Maroon
A dark brownish-red.
At a glance
- Hue family
- red
- Warmth
- warm
- Tone depth
- deep
- Saturation
- Vivid
Quick intelligence summary
- Feels like
- warm, deep, vivid
- Works well with
- See the pairings section below for calculated harmony options.
- Common uses
- See uses & contexts below for interiors, fashion and practical guidance.
- Accessibility snapshot
- Pairs better with white text (10.9:1) than black (1.9:1).
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.
This boulder's colour is hematite, iron(III) oxide — the same mineral that gives red ochre earth pigments their colour, and the reason iron-rich soil so often looks red or rust-brown.
The original photograph includes roadside signage, snow and a photographer's shadow around the boulder; this palette was picked from the rock surface only, not the surrounding scene."Bengala Akanesawa red rock" by Aomorikuma, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsLicence details
- Source:
- Wikimedia Commons
- Creator:
- あおもりくま (Aomorikuma)
- Licence:
- CC BY-SA 4.0 — free to share and adapt commercially, provided the work is attributed and any adaptation is shared under the same licence.
- Reviewed:
- 2026-07-24
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
Meaning & story
Name origin
- The English name derives from the French marron, meaning chestnut, referring to the reddish-brown colour of the nut's shell.
True of the red family generally
Inherited from the red hue family, not specifically documented about this exact shade — see methodology.
- Red is traditionally associated with luck, prosperity and celebration in Chinese culture, and is prominently used at weddings and during Lunar New Year.
- Red is widely associated with love, passion and romance in many Western contexts.
- Red-green colour pairings can be difficult to distinguish for people with the most common forms of colour vision deficiency (protanopia and deuteranopia) — avoid relying on red vs. green alone to convey status or meaning.
- Red is commonly used as a warning or stop signal in traffic-control and safety systems in many countries.
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
Darker
Lightness decreased
No curated profile yet
Warmer & Greener & Yellower
Hue rotated toward warm (red/orange) From this starting colour, moving warmer and greener and yellower converges on the same calculated result.
Cooler & Bluer
Hue rotated toward cool (blue) From this starting colour, moving cooler and bluer converges on the same calculated result.
Redder & More saturated
Hue rotated toward red From this starting colour, moving redder and more saturated converges on the same calculated result. This is close to the source colour itself — there is limited room left to move redder from here.
More muted
Saturation softened
Technical details
Technical values
CMYK is an approximate device conversion, not a calibrated print value — see methodology.
Convert this colour to another format →
CSS/web-standard named colour value.
Characteristics
- Hue family
- red
- Undertone
- warm
- Tone depth
- deep
- Pastel
- No
- Earth tone
- No
- Jewel tone
- Yes
- Vivid
- Yes
- Greyness
- 0%
- Visual weight
- 85/100
Accessibility
vs. white text
10.95:1 — AAA
vs. black text
1.92:1 — fails
Confidence: medium · Qualification: identity_only, technically_qualified, curated_profile_eligible, search_index_eligible, comparison_eligible
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