Nearest-color comparison
Paper White #F7F7F2 vs White Smoke #F5F5F5: RGB distance 4.1 and contrast 1.01:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Paper White and White Smoke are very close, with an RGB distance of 4.1. Paper White is lighter by 0.014, and Paper White is more saturated by 24 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.01:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Paper White and White Smoke across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
yellow color
Paper White is #F7F7F2, a warm yellow with hue 60°, saturation 24% and luminance 0.9271. Beside White Smoke, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 19.54:1.
gray color
White Smoke is #F5F5F5, a neutral gray with hue 0°, saturation 0% and luminance 0.9131. Beside Paper White, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 19.26:1.
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 Paper White and White Smoke, 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": "paper-white",
"name": "Paper White",
"hex": "#F7F7F2",
"rgb": [
247,
247,
242
],
"hsl": [
60,
24,
96
],
"cmyk": [
0,
0,
2,
3
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"light"
],
"luminance": 0.9271,
"contrast": {
"black": 19.54,
"white": 1.07
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.54
},
"description": "Paper White is #F7F7F2, a warm yellow color with light character. Compared with White Smoke, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for neutral systems, backgrounds, and editorial typography, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/paper-white/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/paper-white.json"
},
{
"slug": "white-smoke",
"name": "White Smoke",
"hex": "#F5F5F5",
"rgb": [
245,
245,
245
],
"hsl": [
0,
0,
96
],
"cmyk": [
0,
0,
0,
4
],
"family": "gray",
"temperature": "neutral",
"tone": [
"light"
],
"luminance": 0.9131,
"contrast": {
"black": 19.26,
"white": 1.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.26
},
"description": "White Smoke is #F5F5F5, a neutral gray color with light character. Compared with Paper White, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/white-smoke/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/white-smoke.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 4.1,
"contrastRatio": 1.01,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 60,
"saturation": 24,
"lightness": 0
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.014,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": false,
"sharedTones": [
"light"
],
"lighterColor": "Paper White",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Paper White"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.01,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Paper White",
"background": "#F7F7F2",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.54
},
{
"color": "White Smoke",
"background": "#F5F5F5",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.26
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Paper White is better when the design needs light yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #F7F7F2.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "White Smoke is better when the design needs light gray character, neutral temperature, and the specific HEX value #F5F5F5.",
"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/paper-white-vs-white-smoke.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/paper-white.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/white-smoke.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "paper-white-vs-white-smoke",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Paper White vs White Smoke",
"verdict": "Paper White and White Smoke are very close colors. Paper White is the lighter option. Paper White reads warmer. Their mutual contrast is 1.01:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Paper White and White Smoke are different yellow and gray colors with HEX values #F7F7F2 and #F5F5F5. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 4.1, their contrast ratio is 1.01:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 4.1,
"contrastRatio": 1.01,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "paper-white",
"name": "Paper White",
"hex": "#F7F7F2",
"rgb": [
247,
247,
242
],
"hsl": [
60,
24,
96
],
"cmyk": [
0,
0,
2,
3
],
"family": "yellow",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"light"
],
"luminance": 0.9271,
"contrast": {
"black": 19.54,
"white": 1.07
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.54
},
"description": "Paper White is #F7F7F2, a warm yellow color with light character. Compared with White Smoke, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for neutral systems, backgrounds, and editorial typography, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/paper-white/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/paper-white.json"
},
{
"slug": "white-smoke",
"name": "White Smoke",
"hex": "#F5F5F5",
"rgb": [
245,
245,
245
],
"hsl": [
0,
0,
96
],
"cmyk": [
0,
0,
0,
4
],
"family": "gray",
"temperature": "neutral",
"tone": [
"light"
],
"luminance": 0.9131,
"contrast": {
"black": 19.26,
"white": 1.09
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.26
},
"description": "White Smoke is #F5F5F5, a neutral gray color with light character. Compared with Paper White, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/white-smoke/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/white-smoke.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 4.1,
"contrastRatio": 1.01,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 60,
"saturation": 24,
"lightness": 0
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.014,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": false,
"sharedTones": [
"light"
],
"lighterColor": "Paper White",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Paper White"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.01,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Paper White",
"background": "#F7F7F2",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.54
},
{
"color": "White Smoke",
"background": "#F5F5F5",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 19.26
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Paper White is better when the design needs light yellow character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #F7F7F2.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "White Smoke is better when the design needs light gray character, neutral temperature, and the specific HEX value #F5F5F5.",
"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/paper-white-vs-white-smoke.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/paper-white.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/white-smoke.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/paper-white-vs-white-smoke/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/paper-white-vs-white-smoke.json"
}