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Lime Silk Clear
Color detail

Lime Silk Clear

Lime · Hue 90
Hex
#ADD981
RGB
rgb(173, 217, 129)
HSL
hsl(90, 54%, 68%)
CMYK
cmyk(20%, 0%, 41%, 15%)
Metrics
S 54% · L 68%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
1.6:1Fail
on black
13:1AA
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Lime Silk Clear (#ADD981) belongs to the lime family — hue 90°, 54% saturation, 68% lightness. Copy the hex, RGB, or HSL value above, or paste the CSS custom property below into your stylesheet to reference this color directly.

CSS
:root {
  --colorarchive-lime-silk-clear: #ADD981;
  --colorarchive-lime-silk-clear-hsl: hsl(90, 54%, 68%);
  --colorarchive-lime-silk-clear-rgb: rgb(173, 217, 129);
}

AI Color Names

Let AI suggest alternative poetic names for this color in English and Chinese.

Design Context

FreshNaturalInvigorating
Common in

Juice & Smoothie Brands · Eco Products · Fitness

Pairs well with

White for cleanliness, soft pink for playful contrast

Design tip

Use for wellness and eco-friendly brands. Light lime as a background creates an airy, energizing feel.

Cultural context ▶

Light lime represents freshness, vitality, and new growth. Common in spring-themed and health-focused design.

Color Origins

Lime family

Half spring leaf, half pop-art neon.

Heritage

Lime — the yellow-green region of the spectrum — has no classical pigment of its own; painters historically achieved it by mixing yellow ochre with terre verte or lead-tin yellow with verdigris. The brilliant phthalo greens and arylide yellows of the 20th century made saturated lime achievable for the first time, which is why lime feels visually 'modern' even though grass and leaves have always lived there.

Across cultures

In Japan, the moss greens of traditional gardens (yamabuki, moegi) sit at the muted edge of lime. In American pop culture lime exploded with the 1960s — the 'Day-Glo' palette of psychedelic posters depended on it, and Mountain Dew commercialized it. In sportswear lime carries 'high-visibility' connotations (running gear, safety vests) that have lately come back into fashion as a deliberate aesthetic.

In the wild

Tennis balls have been lime-yellow ('optic yellow') since 1972, when Wimbledon found it most visible on color TV. Spotify's #1DB954 and the Xbox brand green both sit at the lime end. Lacoste and BP both run on saturated lime greens. Mountain Dew owns the brilliant supersaturated lime in beverage. In film, The Matrix's coded rain is lime-on-black — the choice was originally about the look of phosphor CRT terminals.

How it reads

Lime is the youngest-feeling green: it reads as fresh, citric, energetic, and slightly synthetic. At low saturation it becomes olive or moss, both heavily associated with craft, sustainability, and slow design. At high saturation it reads as sport, beverage, or technology. Lime is one of the harder hues to use as a primary brand color without trending toward 'energy drink' — many brands therefore use it as an accent against deep neutrals.

This particular tone

A confident mid-tone — this is the workhorse register of the hue, and the band where most successful brand colors live.

Lightness band: At mid-lightness the hue carries its full character. This is the band where most identity colors live: bright enough to be distinctive at small sizes, deep enough to sit cleanly on a white canvas.

Saturation band: The clear, mid-saturation register is the most common identity sweet spot — saturated enough to register as a 'real' color, restrained enough not to fight typography or photography placed over it.

Brands using a similar color

Within the public brand-guidelines reference catalog, these are the closest matches to #ADD981.

  • Starbucksneutral
    Warm Neutral · #D4E9E2
    →
  • Patagoniasecondary
    Sunset Yellow · #F4D54F
    →
  • Aesopneutral
    Cream Paper · #EFE4D2
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #ADD981.

  • ScandinaviaOat Beige
    #D5C7A7 · Linseed oil-treated pine
    →
  • China (Traditional)Celadon (青瓷)
    #9CB48F · Song Dynasty Longquan kilns
    →
  • France (Paris)Lutetian Limestone
    #E5DDC8 · Paris facade stone (Haussmannian-era buildings)
    →

Tonal strip

All lightness levels at this hue and saturation. Click any to navigate.

Palette moves

Instead of stopping at one swatch, use nearby, opposite, and tonal neighbors to branch into a broader palette.

Lighter companion
Lime Bloom Clear
#C2E3A1 · hsl(90, 54%, 76%)
Darker companion
Lime Tone Clear
#99D062 · hsl(90, 54%, 60%)
Complementary counterpoint
Plum Silk Clear
#AD81D9 · hsl(270, 54%, 68%)
Analogous lead
Clover Silk Clear
#89D981 · hsl(115, 54%, 68%)
Analogous echo
Honey Silk Clear
#CBD981 · hsl(70, 54%, 68%)
Triadic +120°
Sapphire Silk Clear
#81ADD9 · hsl(210, 54%, 68%)
Triadic +240°
Blush Silk Clear
#D981AD · hsl(330, 54%, 68%)
Split-comp +150°
Iris Silk Clear
#8181D9 · hsl(240, 54%, 68%)
Split-comp +210°
Fuchsia Silk Clear
#D981D9 · hsl(300, 54%, 68%)
Export preview
Base: Lime Silk Clear #ADD981
Lighter companion: Lime Bloom Clear #C2E3A1
Darker companion: Lime Tone Clear #99D062
Complementary counterpoint: Plum Silk Clear #AD81D9
Analogous lead: Clover Silk Clear #89D981
Analogous echo: Honey Silk Clear #CBD981
Triadic +120°: Sapphire Silk Clear #81ADD9
Triadic +240°: Blush Silk Clear #D981AD
Split-comp +150°: Iris Silk Clear #8181D9
Split-comp +210°: Fuchsia Silk Clear #D981D9

Compare

See how Lime Silk Clear compares side by side with related colors.

vsLime Bloom ClearvsLime Tone ClearvsPlum Silk ClearvsClover Silk ClearvsHoney Silk ClearvsSapphire Silk Clear

Nearest neighbors

The closest archive matches by hue, saturation, and lightness.

Search by hex
Nearby match
Lime Tone Clear
#99D062 · hsl(90, 54%, 60%)
Nearby match
Lime Bloom Clear
#C2E3A1 · hsl(90, 54%, 76%)
Nearby match
Lime Silk Soft
#ADC992 · hsl(90, 34%, 68%)
Nearby match
Lime Silk Vivid
#ADEA71 · hsl(90, 74%, 68%)
Nearby match
Lime Radiant Clear
#8AC94A · hsl(90, 54%, 54%)
Nearby match
Olive Silk Clear
#BCD981 · hsl(80, 54%, 68%)

Accessible pairings

Archive colors that meet WCAG contrast standards when paired with this color. Use as text-on-background or background-on-text.

Contrast checker
AAA7.1:1
Plum Shadow Soft
#472F60
AAA7.6:1
Plum Shadow Clear
#47216E
AAA7.9:1
Plum Shadow Vivid
#47137C
AAA7.9:1
Plum Shadow Bright
#470B83
AAA7.9:1
Plum Shadow Pure
#470689
AAA8.2:1
Plum Nocturne Faint
#332E38

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#BFBCA2
Protanopia
#C2C29C
Tritanopia
#B0AEB2
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Appears in collections
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