REDS

Chinese Brown

#AB381F

RGB 171, 56, 31 · HSL 11°, 69%, 40% · CMYK 0, 67, 82, 33

Chinese Brown is #AB381F in HEX — rgb(171, 56, 31), hsl(11°, 69%, 40%), cmyk(0%, 67%, 82%, 33%).

Chinese Brown pulls into the rich end of the reds spectrum — HSL 11°, 69%, 40%. The balanced saturation makes it confident without overpowering, and the hue reads warm. In interior projects it shines on feature walls, dining rooms, hallways — anywhere you want energy. Reads best alongside cream walls, oak furniture, brass, soft black trim.

Color Codes

HEX#AB381F

RGB171, 56, 31

HSL11°, 69%, 40%

HSV11°, 82%, 67%

CMYK0, 67, 82, 33

Decimal11221023

CSS RGBrgb(171, 56, 31)

CSS HSLhsl(11, 69%, 40%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Dutch Boy

Terracotta VS-9228

ΔE 3.5 · #B53B26

Behr

Summer Heat S-H-220

ΔE 3.6 · #A53B1D

Dulux

Blanket Orange S07F9

ΔE 4.4 · #B73B28

RAL

Flame Red 3000

ΔE 6.4 · #AF2B1E

Benjamin Moore

Tomato CSP-1145

ΔE 7 · #C0402E

Colorhouse

Petal .06 Petal-06

ΔE 7.3 · #BA4133

Sherwin-Williams

Cayenne SW6881

ΔE 8 · #C04D35

Vista Paint

China Rouge K-1216

ΔE 9.4 · #C44538

Dunn-Edwards

Spicy Tomato DE5139

ΔE 10 · #C75433

PPG

Cinnamon Stone 1193-7

ΔE 10.4 · #C9543A

Kobra

Red 15

ΔE 10.6 · #BD413A

Hallman-Lindsay

Chuckles 1089

ΔE 10.6 · #BF413A

Valspar

Vivid Orange 2011-3

ΔE 12.8 · #CF5942

Kilz

Atomic Red LH170

ΔE 12.9 · #B83236

IKEA

IKEA130 130

ΔE 14.1 · #9B2C2C

Farrow & Ball

Charlotte's Locks 268

ΔE 14.5 · #D65F3D

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

12/100

Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Soaks up light and feels moody and intimate. Great for studies, dining rooms and accent walls; pair with ample lighting.

Undertone

TemperatureWarm MasstoneRed UndertonePink

Reads as a warm red with a pink undertone showing through, especially in daylight. Pair trim and adjacent colours to either calm or amplify that undertone.

Color Theory

Complementary

#AB381F

#2093AC

Analogous

#AC204C

#AB381F

#AC8020

Triadic

#AB381F

#20AC39

#3920AC

Split-Complementary

#AB381F

#20AC80

#204CAC

Tetradic

#AB381F

#4CAC20

#2093AC

#8020AC

Monochromatic

#2B0E08

#6C2414

#AB381F

#DB5A3D

#E7917E

Rectangle

#AB381F

#93AC20

#2093AC

#3920AC

Compound

#AB381F

#AC8020

#2093AC

#204CAC

Variations

Lighter

#D94F30

#D9816D

#E3B9B0

Darker

#8D2C16

#631D0E

#3B1007

Saturation

#7B5951

#AC3920

#BC2F10

Interior Use

Best Rooms

dining rooms, hallways, feature walls

Best Uses

accent walls, doors, statement furniture

Pairs With

cream walls, oak furniture, brass, soft black trim

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

6.33:1

vs Black

3.32:1

AA Large

Deuteranopia

#AB381F

#7C7013

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#AB381F

#5A5A23

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#AB381F

#A93A45

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Bold · Energetic

Chinese Brown carries the unmistakable charge of red — it raises pulse and appetite, draws the eye first in any room, and refuses to recede. Use it where you want presence: dining rooms that should feel social, hallways that need a focal point, front doors that announce arrival.

SymbolismPassion, urgency, vitality

PersonalityConfident, expressive, daring

energyappetitefocalsocialwarmthstatement

How it looks under different light

#C05732

Warm Bulb 2700K

Incandescent / soft white LED — pulls colour toward yellow/amber.

#AB381F

Daylight 5500K

Midday natural light or daylight-spec LED — closest to the paint chip.

#AD5C57

Cool Bulb 6500K

Cool white LED / overcast daylight — pulls colour toward blue.

Pairs With

#EDE9E8

Trim

Matched off-white

Same hue at 92% lightness — trim reads coordinated, not stark.

#F8F7F7

Ceiling

Whisper tint

Near-white with a hint of the hero's undertone — ceiling feels intentional.

#24778A

Accent

Complementary punch

Hue +180°, slightly muted for paint vs. screen — use on a door, frame, or single piece.

#574738

Floor

Walnut neutral

Warm mid-brown grounds the scheme regardless of hero hue.

Paint Info

Brand · Product Line

Benjamin Moore / Regal Select Interior

Recommended Finishes

Eggshell (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Matte (ceiling)

Eggshell hides imperfections on main walls while keeping the color rich; pearl on trim adds subtle sheen and easier cleaning; flat matte on ceilings prevents glare.

Best Surfaces

Primary walls · Cabinetry · Doors · Mouldings

Coverage & Dry Time

Typical coverage 350-400 sq ft per gallon over a primed surface.

Touch-dry in ~1 hour. Recoat after 4 hours. Full cure 7-14 days.

Primer

Standard primer is adequate.

Application Tip

Use a 9" microfiber roller on walls and a 2.5" angled sash brush for trim cuts. Two coats minimum for even depth.

Paint Calculator

Wall area (m²)

Coats

Coverage (m² / L)

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

Code Snippets

CSS — color

color: #AB381F;

CSS — background

background-color: #AB381F;

CSS Variable

--color-chinese-brown: #AB381F;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'chinese-brown': '#AB381F' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#AB381F] text-[#AB381F]

SCSS

$chinese-brown: #AB381F;

Similar Colors

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#BF3F2D · ΔE 6.7

Million Dollar Red

#B5332C · ΔE 7.9

Paper Lantern

#AB3F30 · ΔE 8.4

Cornwallis Red

#BD4638 · ΔE 8.8

Fireball Orange

#C35232 · ΔE 9.1

Dragons Blood

#AB4830 · ΔE 9.5

Smoldering Red

#A33A2D · ΔE 9.8

Fire Dance

#BD543D · ΔE 11.7

Built by DSGN.HOUSE Updated 2026

Our color tools run on our own catalogue of 26,000+ real paint colors across 16 brands — Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux, RAL and more — with the color math (HSL and CIELAB matching) computed in-house, not scraped from summaries. Every color you pick maps to a real, buyable paint with its code, so what you see here you can actually take to the store. We review and update these tools and their data regularly.

Created by Denis Kataev, founder of DSGN.HOUSE — a software engineer and digital entrepreneur building professional color-design tools for everyone.

Frequently Asked Questions

What color is #AB381F?

#AB381F is Chinese Brown, a mid-tone red with a warm undertone.

Is #AB381F warm or cool?

Chinese Brown reads warm, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Chinese Brown?

Chinese Brown works well in dining rooms, hallways, feature walls. Designers typically use it for accent walls, doors, statement furniture.

What colors pair well with Chinese Brown?

Chinese Brown pairs naturally with cream walls, oak furniture, brass, soft black trim. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Chinese Brown?

You can download Chinese Brown on DSGN.HOUSE in 15 designer formats including CSS gradient, Figma, Procreate swatches, Tailwind config, Adobe ASE, SVG, and 4K wallpapers — all free.

What's the hex code for Chinese Brown?

The hex code is #AB381F. In RGB it's 171, 56, 31, and in HSL it's 11°, 69%, 40%.

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