Crimson is a rich, deep red color that has been prized throughout history for its vibrancy and richness. But with so many shades of red out there, what colors are the closest to crimson?
In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into crimson’s characteristics and look at what other reds are similar in hue, tone, and vibrancy. We’ll examine classic color names like scarlet and burgundy as well as modern shades like oxblood and maroon.
By the end, you’ll have a solid grasp of what makes crimson unique and which reds are its closest cousins across color systems like Pantone, CMYK, RGB, and more. Let’s get started!
Defining Characteristics of Crimson
First, let’s outline the specific qualities that define crimson and make it stand out:
– Hue – Crimson sits between the primary colors of red and blue on the color wheel, leaning slightly more towards red. This gives it a rich, vivid reddish hue.
– Tone – Crimson is a very deep, dark shade of red with a high tone. It has a much darker tone than light or bright reds.
– Saturation – The color is extremely saturated with very little dullness or grayness. It is a highly vivid, intense shade.
– Transparency – Crimson is highly opaque and not transparent or translucent.
– Context – Culturally, crimson is associated with passion, vibrancy, royalty, and prestige. It has an air of luxury.
Keeping these core attributes in mind, we can evaluate other reds against crimson to see which ones draw the closest parallels.
Scarlet
Scarlet is often one of the first reds that come to mind when talking about shades similar to crimson. Like crimson, scarlet leans towards the orange-red side of the color spectrum. It sits between crimson and vermilion in hue.
However, scarlet tends to be brighter and slightly more orange than crimson. It is lighter in tone and not quite as rich. But it is still a vivid, saturated shade that overlaps with crimson in many contexts.
Here are some key comparisons:
| Color | Crimson | Scarlet |
| Hue | Red-blue | Orange-red |
| Tone | Very dark | Dark |
| Saturation | Very high | High |
| Brightness | Low | Medium |
So while not an exact match, scarlet sits in the same color family as crimson and captures some of its vibrancy in a slightly lighter, warmer way.
Oxblood
Moving towards the darker end of the spectrum, oxblood is a very close cousin of crimson in terms of depth and richness. Its name comes from the oxidized, nearly dried blood of oxen which provides a very deep red color.
Oxblood sits near crimson but leans subtly more towards brown tones. This gives it an earthier, more muted look than crimson. It has a hint of brown mixed in, lowering the saturation ever so slightly.
But overall, oxblood closely mirrors the dark tone and opaque nature of crimson. Here’s how they stack up:
| Color | Crimson | Oxblood |
| Hue | Red-blue | Red-brown |
| Tone | Very dark | Very dark |
| Saturation | Very high | High |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
For this muted, deep red hue, oxblood is as close as it gets to crimson. The two are nearly interchangeable in many design and fashion contexts.
Burgundy
Burgundy is another very close match to crimson in terms of the depth of color. Its name comes from the Burgundy wine of eastern France which displays this rich, intense, wine-colored red.
Like oxblood, burgundy is slightly less saturated than crimson and contains subtle hints of brown. But its tone and transparency mirror crimson very closely with a plush, luxurious look.
Here’s how burgundy and crimson shake out:
| Color | Crimson | Burgundy |
| Hue | Red-blue | Red-brown |
| Tone | Very dark | Very dark |
| Saturation | Very high | High |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
With burgundy’s regal history and wine associations, it parallels crimson’s luxurious, prestigious place in the color spectrum. The two colors are seamlessly interchangeable in most contexts.
Maroon
Maroon is one of the closest cousins to crimson when evaluating standard color names. Its origins come from the French word “marron” meaning chestnut.
True maroon sits right next to crimson on the color wheel. It maintains the same red-blue hue but deepens the shade ever so slightly by adding more blue and toning down the brightness.
This gives maroon a subtle cooler, darker look than crimson. But the two colors are extremely similar in depth, saturation, and opacity.
| Color | Crimson | Maroon |
| Hue | Red-blue | Red-blue |
| Tone | Very dark | Very dark |
| Saturation | Very high | Very high |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
Maroon captures the richness and opaqueness of crimson about as closely as any standard color can. In many contexts, the two colors are interchangeable.
Ruby
Ruby sits next to crimson on the cool side of the color wheel with more blue undertones. It gets its name from the ruby gemstone which displays an intense, vibrant red.
Out of the colors examined so far, ruby likely has the closest similarity to crimson in terms of matching its vivid saturation. The two colors are extremely opaque and intense shades of red with tons of pigment.
However, ruby does lean cooler and brighter than crimson. It loses a touch of the depth and darkness that makes crimson so unique. Here’s how they compare:
| Color | Crimson | Ruby |
| Hue | Red-blue | Blue-red |
| Tone | Very dark | Dark |
| Saturation | Very high | Very high |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
For its incredible saturation, ruby mimics crimson about as closely as possible while remaining distinctly brighter and cooler in hue.
Rust
Rust sits on the warm, orange side of red nearer to scarlet. Its name comes from the iron oxide formed on iron metal. This gives it a distinctly earthy, reddish-brown color.
Compared to crimson, rust is significantly more orange in hue and brighter/lighter in tone. It loses the rich blueness that gives crimson its distinctive coolness.
However, rust does mirror some of crimson’s darkness and opacity for an earthy version of a deep red. Here’s how they compare:
| Color | Crimson | Rust |
| Hue | Red-blue | Orange-red |
| Tone | Very dark | Dark |
| Saturation | Very high | Moderate |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
While quite distinct in hue and saturation, rust’s darkness does echo crimson’s shaded nature. But overall, it’s a much warmer and brighter shade.
Cardinal
Cardinal sits between crimson and ruby as a vivid, cool red with blue undertones. It gets its name from the vivid red robes worn by Catholic cardinals.
This puts cardinal near crimson in terms of saturation and opacity. The two colors have an immense intensity that makes them stand out and capture attention.
However, cardinal diverges from crimson with its slightly more pinkish, cooler hue and greater inherent brightness. Here’s how the two shades compare:
| Color | Crimson | Cardinal |
| Hue | Red-blue | Blue-red |
| Tone | Very dark | Dark |
| Saturation | Very high | Very high |
| Transparency | Opaque | Opaque |
Cardinal mimics some of crimson’s boldness and intensity while diverging with its slightly cooler, brighter take on red.
Comparing Color Codes
To get another view, let’s compare crimson numerically to other reds in common color code systems:
RGB values:
| Color | R | G | B |
| Crimson | 220 | 20 | 60 |
| Scarlet | 255 | 36 | 0 |
| Oxblood | 102 | 0 | 0 |
| Burgundy | 128 | 0 | 32 |
| Maroon | 128 | 0 | 0 |
| Ruby | 224 | 17 | 95 |
| Rust | 183 | 65 | 14 |
| Cardinal | 196 | 30 | 58 |
CMYK values:
| Color | C | M | Y | K |
| Crimson | 0 | 100 | 83 | 14 |
| Scarlet | 0 | 100 | 86 | 0 |
| Oxblood | 0 | 100 | 100 | 60 |
| Burgundy | 0 | 100 | 75 | 50 |
| Maroon | 0 | 100 | 100 | 50 |
| Ruby | 0 | 100 | 20 | 12 |
| Rust | 0 | 65 | 90 | 28 |
| Cardinal | 0 | 100 | 70 | 25 |
Pantone values:
| Color | Pantone |
| Crimson | Pantone 201 |
| Scarlet | Pantone 200 |
| Oxblood | Pantone 1945 |
| Burgundy | Pantone 202 |
| Maroon | Pantone 201 |
| Ruby | Pantone 207 |
| Rust | Pantone 173 |
| Cardinal | Pantone 186 |
Looking at these numerical values provides another angle for comparing how close these colors sit to crimson spectrally. We can see small variations in tone, saturation, and brightness.
Conclusion
When evaluating shades against crimson’s signature vibrancy and depth, burgundy and oxblood come the closest in mimicking crimson’s darkness and richness. Maroon matches crimson’s hue nearly exactly while losing a touch of richness.
Scarlet, ruby, and cardinal capture crimson’s bold saturation from different hue angles, while rust adds in crimson’s opacity from an earthier perspective.
There are certainly many shades of rich red that reflect aspects of crimson’s identity. But burgundy, oxblood, and maroon form the closest trio – nearly mimicking the hue, tone, and saturation of this luxurious crimson red.
So when searching for a crimson look, turn first to its deepest, darkest color cousins across the red spectrum. There you’ll find the closest matches to this prestigious shade.