Nearest-color comparison
Carmine #960018 vs Cranberry #9F000F: RGB distance 12.7 and contrast 1.07:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Carmine and Cranberry are very close, with an RGB distance of 12.7. Cranberry is lighter by 0.0086, and their saturation is equal. 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 Carmine and Cranberry across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
red color
Carmine is #960018, a warm red with hue 350°, saturation 100% and luminance 0.0655. Beside Cranberry, it is darker and equally saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 9.09:1.
red color
Cranberry is #9F000F, a warm red with hue 354°, saturation 100% and luminance 0.0741. Beside Carmine, it is lighter and equally saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 8.46:1.
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 Carmine and Cranberry, 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": "carmine",
"name": "Carmine",
"hex": "#960018",
"rgb": [
150,
0,
24
],
"hsl": [
350,
100,
29
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
84,
41
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0655,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.31,
"white": 9.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.09
},
"description": "Carmine is #960018, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Cranberry, it is darker and similar in saturation. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/carmine/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/carmine.json"
},
{
"slug": "cranberry",
"name": "Cranberry",
"hex": "#9F000F",
"rgb": [
159,
0,
15
],
"hsl": [
354,
100,
31
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
91,
38
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0741,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.48,
"white": 8.46
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.46
},
"description": "Cranberry is #9F000F, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Carmine, it is lighter and similar in saturation. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cranberry/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cranberry.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 12.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 0,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0086,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"balanced"
],
"lighterColor": "Cranberry",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Carmine"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.07,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Carmine",
"background": "#960018",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.09
},
{
"color": "Cranberry",
"background": "#9F000F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.46
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Carmine is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #960018.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Cranberry is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #9F000F.",
"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/carmine-vs-cranberry.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/carmine.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cranberry.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "carmine-vs-cranberry",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Carmine vs Cranberry",
"verdict": "Carmine and Cranberry are very close colors. Cranberry 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": "Carmine and Cranberry are different red colors with HEX values #960018 and #9F000F. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 12.7, their contrast ratio is 1.07:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 12.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "carmine",
"name": "Carmine",
"hex": "#960018",
"rgb": [
150,
0,
24
],
"hsl": [
350,
100,
29
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
84,
41
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0655,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.31,
"white": 9.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.09
},
"description": "Carmine is #960018, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Cranberry, it is darker and similar in saturation. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/carmine/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/carmine.json"
},
{
"slug": "cranberry",
"name": "Cranberry",
"hex": "#9F000F",
"rgb": [
159,
0,
15
],
"hsl": [
354,
100,
31
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
91,
38
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0741,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.48,
"white": 8.46
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.46
},
"description": "Cranberry is #9F000F, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Carmine, it is lighter and similar in saturation. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cranberry/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cranberry.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 12.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.07,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 0,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0086,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"balanced"
],
"lighterColor": "Cranberry",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Carmine"
},
"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": "Carmine",
"background": "#960018",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.09
},
{
"color": "Cranberry",
"background": "#9F000F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.46
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Carmine is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #960018.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Cranberry is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #9F000F.",
"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/carmine-vs-cranberry.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/carmine.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cranberry.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/carmine-vs-cranberry/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/carmine-vs-cranberry.json"
}