Nearest-color comparison
Burnt Sienna #E97451 vs Terracotta #E2725B: RGB distance 12.4 and contrast 1.04:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Burnt Sienna and Terracotta are very close, with an RGB distance of 12.4. Burnt Sienna is lighter by 0.0145, and Burnt Sienna is more saturated by 8 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.04:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Burnt Sienna and Terracotta across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
red color
Burnt Sienna is #E97451, a warm red with hue 14°, saturation 78% and luminance 0.3041. Beside Terracotta, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 7.08:1.
orange color
Terracotta is #E2725B, a warm orange with hue 10°, saturation 70% and luminance 0.2896. Beside Burnt Sienna, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 6.79:1.
Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.
Downloadable color comparison infographic
Save a high-resolution comparison infographic with both HEX colors, visual distance, mutual contrast, and accessibility guidance.
A compact visual strip showing the two compared colors with nearby harmony and variant context.
Machine-readable data
Structured comparison data for Burnt Sienna and Terracotta, including color systems, RGB distance, HSL deltas, contrast, accessibility guidance, use cases, and API links.
Colors Encyclopedia
colorsBoth named color records with HEX, RGB, HSL, CMYK, luminance, WCAG, and linksdifferencesRGB distance, HSL deltas, luminance delta, contrast, and shared attributesaccessibilityPair contrast and safer text choices for each coloruseCasesWhen to choose each color and when to use them togetherrelatedApiMachine-readable comparison and color endpoints[
{
"slug": "burnt-sienna",
"name": "Burnt Sienna",
"hex": "#E97451",
"rgb": [
233,
116,
81
],
"hsl": [
14,
78,
62
],
"cmyk": [
0,
50,
65,
9
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3041,
"contrast": {
"black": 7.08,
"white": 2.97
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 7.08
},
"description": "Burnt Sienna is #E97451, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Terracotta, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for earth-tone palettes, interior design, and material-inspired branding, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/burnt-sienna/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/burnt-sienna.json"
},
{
"slug": "terracotta",
"name": "Terracotta",
"hex": "#E2725B",
"rgb": [
226,
114,
91
],
"hsl": [
10,
70,
62
],
"cmyk": [
0,
50,
60,
11
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"earth-tone",
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.2896,
"contrast": {
"black": 6.79,
"white": 3.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 6.79
},
"description": "Terracotta is #E2725B, a warm orange color with earth tone and muted character. Compared with Burnt Sienna, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for interior design, ceramic palettes, and editorial accents, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/terracotta/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/terracotta.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 12.4,
"contrastRatio": 1.04,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 8,
"lightness": 0
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0145,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Burnt Sienna",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Burnt Sienna"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.04,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Burnt Sienna",
"background": "#E97451",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 7.08
},
{
"color": "Terracotta",
"background": "#E2725B",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 6.79
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Burnt Sienna is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E97451.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Terracotta is better when the design needs earth tone and muted orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E2725B.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
}[
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/burnt-sienna-vs-terracotta.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/burnt-sienna.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/terracotta.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "burnt-sienna-vs-terracotta",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Burnt Sienna vs Terracotta",
"verdict": "Burnt Sienna and Terracotta are very close colors. Burnt Sienna is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.04:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Burnt Sienna and Terracotta are different red and orange colors with HEX values #E97451 and #E2725B. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 12.4, their contrast ratio is 1.04:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 12.4,
"contrastRatio": 1.04,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "burnt-sienna",
"name": "Burnt Sienna",
"hex": "#E97451",
"rgb": [
233,
116,
81
],
"hsl": [
14,
78,
62
],
"cmyk": [
0,
50,
65,
9
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3041,
"contrast": {
"black": 7.08,
"white": 2.97
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 7.08
},
"description": "Burnt Sienna is #E97451, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Terracotta, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for earth-tone palettes, interior design, and material-inspired branding, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/burnt-sienna/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/burnt-sienna.json"
},
{
"slug": "terracotta",
"name": "Terracotta",
"hex": "#E2725B",
"rgb": [
226,
114,
91
],
"hsl": [
10,
70,
62
],
"cmyk": [
0,
50,
60,
11
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"earth-tone",
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.2896,
"contrast": {
"black": 6.79,
"white": 3.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 6.79
},
"description": "Terracotta is #E2725B, a warm orange color with earth tone and muted character. Compared with Burnt Sienna, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for interior design, ceramic palettes, and editorial accents, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/terracotta/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/terracotta.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 12.4,
"contrastRatio": 1.04,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 8,
"lightness": 0
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0145,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Burnt Sienna",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Burnt Sienna"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.04,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Burnt Sienna",
"background": "#E97451",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 7.08
},
{
"color": "Terracotta",
"background": "#E2725B",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 6.79
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Burnt Sienna is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E97451.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Terracotta is better when the design needs earth tone and muted orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E2725B.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
},
"relatedApi": [
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/burnt-sienna-vs-terracotta.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/burnt-sienna.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/terracotta.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/burnt-sienna-vs-terracotta/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/burnt-sienna-vs-terracotta.json"
}