Color #BCBC9E Color / Colour Code #BCBC9E
This page shows the hex color code for color #bcbc9e (#BCBC9E). The colour is a yellow tone with 18% saturation and 68% lightness. Explore its conversions, colour palettes, gradients, accessibility data, and CSS code below.
Color Conversions
Accessibility Contrast
WCAG contrast ratios for #BCBC9E against common backgrounds.
Complementary Colors
#BCBC9E paired with its color wheel opposite for maximum contrast.
Analogous Colors
Hues at 30, 60, and 90 degrees for harmonious combinations.
Triadic Palette
Three colors at 60, 180, and 300 degrees.
Color Palettes Using #BCBC9E
Five shades at lightness levels 15% through 85% while keeping hue at 60 and saturation at 18%. Use the darkest shade for text and the lightest for backgrounds to build a cohesive single-hue design system.
Adjacent hues from 60 to 105 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 60 with its complement at 240 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 #BCBC9E
Lightness variations at hue 60 and 18% saturation.
CSS Gradients with #BCBC9E
Design Use Cases for #BCBC9E
Muted Accent Color
With 18% saturation, #BCBC9E has a subtle, sophisticated quality. This level of desaturation works well for secondary buttons, inactive states, subtle borders, and backgrounds that need a hint of color without being distracting. Muted colors communicate restraint and professionalism.
Soft Accent & Highlight
With 68% lightness, #BCBC9E has a softer, more approachable quality. It works well for hover states, subtle highlights, progress indicators, and secondary UI elements. This lightness range is particularly effective for tag backgrounds and status indicators.
Attention & Optimism
#BCBC9E is in the yellow spectrum (hue 60). Yellow attracts attention faster than any other color. Use it for warning labels, featured content markers, star ratings, and tooltip backgrounds. Pair with dark text since yellow often fails contrast checks against white.
Gradient Pairing
Create a gradient from #BCBC9E (hue 60) to its complement at hue 240. For a subtler effect, try pairing with an analogous color at hue 90. Use CSS: background: linear-gradient(135deg, #bcbc9e, #9f9fbc);
CSS Code for #BCBC9E
Similar Colors
Colors visually similar to #BCBC9E based on RGB, lightness, and hue variations.
Use This Color in Design Tools
Apply #BCBC9E across image editing and color design tools.
About Color #BCBC9E (#BCBC9E)
#BCBC9E is a yellow color (colour) with RGB channel values of 188 red, 188 green, and 158 blue. The red channel is dominant with a relatively balanced channel distribution. In HSL terms, the hue sits at 60 degrees with 18% saturation and 68% lightness, placing it in the neutral-to-cool range of the colour spectrum.
The perceived brightness of #BCBC9E is 185/255 using the ITU-R BT.601 luma formula (0.299R + 0.587G + 0.114B). This is a medium-brightness color that can work with either dark or light text depending on font weight and size. For print production, the CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 0% magenta, 16% yellow, and 26% key (black).
The WCAG contrast ratio of #BCBC9E against white is 1.94:1 and against black is 10.83:1. This does not meet AA requirements on white. Use it on dark backgrounds where it achieves 10.83:1, or use it exclusively for decorative purposes.
The complementary colour #9F9FBC creates maximum visual tension when paired with #BCBC9E. For more harmonious color combinations, use the analogous colours #BCAD9F and #ADBC9F, 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 #BCBC9E
- 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 #BCBC9E?
- #BCBC9E is Color #BCBC9E, a yellow color (colour) with RGB(188, 188, 158), HSL(60, 18%, 68%), and CMYK(0%, 0%, 16%, 26%). Its perceived brightness is 185/255.
- Is #BCBC9E accessible for text?
- Against white, #BCBC9E has a contrast ratio of 1.94:1 (fails AA for normal text). Against black, it has 10.83:1 (passes AA). Use the contrast checker tool for custom background pairings.
- What colours pair well with #BCBC9E?
- The complementary colour is #9F9FBC (hue 240). For subtle color combinations, use analogous colours #BCAD9F and #ADBC9F. The triadic palette adds #9FBCBC and #BC9FBC for vibrant variety.
- How do I use #BCBC9E in CSS?
- Use any format: color: #bcbc9e; or rgb(188, 188, 158); or hsl(60, 18%, 68%). For CSS custom properties: --color-primary: 60 18% 68%; 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.