#F8F0C8
#F0E090
#FDFAF0
#5A5238
Background
Primary Accent
Secondary
Body Text

Butter Yellow Color Palette

#F8F0C8 · #F0E090 · #FDFAF0 · #5A5238

AA
WCAG Grade
6.8:1
Contrast Ratio
854
Saves
1,730
AI Copies
AI Prompt

Use #F8F0C8 as the background. Use #F0E090 as the primary accent. Use #FDFAF0 as secondary. Use #5A5238 as body text/supporting color. Palette mood: Butter Yellow — pastel, warm, candy.

Hex Codes, RGB & CMYK Color Values

Technical breakdown for the Butter Yellow 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: 86.4%
248, 240, 200 0%, 3%, 19%, 3% 50°, 77%, 88%
Primary Accent
Luminance: 73.9%
240, 224, 144 0%, 7%, 40%, 6% 50°, 76%, 75%
Secondary
Luminance: 95.5%
253, 250, 240 0%, 1%, 5%, 1% 46°, 76%, 97%
Body Text
Luminance: 8.5%
90, 82, 56 0%, 9%, 38%, 65% 46°, 23%, 29%

Butter Yellow 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 Butter Yellow palette — click any swatch to copy its hex.

#F8F0C8 saturated yellow
#F0E090 saturated yellow
#FDFAF0 saturated yellow
#5A5238 muted yellow

Butter Yellow 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
#5A5238 on #FDFAF0
Aa Sample Text
7.45:1 AAA Body text, headings, UI
#FDFAF0 on #5A5238
Aa Sample Text
7.45:1 AAA Body text, headings, UI
#5A5238 on #F8F0C8
Aa Sample Text
6.78:1 AA Body text, UI
#F8F0C8 on #5A5238
Aa Sample Text
6.78:1 AA Body text, UI
#5A5238 on #F0E090
Aa Sample Text
5.84:1 AA Body text, UI
#F0E090 on #5A5238
Aa Sample Text
5.84:1 AA Body text, UI
#FDFAF0 on #F0E090
Aa Sample Text
1.28:1 Fail Decorative use only
#F0E090 on #FDFAF0
Aa Sample Text
1.28:1 Fail Decorative use only
#F0E090 on #F8F0C8
Aa Sample Text
1.16:1 Fail Decorative use only
#F8F0C8 on #F0E090
Aa Sample Text
1.16:1 Fail Decorative use only
#FDFAF0 on #F8F0C8
Aa Sample Text
1.10:1 Fail Decorative use only
#F8F0C8 on #FDFAF0
Aa Sample Text
1.10:1 Fail Decorative use only

Butter Yellow Color Psychology & Meaning

Butter yellow is yellow at the point where it stops shouting and starts melting, closer to a dairy product than a fruit, and this palette is butter yellow with cream white. It feels sunny and soft, the color of morning light on a table.

Color Harmony: Analogous Scheme

The Butter Yellow palette is built using a analogous relationship between its hues. This ensures that even with high-contrast accents, the overall scheme feels balanced and intentional.

Hue Wheel

A analogous palette is often preferred by professional designers because it creates a calm, serene atmosphere by using neighboring colors.

History & Design Context

Butter yellow became one of the defining interior colours of the mid twentieth century, and it remains one of the safest warm pastels because it reflects light without reading as acidic.

Best Design Use Cases

Use the butter yellow for backgrounds, soft yolk for primary actions, cream white for highlights, and olive dark for text.

Industries This Palette Suits

Bakeries, florists, gifting, lifestyle content creators.

Colors That Pair Well With Butter Yellow

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.

blue

directly opposite #F0E090 on the wheel — the strongest accent for CTAs and highlights when you need maximum energy

yellow-green

30° beside #F0E090 — 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 Butter Yellow Without Breaking Accessibility

  • Avoid #F0E090 for small UI elements on #F8F0C8 — at 1.2:1 it misses the 3:1 WCAG threshold; darken it with a shade from the ramp below.
  • Set body text in #5A5238 — 6.8:1 against #F8F0C8 passes WCAG AA (AA) for long-form reading.
  • Don't use #FDFAF0 behind body text — this light tone works better for surfaces, badges and dividers than for reading areas.

How to Implement the Butter Yellow Color Scheme

To use this Butter Yellow 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 #F8F0C8 for the main background and #F0E090 for primary buttons. This creates a high-contrast focal point.

Accessibility Note

The contrast ratio between #5A5238 and #F8F0C8 is 6.78:1 (AA). Ensure your body text remains legible.

Butter Yellow Palette — Frequently Asked Questions

What are the hex codes in the Butter Yellow color palette?

The Butter Yellow palette contains #F8F0C8, #F0E090, #FDFAF0, #5A5238. 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 Butter Yellow color palette accessible (WCAG)?

Yes for its strongest pairings: #5A5238 on #FDFAF0 reaches 7.5:1 (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 Butter Yellow palette?

Beyond its own four colors, #788CED, #CDE995, #181710 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 Butter Yellow palette create?

Butter Yellow reads as pastel, warm, candy. Saturated yellow drives the personality, grounded by saturated yellow — a combination that works best when the very light base gets most of the canvas.

Can I use the Butter Yellow color palette commercially?

Yes. Individual color values can't be copyrighted, so the Butter Yellow 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 Butter Yellow 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 Butter Yellow's exact values, including the tint and shade ramps shown above.

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