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Color Contrast Analyzer

A professional-grade color contrast analyzer that goes beyond basic pass/fail checks. Measure luminance, evaluate against WCAG 2.2, scan entire URLs, and generate compliance-ready reports — all in your browser.

How the Analyzer Works

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1Input Colors

Pick foreground & background — hex, RGB, HSL, or color picker

2Compute

Relative luminance calculated per WCAG sRGB formula

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3Evaluate

Ratio checked against AA (4.5:1) and AAA (7:1) thresholds

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4Report

Pass/fail verdict + AI suggestions + exportable PDF report

Contrast Ratio Spectrum

1:1
Invisible
2:1
Very Poor
3:1
AA Large Text
4.5:1
AA Normal Text
7:1
AAA Normal Text
21:1
Maximum

What Passes and What Fails

Fails AA — 2.3:1
Light gray text on near-white background — hard to read
FG BG
Passes AA — 9.4:1
Dark charcoal text on off-white — crisp and readable
FG BG

The difference between 2.3:1 and 9.4:1 is the difference between a bounce and a conversion. Low-contrast text increases cognitive load — users with visual impairments may not be able to read it at all.

Checker vs Analyzer: What's the Difference?

FeatureBasic CheckerThis Analyzer
Single color pair
WCAG AA/AAA grading
Luminance breakdown✓ — Lfg and Lbg individually
URL / full-page scan✓ — crawls all visible text elements
APCA values✓ — next-gen perceptual contrast
AI color suggestions✓ — hue-preserving alternatives
PDF export report✓ — compliance-ready documentation
Computed CSS resolution✓ — handles variables, inheritance, cascade

Contrast Ratio

14:1
AA Normal
AA Large
AAA Normal
AAA Large

Heading Preview

Body text rendered in your selected colors. This is how your content will look — check if it's comfortable to read at normal paragraph sizes.

12px caption · secondary information

URL Scanner

Scan any site for WCAG issues

Palette Explorer

Pick a seed color and get WCAG-compliant harmonies.

AI Color Recommendations

This feature is not yet available. We're actively building it — if you'd like early access or have ideas to share, reach out and we'll prioritize your needs.

Contact Us

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a color contrast analyzer?
A color contrast analyzer is a tool that measures the luminance difference between two colors (typically foreground text and background) and evaluates whether the pair meets WCAG accessibility standards. Professional analyzers like ours also scan entire web pages, flag violations, and suggest accessible alternatives — all in one workflow.
How is this different from a basic contrast checker?
A basic checker tells you if one color pair passes or fails. An analyzer goes further: it breaks down the luminance values of both colors, shows you exactly how far you are from the target (e.g., 'you need 0.8 more on the ratio'), scans entire URLs for site-wide issues, and generates exportable reports for compliance documentation.
What standards does this analyzer test against?
This analyzer tests against WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 criteria: SC 1.4.3 (Text Contrast — 4.5:1 AA, 7:1 AAA), SC 1.4.6 (Enhanced Contrast), SC 1.4.11 (Non-Text Contrast — 3:1 for UI components), and provides APCA (Advanced Perceptual Contrast Algorithm) values for next-generation accessibility work.
Can this analyzer scan my entire website?
Yes — use our URL Contrast Checker to feed any public URL into the analyzer. It crawls all visible text elements, computes computed CSS colors (including inherited styles and CSS variables), and returns a full violation report with element-level detail. For password-protected or local pages, use the manual checker for individual color pairs.
Is this analyzer suitable for compliance audits and legal defense?
Absolutely. Our analyzer provides the precise WCAG contrast ratio to two decimal places, references the specific SC criterion, and generates downloadable PDF reports — the exact documentation auditors and legal teams look for. Use it as part of your VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) or accessibility conformance report.

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