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Using colour properly

Accessible use of colour

Two potential accessibility issues arise from the use of colour:

  • insufficient contrast between text and background colours
  • insufficient distinction between colours, affecting users who are colour blind, use monochrome screens, screen readers, text browsers or other devices where colour is not available.

Colour combinations used for text and background colours should offer sufficient contrast to ensure they are legible to all users. Several colour contrast testing tools are available (see below). Colour combinations that fail these tests should never be used. However, those that pass may still present contrast problems for some users. There is no simple definitive test to ensure sufficient colour contrast or differentiation.

Colour should not be the only means for distinguishing between different types of content, or the only means for highlighting important content. For example, using red text as the only means of marking required fields on a form will not provide necessary information to users who cannot see colours.

Wrong: Fields marked with red text must be completed.
Right: Fields marked with an asterisk* must be completed.

Approved web colours

The approved colours for the web are detailed in Branding and visual identity. See visual components of the web templates for an overview of the terminology used to refer to template components such as global navigation, section navigation and highlight boxes.

For information on colour values for print publications, please refer to the Monash Brand Guidelines.

Resources