Burnt Orange
A deep, muted orange with a brownish cast.
At a glance
- Hue family
- orange
- Warmth
- warm
- Tone depth
- medium
- Saturation
- Vivid
Quick intelligence summary
- Feels like
- warm, medium, vivid
- Works well with
- See the pairings section below for calculated harmony options.
- Common uses
- Interiors and fashion — see uses & contexts below.
- Accessibility snapshot
- Pairs better with black text (4.9:1) than white (4.3:1).
See this colour in the real world
Colours in photographs vary with lighting, material, camera processing and screen calibration — the named colours below are visual approximations, not exact measurements.
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Near sunset, sunlight travels through far more atmosphere to reach an observer, and almost all of the blue light is scattered away before it arrives — what's left is the orange and red seen here, the same Rayleigh scattering that makes the midday sky blue.
The same scattering effect that makes the daytime sky blue makes a low sun look orange and red — this is one specific sunset, not a fixed 'sunset colour'."Fiery skies" by Chris Hearn, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsLicence details
- Source:
- Wikimedia Commons
- Creator:
- Chris Hearn
- Licence:
- CC BY-SA 2.0 — free to share and adapt commercially, provided the work is attributed and any adaptation is shared under the same licence; verified by Wikimedia's FlickreviewR bot against the original Flickr licence.
- Reviewed:
- 2026-07-24
Colour stories
Why sunsets turn orange and red
Near sunset, sunlight travels through far more atmosphere to reach an observer than it does at midday. Almost all of the shorter blue wavelengths are scattered away long before the light arrives, leaving the longer orange and red wavelengths dominant — the same Rayleigh scattering responsible for the blue midday sky produces the opposite-looking result at a low sun angle.
In practice: A 'sunset orange' and a 'clear-sky blue' are two visible results of the same physical mechanism, not two unrelated colour phenomena — useful context when a claim implies they need separate explanations.
Pairings
Subtle, bold, analogous, complementary and neutral options — established design convention, not a guarantee of visual success in every context.
Complementary
Opposite hues (180° apart) for maximum hue contrast.
Analogous
Neighbouring hues on the colour wheel for a low-contrast, harmonious feel.
Analogous
Neighbouring hues on the colour wheel for a low-contrast, harmonious feel.
Triadic
Three hues evenly spaced around the colour wheel for balanced contrast.
Triadic
Three hues evenly spaced around the colour wheel for balanced contrast.
Split-complementary
The two hues bracketing the complement, for contrast with less tension.
Split-complementary
The two hues bracketing the complement, for contrast with less tension.
Tetradic
Four hues at 90° steps around the colour wheel for a rich, varied palette.
Tetradic
Four hues at 90° steps around the colour wheel for a rich, varied palette.
Tetradic
Four hues at 90° steps around the colour wheel for a rich, varied palette.
Monochromatic
Same hue at different lightness levels, for a cohesive tonal palette.
Monochromatic
Same hue at different lightness levels, for a cohesive tonal palette.
Monochromatic
Same hue at different lightness levels, for a cohesive tonal palette.
Monochromatic
Same hue at different lightness levels, for a cohesive tonal palette.
For an accessible, low-contrast-risk pairing, monochromatic (same-hue) combinations are usually the safest starting point — see the harmonies above.
Uses & contexts
Continue exploring
Related questionAutumn woodlandWarm reds, oranges and golds mirror the carotenoid and anthocyanin pigments revealed and produced as chlorophyll breaks down in autumn.Nature paletteRelated questionVolcanicNear-black mineral tones contrast sharply with a hot ember-orange accent, mirroring the dark rock and glowing lava of volcanic landscapes.Nature paletteRelated questionSunsetA warm gradient from yellow through orange to deep pink-purple mirrors how scattering shifts the visible colour of low-angle sunlight.Nature palette
Meaning & story
Interiors
- A popular autumnal accent colour.
True of the orange family generally
Inherited from the orange hue family, not specifically documented about this exact shade — see methodology.
- Orange is often associated with energy, warmth and enthusiasm.
- Orange is commonly used in retail branding and signage to suggest affordability, friendliness or urgency.
Pigment & family history
Moods
Terminology
Lighter, darker & directional variants
Calculated directional adjustments. Some directions converge on the same result from this starting colour — shown as one merged card with an explanation, not repeated duplicates. Generated shades link to a curated profile only when one is close enough.
Lighter
Lightness increased
No curated profile yet
Darker
Lightness decreased
Warmer
Hue rotated toward warm (red/orange)
Cooler & Bluer & Redder
Hue rotated toward cool (blue) From this starting colour, moving cooler and bluer and redder converges on the same calculated result.
Greener & Yellower
Hue rotated toward green From this starting colour, moving greener and yellower converges on the same calculated result.
More muted
Saturation softened
More saturated
Saturation increased This is close to the source colour itself — there is limited room left to move more saturated from here.
In nature
Technical details
Technical values
CMYK is an approximate device conversion, not a calibrated print value — see methodology.
Convert this colour to another format →
Common design-industry reference value for the named colour.
Characteristics
- Hue family
- orange
- Undertone
- warm
- Tone depth
- medium
- Pastel
- No
- Earth tone
- No
- Jewel tone
- Yes
- Vivid
- Yes
- Greyness
- 0%
- Visual weight
- 76/100
Accessibility
vs. white text
4.31:1 — fails
vs. black text
4.87:1 — AA
Confidence: medium · Qualification: identity_only, technically_qualified, curated_profile_eligible, search_index_eligible, comparison_eligible
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