Nearest-color comparison
Cinnabar #E44D2E vs Vermilion #E34234: RGB distance 12.6 and contrast 1.06:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Cinnabar and Vermilion are very close, with an RGB distance of 12.6. Cinnabar is lighter by 0.0152, and Cinnabar is more saturated by 1 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.06:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Cinnabar and Vermilion across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
red color
Cinnabar is #E44D2E, a warm red with hue 10°, saturation 77% and luminance 0.22. Beside Vermilion, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 5.4:1.
red color
Vermilion is #E34234, a warm red with hue 5°, saturation 76% and luminance 0.2048. Beside Cinnabar, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 5.1:1.
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 Cinnabar and Vermilion, 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": "cinnabar",
"name": "Cinnabar",
"hex": "#E44D2E",
"rgb": [
228,
77,
46
],
"hsl": [
10,
77,
54
],
"cmyk": [
0,
66,
80,
11
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.22,
"contrast": {
"black": 5.4,
"white": 3.89
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.4
},
"description": "Cinnabar is #E44D2E, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Vermilion, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cinnabar/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cinnabar.json"
},
{
"slug": "vermilion",
"name": "Vermilion",
"hex": "#E34234",
"rgb": [
227,
66,
52
],
"hsl": [
5,
76,
55
],
"cmyk": [
0,
71,
77,
11
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.2048,
"contrast": {
"black": 5.1,
"white": 4.12
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.1
},
"description": "Vermilion is #E34234, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Cinnabar, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/vermilion/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/vermilion.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 12.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.06,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 5,
"saturation": 1,
"lightness": 1
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0152,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"vibrant"
],
"lighterColor": "Cinnabar",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cinnabar"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.06,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Cinnabar",
"background": "#E44D2E",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.4
},
{
"color": "Vermilion",
"background": "#E34234",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.1
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Cinnabar is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E44D2E.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Vermilion is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E34234.",
"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/cinnabar-vs-vermilion.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cinnabar.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/vermilion.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "cinnabar-vs-vermilion",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Cinnabar vs Vermilion",
"verdict": "Cinnabar and Vermilion are very close colors. Cinnabar is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.06:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Cinnabar and Vermilion are different red colors with HEX values #E44D2E and #E34234. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 12.6, their contrast ratio is 1.06:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 12.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.06,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "cinnabar",
"name": "Cinnabar",
"hex": "#E44D2E",
"rgb": [
228,
77,
46
],
"hsl": [
10,
77,
54
],
"cmyk": [
0,
66,
80,
11
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.22,
"contrast": {
"black": 5.4,
"white": 3.89
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.4
},
"description": "Cinnabar is #E44D2E, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Vermilion, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cinnabar/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cinnabar.json"
},
{
"slug": "vermilion",
"name": "Vermilion",
"hex": "#E34234",
"rgb": [
227,
66,
52
],
"hsl": [
5,
76,
55
],
"cmyk": [
0,
71,
77,
11
],
"family": "red",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.2048,
"contrast": {
"black": 5.1,
"white": 4.12
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000"
],
"AAA": []
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.1
},
"description": "Vermilion is #E34234, a warm red color with vibrant character. Compared with Cinnabar, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for branding accents, editorial palettes, and product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/vermilion/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/vermilion.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 12.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.06,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 5,
"saturation": 1,
"lightness": 1
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0152,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"vibrant"
],
"lighterColor": "Cinnabar",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cinnabar"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.06,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Cinnabar",
"background": "#E44D2E",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.4
},
{
"color": "Vermilion",
"background": "#E34234",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 5.1
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Cinnabar is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E44D2E.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Vermilion is better when the design needs vibrant red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E34234.",
"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/cinnabar-vs-vermilion.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cinnabar.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/vermilion.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/cinnabar-vs-vermilion/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/cinnabar-vs-vermilion.json"
}