Color #BC403E Color / Colour Code #BC403E
This page shows the hex color code for color #bc403e (#BC403E). The colour is a red tone with 50% saturation and 49% lightness. Explore its conversions, colour palettes, gradients, accessibility data, and CSS code below.
Color Conversions
Accessibility Contrast
WCAG contrast ratios for #BC403E against common backgrounds.
Complementary Colors
#BC403E paired with its color wheel opposite for maximum contrast.
Analogous Colors
Hues at 331, 1, and 31 degrees for harmonious combinations.
Triadic Palette
Three colors at 1, 121, and 241 degrees.
Color Palettes Using #BC403E
Five shades at lightness levels 15% through 85% while keeping hue at 1 and saturation at 50%. Use the darkest shade for text and the lightest for backgrounds to build a cohesive single-hue design system.
Adjacent hues from 1 to 46 degrees create a warm, unified palette. This analogous scheme works for marketing materials, seasonal campaigns, and any design that needs visual warmth without clashing colors.
Combines the base color at hue 1 with its complement at 181 and two adjacent cool tones. This split-complementary approach provides strong visual contrast while remaining more balanced than a pure complementary scheme.
Five evenly spaced hues at 40% saturation and 80% lightness. Pastels are gentle on the eyes and work well for dashboards, onboarding screens, category tags, and any interface where multiple distinct colors are needed without visual aggression.
Shades & Tints of #BC403E
Lightness variations at hue 1 and 50% saturation.
CSS Gradients with #BC403E
Design Use Cases for #BC403E
Balanced UI Color
At 50% saturation, #BC403E strikes a balance between vibrancy and restraint. This makes it versatile for primary UI elements like navigation bars, card headers, and form accents. It draws attention without overwhelming adjacent content.
Primary Interface Color
At 49% lightness, #BC403E is in the mid-range, making it ideal for interactive elements like buttons, links, and selected states. This lightness level ensures good contrast against both light and dark adjacent elements in most layouts.
Urgency & Energy Signaling
#BC403E falls in the red spectrum (hue 1). Red triggers urgency and excitement, making it effective for sale badges, countdown timers, error messages, and "limited time" labels. In data visualization, use it to flag negative values or critical thresholds.
Gradient Pairing
Create a gradient from #BC403E (hue 1) to its complement at hue 181. For a subtler effect, try pairing with an analogous color at hue 31. Use CSS: background: linear-gradient(135deg, #bc403e, #3eb9bb);
CSS Code for #BC403E
Similar Colors
Colors visually similar to #BC403E based on RGB, lightness, and hue variations.
Use This Color in Design Tools
Apply #BC403E across image editing and color design tools.
About Color #BC403E (#BC403E)
#BC403E is a red color (colour) with RGB channel values of 188 red, 64 green, and 62 blue. The red channel is dominant by a ratio of 3.0:1 over the weakest channel. In HSL terms, the hue sits at 1 degrees with 50% saturation and 49% lightness, placing it in the warm range of the colour spectrum.
The perceived brightness of #BC403E is 101/255 using the ITU-R BT.601 luma formula (0.299R + 0.587G + 0.114B). This appears dark to the human eye, so pair it with light text for adequate readability. For print production, the CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 66% magenta, 67% yellow, and 26% key (black).
The WCAG contrast ratio of #BC403E against white is 5.33:1 and against black is 3.94:1. This meets the AA requirement (4.5:1) for normal text on white. For AAA compliance, consider darkening to at least 34% lightness.
The complementary colour #3EB9BB creates maximum visual tension when paired with #BC403E. For more harmonious color combinations, use the analogous colours #BB3E7B and #BB7F3E, which sit 30 degrees on either side of the hue wheel. To build a complete design system, start with the monochromatic scale above for consistent shade variations, then add one complementary or triadic accent for interactive elements.
How to Explore Color #BC403E
- Enter your color value in HEX format.
- The tool converts it to RGB, HSL, CMYK format in real time.
- Copy the converted value to your clipboard.
What is HEX to RGB, HSL, CMYK color conversion
Converting from HEX to RGB, HSL, CMYK translates a color value between two different color models. Different color models are used in web design (HEX, RGB), print (CMYK), and color theory (HSL, HSV).
Related Tools & Colors
Frequently Asked Questions
- What color / colour is #BC403E?
- #BC403E is Color #BC403E, a red color (colour) with RGB(188, 64, 62), HSL(1, 50%, 49%), and CMYK(0%, 66%, 67%, 26%). Its perceived brightness is 101/255.
- Is #BC403E accessible for text?
- Against white, #BC403E has a contrast ratio of 5.33:1 (passes AA for normal text). Against black, it has 3.94:1 (fails AA). Use the contrast checker tool for custom background pairings.
- What colours pair well with #BC403E?
- The complementary colour is #3EB9BB (hue 181). For subtle color combinations, use analogous colours #BB3E7B and #BB7F3E. The triadic palette adds #3EBB41 and #413EBB for vibrant variety.
- How do I use #BC403E in CSS?
- Use any format: color: #bc403e; or rgb(188, 64, 62); or hsl(1, 50%, 49%). For CSS custom properties: --color-primary: 1 50% 49%; then use it as hsl(var(--color-primary)).
- Is this color / colour explorer free?
- Yes, completely free with no signup required. All colour calculations run in your browser. You can explore any valid hex color code, not just the pre-generated palette.