WCAG 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum)

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From How to Meet WCAG 2.1 by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

The visual presentation of text and images of text has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1, except for the following:

  • Large Text: Large-scale text and images of large-scale text have a contrast ratio of at least 3:1;
  • Incidental: Text or images of text that are part of an inactive user interface component, that are pure decoration, that are not visible to anyone, or that are part of a picture that contains significant other visual content, have no contrast requirement.
  • Logotypes: Text that is part of a logo or brand name has no minimum contrast requirement.

On that last one I wish to point out that if people can't make out what's in your logo, it's a pretty crappy logo. There may be no requirement but don't be an idiot. You want that thing to be recognizable on a poorly-lit billboard in the rain at 70 miles per hour, and that means use some freakin' contrast.

Color Contrast, Beyond the Basics by Beth Raduenzel is a great article about why color contrast is important and also covers why you should underline your goddamned links.

Related Guidelines

WCAG 1.4.6 Contrast (Enhanced) - Level AAA ratchets the guidelines above up to a ratio of 7:1.

Tools to help meet this guideline

Additional Resources