Nearest-color comparison
Butterscotch #E3963E vs Cadmium Orange #ED872D: RGB distance 24.8 and contrast 1.07:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Butterscotch and Cadmium Orange are very close, with an RGB distance of 24.8. Butterscotch is lighter by 0.0297, and Cadmium Orange is more saturated by 9 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.07:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Butterscotch and Cadmium Orange across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
orange color
Butterscotch is #E3963E, a warm orange with hue 32°, saturation 75% and luminance 0.3849. Beside Cadmium Orange, it is lighter and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 8.7:1.
orange color
Cadmium Orange is #ED872D, a warm orange with hue 28°, saturation 84% and luminance 0.3552. Beside Butterscotch, it is darker and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 8.1:1.
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 Butterscotch and Cadmium Orange, 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": "butterscotch",
"name": "Butterscotch",
"hex": "#E3963E",
"rgb": [
227,
150,
62
],
"hsl": [
32,
75,
57
],
"cmyk": [
0,
34,
73,
11
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3849,
"contrast": {
"black": 8.7,
"white": 2.41
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.7
},
"description": "Butterscotch is #E3963E, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Cadmium Orange, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for warm accents, food branding, and interior palettes, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/butterscotch/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/butterscotch.json"
},
{
"slug": "cadmium-orange",
"name": "Cadmium Orange",
"hex": "#ED872D",
"rgb": [
237,
135,
45
],
"hsl": [
28,
84,
55
],
"cmyk": [
0,
43,
81,
7
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3552,
"contrast": {
"black": 8.1,
"white": 2.59
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.1
},
"description": "Cadmium Orange is #ED872D, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Butterscotch, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for historical references, pigment palettes, and cultural color systems, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cadmium-orange/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cadmium-orange.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 24.8,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 9,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0297,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"vibrant"
],
"lighterColor": "Butterscotch",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cadmium Orange"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.07,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Butterscotch",
"background": "#E3963E",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.7
},
{
"color": "Cadmium Orange",
"background": "#ED872D",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.1
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Butterscotch is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E3963E.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Cadmium Orange is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #ED872D.",
"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/butterscotch-vs-cadmium-orange.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/butterscotch.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cadmium-orange.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "butterscotch-vs-cadmium-orange",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Butterscotch vs Cadmium Orange",
"verdict": "Butterscotch and Cadmium Orange are very close colors. Butterscotch is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.07:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Butterscotch and Cadmium Orange are different orange colors with HEX values #E3963E and #ED872D. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 24.8, their contrast ratio is 1.07:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 24.8,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "butterscotch",
"name": "Butterscotch",
"hex": "#E3963E",
"rgb": [
227,
150,
62
],
"hsl": [
32,
75,
57
],
"cmyk": [
0,
34,
73,
11
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3849,
"contrast": {
"black": 8.7,
"white": 2.41
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.7
},
"description": "Butterscotch is #E3963E, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Cadmium Orange, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for warm accents, food branding, and interior palettes, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/butterscotch/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/butterscotch.json"
},
{
"slug": "cadmium-orange",
"name": "Cadmium Orange",
"hex": "#ED872D",
"rgb": [
237,
135,
45
],
"hsl": [
28,
84,
55
],
"cmyk": [
0,
43,
81,
7
],
"family": "orange",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.3552,
"contrast": {
"black": 8.1,
"white": 2.59
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.1
},
"description": "Cadmium Orange is #ED872D, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Butterscotch, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for historical references, pigment palettes, and cultural color systems, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cadmium-orange/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cadmium-orange.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 24.8,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 9,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0297,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"vibrant"
],
"lighterColor": "Butterscotch",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cadmium Orange"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.07,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Butterscotch",
"background": "#E3963E",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.7
},
{
"color": "Cadmium Orange",
"background": "#ED872D",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 8.1
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Butterscotch is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E3963E.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Cadmium Orange is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #ED872D.",
"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/butterscotch-vs-cadmium-orange.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/butterscotch.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cadmium-orange.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/butterscotch-vs-cadmium-orange/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/butterscotch-vs-cadmium-orange.json"
}