Color schemes are the fastest-acting and also the most error-prone part of web design. They affect visual appeal, readability, and first impressions of a brand all at once. This article looks at two aspects: how colors are described and how they are combined.
How Colors Are Represented on the Web
Colors on the web can be described in several ways. The most common is hexadecimal notation, which represents a specific color with a code and is suited to precise control; another defines color using values for the red, green, and blue channels, with the advantage that transparency can be specified additionally, making semi-transparent effects more convenient; and another describes color by hue, saturation, and lightness, which is closer to people's intuition when choosing colors—if you want it lighter or more vivid, you simply adjust the corresponding value. The three formats can be converted into one another, so in practice just choose the one that fits the scenario.
The First Principle of Color Combinations: Ensure Readability
No matter how attractive a color scheme is, it is meaningless if the text cannot be read clearly. There must be sufficient contrast in lightness or hue between text and background; avoid combinations such as light gray text on a white background—"elegant to look at, tiring to read"—and pay particular attention to body text, which accounts for the longest reading time. In addition, users with less common color vision need to be considered—using color alone to distinguish information (for example, one color for errors and another for success) is not enough; it is best to also provide textual or graphical cues.
Control the Number of Colors
Too many colors on a page make it look cluttered and make it hard to find the focal point. A more reliable approach is to use three layers: one primary color determines the overall tone, one or two secondary colors distinguish sections, and a small amount of accent color emphasizes action entry points. Neutral colors (black, white, and grays of various shades) do most of the work for backgrounds and text and act as the stabilizer of the composition. In practice, the primary color occupies the largest area and the accent color the least—imbalanced proportions are why many color schemes look cheap.
Colors Must Serve the Brand and Content
A color scheme is not an isolated aesthetic choice. It needs to match the brand's existing visual system and suit the character of the content. The same set of colors may be appropriate for formal product documentation but not necessarily for a lighthearted campaign page. Also keep in mind that the meaning of color changes with context; the same color carries different associations in different cultures, so it is worth checking in advance when targeting overseas users.
Dark Mode Requires Separate Design
Simply inverting the colors of a light page usually does not work well. In dark mode, pure black is not suitable for the background, and pure white is not ideal for text; otherwise the contrast is too strong and long reading sessions cause fatigue. At the same time, colors that looked restrained on a light background may become too harsh on a dark background and need their saturation adjusted.
A Few Everyday Habits
First, do not use the raw colors from the default palette directly. Those base colors with the highest saturation often look harsh, and a slight adjustment makes a big difference. Second, before settling on colors, test them on real content—use actual headings, paragraphs, and long text, not placeholder text. Third, think in the three dimensions of hue, saturation, and lightness when adjusting colors: when a client says, "Make this blue lighter and brighter," you immediately know to lower saturation and increase lightness. Fourth, organize the chosen colors into a simple specification that clearly states where each color is used, making future maintenance and handover easier.
There is no standard answer for color schemes, but there is a general test: show the page to someone unfamiliar with the context and ask what they notice first and whether they can read it smoothly. If the answers match your expectations, the color scheme holds up.