Nearest-color comparison

Pompeian Red vs Rust

Pompeian Red and Rust are different red and orange colors with HEX values #A42A04 and #B7410E. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 31.5, their contrast ratio is 1.3:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.

Pompeian Red and Rust are visually related colors. Rust is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.3:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.

Differences Use cases Accessibility JSON

Pompeian Red#A42A04

Rust#B7410E

Quick Difference Summary

The main measurable differences between Pompeian Red and Rust across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.

RGB distance31.5

Pair contrast1.3:1

Luminance delta0.0432

Hue delta4 deg

Lighter colorRust

More saturatedPompeian Red

Side-by-Side Color Profiles

red color

Pompeian Red

Pompeian Red is #A42A04, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Rust, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for historical references, pigment palettes, and cultural color systems, with white text as the safer foreground option.

HEX#A42A04 RGB164, 42, 4 HSL14, 95, 33 CMYK0, 74, 98, 36 Luminance0.0956 Best textwhite text

Color page WCAG HEX atlas

orange color

Rust

Rust is #B7410E, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Pompeian Red, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for warm accents, food branding, and interior palettes, with white text as the safer foreground option.

HEX#B7410E RGB183, 65, 14 HSL18, 86, 39 CMYK0, 64, 92, 28 Luminance0.1388 Best textwhite text

Color page WCAG HEX atlas

When to Use Pompeian Red or Rust

Choose Pompeian RedPompeian Red is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #A42A04.

Choose RustRust is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #B7410E.

Use togetherUse these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs.

Technical Comparison Table

PropertyPompeian RedRust

HEX#A42A04#B7410E

RGB164, 42, 4183, 65, 14

HSL14, 95, 3318, 86, 39

CMYK0, 74, 98, 360, 64, 92, 28

FamilyRedOrange

TemperatureWarmWarm

ToneBalancedVibrant

Luminance0.09560.1388

Black contrast2.91:13.78:1

White contrast7.21:15.56:1

Shared tonesNone

Accessibility and Contrast

Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.

Pompeian Redwhite text - 7.21:1

Rustwhite text - 5.56:1

Related Palette Strip

A compact visual strip showing the two compared colors with nearby harmony and variant context.

Pompeian Red#A42A04

Rust#B7410E

#F9430B#F9430B

#F06C33#F06C33

#047FA4#047FA4

#0E86B9#0E86B9

colorsBoth named color records with HEX, RGB, HSL, CMYK, luminance, WCAG, and links

differencesRGB distance, HSL deltas, luminance delta, contrast, and shared attributes

accessibilityPair contrast and safer text choices for each color

useCasesWhen to choose each color and when to use them together

relatedApiMachine-readable comparison and color endpoints

Structured sections

Colors

[
  {
    "slug": "pompeian-red",
    "name": "Pompeian Red",
    "hex": "#A42A04",
    "rgb": [
      164,
      42,
      4
    ],
    "hsl": [
      14,
      95,
      33
    ],
    "cmyk": [
      0,
      74,
      98,
      36
    ],
    "family": "red",
    "temperature": "warm",
    "tone": [
      "balanced"
    ],
    "luminance": 0.0956,
    "contrast": {
      "black": 2.91,
      "white": 7.21
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#FFFFFF"
      ]
    },
    "bestText": {
      "text": "#FFFFFF",
      "label": "white text",
      "ratio": 7.21
    },
    "description": "Pompeian Red is #A42A04, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Rust, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for historical references, pigment palettes, and cultural color systems, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
    "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/pompeian-red/",
    "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pompeian-red.json"
  },
  {
    "slug": "rust",
    "name": "Rust",
    "hex": "#B7410E",
    "rgb": [
      183,
      65,
      14
    ],
    "hsl": [
      18,
      86,
      39
    ],
    "cmyk": [
      0,
      64,
      92,
      28
    ],
    "family": "orange",
    "temperature": "warm",
    "tone": [
      "vibrant"
    ],
    "luminance": 0.1388,
    "contrast": {
      "black": 3.78,
      "white": 5.56
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": []
    },
    "bestText": {
      "text": "#FFFFFF",
      "label": "white text",
      "ratio": 5.56
    },
    "description": "Rust is #B7410E, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Pompeian Red, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for warm accents, food branding, and interior palettes, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
    "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/rust/",
    "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/rust.json"
  }
]

Differences

{
  "rgbDistance": 31.5,
  "contrastRatio": 1.3,
  "hslDelta": {
    "hue": 4,
    "saturation": 9,
    "lightness": 6
  },
  "luminanceDelta": 0.0432,
  "sameFamily": false,
  "sameTemperature": true,
  "sharedTones": [],
  "lighterColor": "Rust",
  "moreSaturatedColor": "Pompeian Red"
}

Accessibility

{
  "pairContrastRatio": 1.3,
  "textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
  "safeText": [
    {
      "color": "Pompeian Red",
      "background": "#A42A04",
      "foreground": "#FFFFFF",
      "label": "white text",
      "ratio": 7.21
    },
    {
      "color": "Rust",
      "background": "#B7410E",
      "foreground": "#FFFFFF",
      "label": "white text",
      "ratio": 5.56
    }
  ]
}

Use cases

{
  "chooseFirstWhen": "Pompeian Red is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #A42A04.",
  "chooseSecondWhen": "Rust is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #B7410E.",
  "useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
}

Related API

[
  "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/pompeian-red-vs-rust.json",
  "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pompeian-red.json",
  "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/rust.json"
]

Full JSON dataset

{
  "datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
  "slug": "pompeian-red-vs-rust",
  "type": "nearest",
  "name": "Pompeian Red vs Rust",
  "verdict": "Pompeian Red and Rust are visually related colors. Rust is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.3:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
  "summary": "Pompeian Red and Rust are different red and orange colors with HEX values #A42A04 and #B7410E. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 31.5, their contrast ratio is 1.3:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
  "rgbDistance": 31.5,
  "contrastRatio": 1.3,
  "colors": [
    {
      "slug": "pompeian-red",
      "name": "Pompeian Red",
      "hex": "#A42A04",
      "rgb": [
        164,
        42,
        4
      ],
      "hsl": [
        14,
        95,
        33
      ],
      "cmyk": [
        0,
        74,
        98,
        36
      ],
      "family": "red",
      "temperature": "warm",
      "tone": [
        "balanced"
      ],
      "luminance": 0.0956,
      "contrast": {
        "black": 2.91,
        "white": 7.21
      },
      "wcag": {
        "AA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ],
        "AAA": [
          "#FFFFFF"
        ]
      },
      "bestText": {
        "text": "#FFFFFF",
        "label": "white text",
        "ratio": 7.21
      },
      "description": "Pompeian Red is #A42A04, a warm red color with balanced character. Compared with Rust, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for historical references, pigment palettes, and cultural color systems, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
      "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/pompeian-red/",
      "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pompeian-red.json"
    },
    {
      "slug": "rust",
      "name": "Rust",
      "hex": "#B7410E",
      "rgb": [
        183,
        65,
        14
      ],
      "hsl": [
        18,
        86,
        39
      ],
      "cmyk": [
        0,
        64,
        92,
        28
      ],
      "family": "orange",
      "temperature": "warm",
      "tone": [
        "vibrant"
      ],
      "luminance": 0.1388,
      "contrast": {
        "black": 3.78,
        "white": 5.56
      },
      "wcag": {
        "AA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ],
        "AAA": []
      },
      "bestText": {
        "text": "#FFFFFF",
        "label": "white text",
        "ratio": 5.56
      },
      "description": "Rust is #B7410E, a warm orange color with vibrant character. Compared with Pompeian Red, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for warm accents, food branding, and interior palettes, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
      "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/rust/",
      "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/rust.json"
    }
  ],
  "differences": {
    "rgbDistance": 31.5,
    "contrastRatio": 1.3,
    "hslDelta": {
      "hue": 4,
      "saturation": 9,
      "lightness": 6
    },
    "luminanceDelta": 0.0432,
    "sameFamily": false,
    "sameTemperature": true,
    "sharedTones": [],
    "lighterColor": "Rust",
    "moreSaturatedColor": "Pompeian Red"
  },
  "accessibility": {
    "pairContrastRatio": 1.3,
    "textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
    "safeText": [
      {
        "color": "Pompeian Red",
        "background": "#A42A04",
        "foreground": "#FFFFFF",
        "label": "white text",
        "ratio": 7.21
      },
      {
        "color": "Rust",
        "background": "#B7410E",
        "foreground": "#FFFFFF",
        "label": "white text",
        "ratio": 5.56
      }
    ]
  },
  "useCases": {
    "chooseFirstWhen": "Pompeian Red is better when the design needs balanced red character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #A42A04.",
    "chooseSecondWhen": "Rust is better when the design needs vibrant orange character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #B7410E.",
    "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/pompeian-red-vs-rust.json",
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pompeian-red.json",
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/rust.json"
  ],
  "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/pompeian-red-vs-rust/",
  "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/pompeian-red-vs-rust.json"
}