Free Tool
Color Contrast Checker
Check color contrast against WCAG accessibility standards. See the exact ratio and pass/fail for AA and AAA levels with a live preview. Free, no signup.
Why It Matters
Readable, Accessible Color Choices
Color contrast is a core part of web accessibility. Text that's too close in brightness to its background is hard to read — especially for people with low vision or color blindness, and for anyone using a screen in bright sunlight.
The WCAG accessibility guidelines set minimum contrast ratios. This tool calculates the exact ratio between any two colors and tells you which standards it passes, so your designs are readable and inclusive.
FAQ
Questions About This Tool
For normal body text, aim for at least 4.5:1 (WCAG AA). For large text, 3:1 is the minimum. Higher ratios like 7:1 (AAA) are even better for readability.
AA is the widely-adopted standard most sites aim for. AAA is a stricter, enhanced level. Meeting AA is the practical target for most websites.
Roughly 18pt (24px) normal weight, or 14pt (18.7px) bold and above. Larger text is easier to read, so it has a lower contrast requirement.
While not a direct ranking factor, good accessibility improves user experience and reduces bounce rate, and accessibility is increasingly important for legal compliance too.
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