Auburn Color
Auburn is a brown color with hex code #9A3001. This page covers its meaning, all color values, harmonies, colors that go with auburn, shades, tints, similar colors, CSS examples, FAQs, and WCAG contrast ratios.
Auburn Color Values
What Does Auburn Mean?
Auburn belongs to the brown family of colors. Brown is earth, wood, and coffee, and it behaves accordingly: grounded, unbothered, dependable. Craft brands, leather goods, and rustic interiors all borrow that steadiness. When brown looks cheap, that's a styling choice rather than the color's fault. Being on the dark side, Auburn adds weight and depth. It suits text, shadows, and grounding elements more than wide-open backgrounds.
In the ISCC-NBS color naming system, Auburn is classified as a orange (nearest centroid: deep reddish orange, #AA381E). It is also known as Chocolate Fondue.
Color Harmonies
Complementary
Analogous
Triadic
Colors That Go With Auburn
Auburn and #016B98 are complements, parked opposite each other on the wheel. Together they hit maximum contrast, so a rough 70/30 split keeps the pairing from shouting.
Analogous neighbors — #98011F and #987A01, which sit beside auburn on the wheel. Pairings like this feel calm and settled, which suits backgrounds and gradients.
For an energetic three-color palette, pair auburn with triadic partners #01982E and #2E0198. All three sit evenly spaced around the wheel, so the scheme stays lively without clashing.
Build and test these combinations in our Color Wheel Tool or check text readability with the Contrast Checker.
Tints and Shades
Tints (lighter)
Shades (darker)
Similar Colors
- Russet —
#A13905(Delta E 3) - Brown Red —
#922B05(Delta E 4) - Rust —
#A83C09(Delta E 5) - Burnt Red —
#9F2305(Delta E 7) - Rust Brown —
#8B3103(Delta E 8)
CSS Examples
.text { color: #9A3001; }
.background { background-color: #9A3001; }
.border { border: 2px solid #9A3001; }
.shadow { box-shadow: 0 4px 6px #9A300140; }WCAG Contrast
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the hex code for auburn?
Auburn has the hex code #9A3001. In RGB notation it is rgb(154, 48, 1), in HSL it is hsl(18, 99%, 30%), and its OKLCH value is 0.464, 0.149, 38.7.
What does the color auburn mean?
Brown-family colors like auburn carry distinct psychological associations. Auburn belongs to the brown family of colors. Brown is earth, wood, and coffee, and it behaves accordingly: grounded, unbothered, dependable. Craft brands, leather goods, and rustic interiors all borrow that steadiness. When brown looks cheap, that's a styling choice rather than the color's fault. Being on the dark side, Auburn adds weight and depth. It suits text, shadows, and grounding elements more than wide-open backgrounds.
What colors go with auburn?
Auburn has three easy routes: its complement #016B98 for punch, its neighbors #98011F and #987A01 for something calmer, or triadic partners #01982E and #2E0198 when you want energy.
Is auburn a standard web color?
No — Auburn is not a CSS keyword. Use its hex value #9A3001 or any RGB/HSL equivalent in your stylesheets.
How do I make auburn lighter or darker?
To lighten auburn, add white to create tints; to darken it, add black to create shades. The tints and shades table above shows five computed steps of each, from #FFD4C2 (lightest tint) to #190800 (darkest shade).
About Auburn
Auburn is classified as a Orange in the ISCC-NBS color naming system, within the Brown hue family. It has alternative names including Chocolate Fondue. The color is recognized by XKCD, meodai.
Use our Color Converter to convert #9A3001 to any other color format, or explore the Color Wheel to find harmonious color combinations.