YELLOWS

Kaffir Lime

#B9AB86

RGB 185, 171, 134 · HSL 44°, 27%, 63% · CMYK 0, 8, 28, 27

Kaffir Lime is #B9AB86 in HEX — rgb(185, 171, 134), hsl(44°, 27%, 63%), cmyk(0%, 8%, 28%, 27%).

Kaffir Lime pulls into the light end of the yellows spectrum — HSL 44°, 27%, 63%. The muted saturation makes it quiet but present, and the hue reads warm. In interior projects it shines on kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms, accent walls — bringing sunlight indoors. Reads best alongside white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass.

Color Codes

HEX#B9AB86

RGB185, 171, 134

HSL44°, 27%, 63%

HSV44°, 28%, 73%

CMYK0, 8, 28, 27

Decimal12168070

CSS RGBrgb(185, 171, 134)

CSS HSLhsl(44, 27%, 63%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Behr

Kaffir Lime PPU8-8

Exact match

Valspar

Dry Earth 6008-4A

ΔE 1.3 · #BDAE89

Benjamin Moore

Danville HC-91

ΔE 1.4 · #BCAC89

Vista Paint

Olive Gold C-280

ΔE 2.2 · #BCAA88

Hallman-Lindsay

Bayberry Wax historic-bayberry-wax

ΔE 2.4 · #B6AA89

PPG

Woolen Vest 1112-5

ΔE 2.9 · #B0A582

Dulux

Sedia S16C4

ΔE 3 · #B0A47E

Sherwin-Williams

Garden Sage SW7736

ΔE 3.2 · #B1A584

Dunn-Edwards

Handwoven DE6200

ΔE 3.4 · #BFA984

Kilz

Cumin Seed LF150-02

ΔE 3.7 · #BCB186

Colorhouse

Metal .02 Metal-02

ΔE 3.9 · #BDB091

IKEA

IKEA142 142

ΔE 5.5 · #C6B294

Farrow & Ball

Ball Green 75

ΔE 5.6 · #BCB596

Dutch Boy

Sierra Beige 7425

ΔE 6.2 · #A99E80

RAL

Pebble Grey 7032

ΔE 7.6 · #B8B799

Kobra

Beige 05

ΔE 8.9 · #D0C092

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

41/100

Medium

0 · DarkLight · 100

Balanced reflectance — holds colour without washing out. Versatile for most rooms and the most forgiving range for true-to-chip results.

Undertone

TemperatureWarm MasstoneOrange UndertoneYellow

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

Color Theory

Complementary

#B9AB86

#8795BA

Analogous

#BA9387

#B9AB86

#AEBA87

Triadic

#B9AB86

#87BAAD

#AD87BA

Split-Complementary

#B9AB86

#87AEBA

#9387BA

Tetradic

#B9AB86

#87BA93

#8795BA

#BA87AE

Monochromatic

#6B5F3D

#9B8A59

#B9AB86

#D6CEB8

#F2EFE8

Rectangle

#B9AB86

#95BA87

#8795BA

#AD87BA

Compound

#B9AB86

#AEBA87

#8795BA

#9387BA

Variations

Lighter

#C8BD9F

#D3CCB9

#E4E1D8

Darker

#A4915D

#73653E

#433B23

Saturation

#A8A499

#BAAD87

#DDBD65

Interior Use

Best Rooms

kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms

Best Uses

accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights

Pairs With

white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

2.27:1

Fail

vs Black

9.23:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#B9AB86

#B6AD87

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#B9AB86

#ADAD8C

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#B9AB86

#BBA6AA

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Bright · Optimistic

Kaffir Lime brings light into spaces that lack it — kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms wake up under it. The trick with yellow is restraint: lean toward the muted/buttery end if you want it on walls; reserve high-chroma versions for accents and trim.

SymbolismSunlight, clarity, intellect

PersonalityCheerful, alert, sociable

sunlightclarityjoyalertnesskitchenmorning

How it looks under different light

#CAAD80

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#B9AB86

Daylight 5500K

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

#B7B2A4

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#ECEBEA

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.

#6B7BA6

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 · Trim · Soft furniture

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: #B9AB86;

CSS — background

background-color: #B9AB86;

CSS Variable

--color-kaffir-lime: #B9AB86;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'kaffir-lime': '#B9AB86' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#B9AB86] text-[#B9AB86]

SCSS

$kaffir-lime: #B9AB86;

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#BBAB88 · ΔE 1.3

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#B4A985 · ΔE 1.7

Yorkshire Tan

#C0B08C · ΔE 2.3

Quincy Tan

#BFAE8C · ΔE 2.4

Huntington Beige

#BAA887 · ΔE 2.7

Lenox Tan

#C2AE8E · ΔE 3.9

Coastal Path

#C2B393 · ΔE 4.2

Greenbrier Beige

#BBAB8E · ΔE 4.3

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 #B9AB86?

#B9AB86 is Kaffir Lime, a soft yellow with a warm undertone.

Is #B9AB86 warm or cool?

Kaffir Lime reads warm, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Kaffir Lime?

Kaffir Lime works well in kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms. Designers typically use it for accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights.

What colors pair well with Kaffir Lime?

Kaffir Lime pairs naturally with white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Kaffir Lime?

You can download Kaffir Lime 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 Kaffir Lime?

The hex code is #B9AB86. In RGB it's 185, 171, 134, and in HSL it's 44°, 27%, 63%.

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