10/28/2026
A brand color can look great in a logo and still be hard to read on a website.
Under the web accessibility guidelines (WCAG 2.1, Level AA), regular body text needs a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background, and large text needs at least 3:1. Logos are exempt. That gap catches brand palettes off guard, because a color that looks great in a logo can fail the moment it becomes a headline or a button label. Our own gold is a good example. It reads clearly on navy and fails on white.
When we redesigned the website for The Eisner Foundation, accessibility shaped the typography, color contrast, navigation, and content hierarchy from the start. The handprint logo kept its warmth, and the site around it was built so visitors could read and find what they needed.
A free contrast checker, like the one from WebAIM, will tell you in seconds whether a brand color passes. Every color pairing in this carousel passes, except the one on slide 4 that’s there to fail.
