≈ Madras
#3C3817 is closest to Madras in our library. Madras (#3C3817) is a dark, muted brown with a warm feel. It has a hue angle of 54° and a lightness of 34%. Its muted saturation keeps it calm and sophisticated, easy to live with in large areas.
About this color
What Madras looks like, feels like and where it works.
Description
Madras (#3C3817) is a dark, muted brown with a warm feel. It has a hue angle of 54° and a lightness of 34%. Its muted saturation keeps it calm and sophisticated, easy to live with in large areas.
Psychology
Brown is earthy, dependable and warm. It feels natural and unpretentious, and pairs easily with cream, green and terracotta. As a dark shade, Madras feels weighty and serious.
Meaning
Brown stands for soil, wood, coffee and leather: comfort, craft and reliability.
Why use this color
Madras is an easy supporting color. It carries white text well, so it works as a button, header or badge background. Pair it with its tints and shades for a complete scale.
Applications
- Coffee, food and craft goods
- Interiors and furniture
- Outdoor and heritage brands
- Warm neutrals for text and borders
History
Earth pigments such as umber and sienna, named after Umbria and Siena, are among the oldest in use. Brown is also one of the oldest color words in English.
Accessibility
White text on Madras has a contrast ratio of 11.86:1 (AAA); black text has 1.77:1 (fails). WCAG AA needs 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text and interface parts. Red and green are the pair most often confused in color blindness, so never use this color alone to mean success or error: add an icon or label.
Variations of Madras
Tailwind-style scale
Color harmonies of Madras
Want to explore these on a wheel? Open the color wheel.
Color blindness simulator
These are approximations to help you check that meaning never depends on color alone. Real vision varies from person to person.