In Western cultures, salmon signifies warmth and comfort, often linked to nourishment and health due to its association with the fish. However, in some Eastern cultures, it can represent transient beauty, highlighting the delicate nature of life.
The term 'salmon' was first recorded in English in the late 14th century, derived from the Old French 'saumon', which in turn comes from the Latin 'salmo'. The color gained prominence in the 19th century, particularly in the realm of textiles and interior design.
Ranked by CIE76 ΔE — the perceptual distance from Salmon. Lower ΔE means a closer match (below ~2 is barely distinguishable).
All 33 Reds →Nine steps of Salmon by lightness — from #82433B (darkest) to #FCBDB6 (lightest). Click any to copy.
Sitting opposite Salmon at 186° on the color wheel, these give the highest-contrast pairings.
Curated 5-color combinations featuring Salmon.
A 50–900 tonal scale with Salmon anchored at 500 — ready to drop into a design system. Click any step to copy.
Works well as text on dark backgrounds; fails on light.
Thresholds: AA needs 4.5:1 (normal text) / 3:1 (large); AAA needs 7:1 / 4.5:1. Large = 18pt+ or 14pt+ bold.
Copy-ready values for CSS, screen and print, plus the extra conversions designers reach for.
color: salmon; color-mix(in srgb, salmon 70%, white) 6°, 54%, 98% 0, 49, 54, 2 16416882 #FF9966 How Salmon appears to viewers with the three main types of color blindness (~1 in 12 men, 1 in 200 women). Simulated approximations.