF · #003580 · #FEBA02 · #333333
AAA
WCAG Grade
12.6:1
Contrast Ratio
2,700
Saves
7,200
AI Copies
Use #FFFFFF as the background. Use #003580 as the primary accent. Use #FEBA02 as secondary. Use #333333 as body text. Palette: Booking.com — professional, trusted, travel.
Hex Codes, RGB & CMYK Color Values
Technical breakdown for the Booking.com color scheme. Use these values for web design (HEX/RGB), print projects (CMYK), or specialized design software (HSL).
| Swatch | Design Role | HEX | RGB | CMYK | HSL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background Luminance: 100.0% | 255, 255, 255 | 0%, 0%, 0%, 0% | 0°, 0%, 100% | ||
| Primary Accent Luminance: 4.1% | 0, 53, 128 | 100%, 59%, 0%, 50% | 215°, 100%, 25% | ||
| Secondary Luminance: 56.2% | 254, 186, 2 | 0%, 27%, 99%, 0% | 44°, 99%, 50% | ||
| Body Text Luminance: 3.3% | 51, 51, 51 | 0%, 0%, 0%, 80% | 0°, 0%, 20% |
Booking.com Tints & Shades
Hover states, borders and elevation need lighter and darker steps of your base colors. Here are computed tints and shades for every color in the Booking.com palette — click any swatch to copy its hex.
#FFFFFF neutral gray
#003580 saturated cyan-blue
#FEBA02 saturated orange
#333333 neutral gray
Booking.com Palette Contrast Matrix (WCAG 2.1)
Every color tested as text on every other color as background. Body copy needs 4.5:1 (AA), large text and UI components 3:1. AAA requires 7:1.
| Text on Background | Preview | Ratio | Grade | Safe For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #333333 on #FFFFFF |
Aa Sample Text
| 12.63:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #FFFFFF on #333333 |
Aa Sample Text
| 12.63:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #003580 on #FFFFFF |
Aa Sample Text
| 11.53:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #FFFFFF on #003580 |
Aa Sample Text
| 11.53:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #333333 on #FEBA02 |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.36:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #FEBA02 on #333333 |
Aa Sample Text
| 7.36:1 | AAA | Body text, headings, UI |
| #FEBA02 on #003580 |
Aa Sample Text
| 6.72:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #003580 on #FEBA02 |
Aa Sample Text
| 6.72:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #FEBA02 on #FFFFFF |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.72:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #FFFFFF on #FEBA02 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.72:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #333333 on #003580 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.10:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #003580 on #333333 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.10:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
Color Harmony: Split-Complementary Scheme
The Booking.com palette is built using a split-complementary relationship between its hues. This ensures that even with high-contrast accents, the overall scheme feels balanced and intentional.
Hue Wheel
A split-complementary palette is often preferred by professional designers because it balances visual interest with cohesion.
History & Design Context
Booking.com has operated since 1996. The blue-and-yellow system is one of the most tested brand combinations in travel ecommerce, refined through billions of A/B experiments.
Best Design Use Cases
White for all hotel and search surfaces. Deep navy for navigation and brand moments. Yellow for pricing callouts and urgency elements. Dark for text.
Industries This Palette Suits
Online travel agencies, hotel booking, tourism, vacation planning.
Colors That Pair Well With Booking.com
Need a fifth color? These three companions are computed from the palette's own hue positions on the color wheel, so they extend the scheme without breaking its harmony.
orange
directly opposite #003580 on the wheel — the strongest accent for CTAs and highlights when you need maximum energy
blue
30° beside #003580 — a calm secondary that extends the palette without adding tension
tinted neutral
a ink-black carrying the palette's own hue — perfect for surfaces and dividers
Using Booking.com Without Breaking Accessibility
- Use #003580 for buttons and links — it scores 11.5:1 against the #FFFFFF background (above the 3:1 UI-components threshold).
- Set body text in #333333 — 12.6:1 against #FFFFFF passes WCAG AA (AAA) for long-form reading.
- Let #FEBA02 carry sidebars, cards and footers — at a mid lightness it separates zones without stealing focus from #003580.
How to Implement the Booking.com Color Scheme
To use this Booking.com color palette in your web project, you can copy the following CSS variables or Tailwind CSS configuration. These roles ensure your UI maintains accessibility and visual hierarchy.
Option 1: CSS Variables
:root {
/* {name} Palette - ihatecolors.com */{'
'} --color-bg: {colors[0]};{'
'} --color-primary: {colors[1]};{'
'} --color-secondary: {colors[2]};{'
'} --color-text: {colors[3]};{'
'} {'}'}Web Design Tip
Use #FFFFFF for the main background and #003580 for primary buttons. This creates a high-contrast focal point.
Accessibility Note
The contrast ratio between #333333 and #FFFFFF is 12.63:1 (AAA). Ensure your body text remains legible.
Booking.com Palette — Frequently Asked Questions
What are the hex codes in the Booking.com color palette?
The Booking.com palette contains #FFFFFF, #003580, #FEBA02, #333333. Click any swatch on this page to copy its value, or export all four at once as CSS variables, Tailwind config, SCSS or a Figma-ready list.
Is the Booking.com color palette accessible (WCAG)?
Yes for its strongest pairings: #333333 on #FFFFFF reaches 12.6:1 (AAA). For body text always keep a 4.5:1 ratio and for large UI elements 3:1 — the full contrast matrix above shows the exact score for every color-on-color combination in this palette.
What colors go well with the Booking.com palette?
Beyond its own four colors, #B36800, #100679, #151414 extend it naturally: the complementary hue for high-energy accents, an analogous neighbor for calm transitions, and a tinted neutral for surfaces. All three are computed from this palette's hues on the color wheel.
What mood does the Booking.com palette create?
Booking.com reads as professional, trusted, travel. Saturated cyan-blue drives the personality, grounded by neutral gray — a combination that works best when the very light base gets most of the canvas.
Can I use the Booking.com color palette commercially?
Yes. Individual color values can't be copyrighted, so the Booking.com palette is free for personal, client and commercial work — websites, branding, apps, print and social content, with no attribution required.
How do I add the Booking.com palette to Tailwind or CSS?
Use the export panel on this page: CSS variables, a Tailwind config block, SCSS variables, or a Figma copy list are generated from Booking.com's exact values, including the tint and shade ramps shown above.