Free tool

Email contrast checker

Check WCAG contrast ratio between any text color and background color. AA (4.5:1) and AAA (7:1) thresholds. Specific to email where every inbox renders colors slightly differently.

Text color
Background color
Contrast ratio
16.40
:1
AA · normal text
Pass
≥ 4.5:1
AA · large text
Pass
≥ 3:1
AAA · normal text
Pass
≥ 7:1
AAA · large text
Pass
≥ 4.5:1
Preview
A bold headline to set the tone.
This paragraph renders with the selected text color on the selected background. WCAG contrast thresholds apply differently for normal text (below 18pt or 14pt bold) versus large text.
Small print, disclaimers, and legal copy usually fail first. If your footer doesn't pass AA normal, readers with low-contrast displays or aging eyes won't be able to read it.
What passes where
  • AA normal: the baseline for body copy. Required for most government, enterprise, and retail brands.
  • AA large:18pt or 14pt+ bold. Headlines and display text.
  • AAA: enhanced accessibility. Required in some regulated industries (healthcare, finance, education).
  • Ratios are the same in every email client: but perceived contrast shifts across dark-mode and low-brightness devices, so aim higher than the minimum when in doubt.
Context

Email accessibility isn't optional anymore. Screen readers, low-contrast displays, and aging eyes all depend on sufficient contrast between text and background. WCAG sets the bar: 4.5:1 for normal text (AA), 7:1 for enhanced (AAA). Below 4.5:1 and you're losing readers.

Why it matters

Light gray on white looks clean in your design tool. It fails contrast in every inbox. This checker takes the guesswork out, paste two hex codes and see the ratio, the pass/fail, and the recommended adjustment if it misses.

More than a tool

This is one pre-flight check. Draftship runs 35 of them, live, in the editor.

Subject length, spam triggers, contrast ratios, Gmail clipping, alt text, undeclared variables, CAN-SPAM footers. All audited as you build. Open the editor and ship an email that passes every check.