Nearest-color comparison
Flax #EEDC82 vs Straw #E4D96F: RGB distance 21.7 and contrast 1.05:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Flax and Straw are very close, with an RGB distance of 21.7. Flax is lighter by 0.0371, and Flax is more saturated by 8 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.05:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Flax and Straw across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
yellow color
Flax is #EEDC82, a warm yellow with hue 50°, saturation 76% and luminance 0.7098. Beside Straw, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 15.2:1.
yellow color
Straw is #E4D96F, a warm yellow with hue 54°, saturation 68% and luminance 0.6727. Beside Flax, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 14.45:1.
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 Flax and Straw, 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": "flax",
"name": "Flax",
"hex": "#EEDC82",
"rgb": [
238,
220,
130
],
"hsl": [
50,
76,
72
],
"cmyk": [
0,
8,
45,
7
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.7098,
"contrast": {
"black": 15.2,
"white": 1.38
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 15.2
},
"description": "Flax is #EEDC82, a warm yellow color with vibrant character. Compared with Straw, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for highlight colors, editorial accents, and warm backgrounds, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/flax/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/flax.json"
},
{
"slug": "straw",
"name": "Straw",
"hex": "#E4D96F",
"rgb": [
228,
217,
111
],
"hsl": [
54,
68,
66
],
"cmyk": [
0,
5,
51,
11
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.6727,
"contrast": {
"black": 14.45,
"white": 1.45
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 14.45
},
"description": "Straw is #E4D96F, a warm yellow color with balanced character. Compared with Flax, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for highlight colors, editorial accents, and warm backgrounds, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/straw/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/straw.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 21.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.05,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 8,
"lightness": 6
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0371,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Flax",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Flax"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.05,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Flax",
"background": "#EEDC82",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 15.2
},
{
"color": "Straw",
"background": "#E4D96F",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 14.45
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Flax is better when the design needs vibrant yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #EEDC82.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Straw is better when the design needs balanced yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E4D96F.",
"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/flax-vs-straw.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/flax.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/straw.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "flax-vs-straw",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Flax vs Straw",
"verdict": "Flax and Straw are very close colors. Flax is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.05:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Flax and Straw are different yellow colors with HEX values #EEDC82 and #E4D96F. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 21.7, their contrast ratio is 1.05:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 21.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.05,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "flax",
"name": "Flax",
"hex": "#EEDC82",
"rgb": [
238,
220,
130
],
"hsl": [
50,
76,
72
],
"cmyk": [
0,
8,
45,
7
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"vibrant"
],
"luminance": 0.7098,
"contrast": {
"black": 15.2,
"white": 1.38
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 15.2
},
"description": "Flax is #EEDC82, a warm yellow color with vibrant character. Compared with Straw, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for highlight colors, editorial accents, and warm backgrounds, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/flax/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/flax.json"
},
{
"slug": "straw",
"name": "Straw",
"hex": "#E4D96F",
"rgb": [
228,
217,
111
],
"hsl": [
54,
68,
66
],
"cmyk": [
0,
5,
51,
11
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.6727,
"contrast": {
"black": 14.45,
"white": 1.45
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 14.45
},
"description": "Straw is #E4D96F, a warm yellow color with balanced character. Compared with Flax, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for highlight colors, editorial accents, and warm backgrounds, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/straw/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/straw.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 21.7,
"contrastRatio": 1.05,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 4,
"saturation": 8,
"lightness": 6
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0371,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Flax",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Flax"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.05,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Flax",
"background": "#EEDC82",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 15.2
},
{
"color": "Straw",
"background": "#E4D96F",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 14.45
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Flax is better when the design needs vibrant yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #EEDC82.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Straw is better when the design needs balanced yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #E4D96F.",
"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/flax-vs-straw.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/flax.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/straw.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/flax-vs-straw/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/flax-vs-straw.json"
}