Linear Color Accessibility — WCAG Contrast Audit

Linear’s primary brand colors audited against WCAG contrast — 2 of 3 pairs pass AA for normal text.

At a glance

Pairs audited
3
Passing AA (normal text)
2 of 3
AA threshold
4.5:1
AAA threshold
7:1

Linear is built around a deep indigo gradient and a near-black canvas. The brand consistently leans into high-contrast pairs, which serves accessibility well by default. This page audits Linear’s primary brand-color combinations against the WCAG 2.1 AA threshold (4.5:1 for normal-size body text). Results are computed live from the published brand colors and the WCAG luminance formula.

Brand pair audit

Linear Purple on White

Body sample text for accessibility check.

#5E6AD2 on #FFFFFF
4.70:1AA

White on Linear Dark

Body sample text for accessibility check.

#FFFFFF on #1C1D21
16.84:1AAA

Linear Purple on Dark

Body sample text for accessibility check.

#5E6AD2 on #1C1D21
3.58:1AA-large

Audit results

Linear Purple on White — #5E6AD2 on #FFFFFF → 4.70:1 ✓ AA White on Linear Dark — #FFFFFF on #1C1D21 → 16.84:1 ✓ AAA Linear Purple on Dark — #5E6AD2 on #1C1D21 → 3.58:1 ⚠ AA-large only

What this means in practice

Linear’s purple narrowly misses AA on white at body size — it’s used primarily for buttons and large headings. The dark canvas with white text comfortably exceeds AAA.

Frequently asked questions

Does Linear comply with WCAG?
Brand color tokens are one input to compliance — actual page conformance depends on which pairs are used where. Linear has 2 of 3 primary pairs passing AA at body size. Some pairs are intended for large text or background usage only.
Where can I check the latest brand guidelines?
Brand guidelines change without notice. Always cross-check against Linear’s current published brand site or design-system documentation before shipping. The hex values used here reflect publicly documented brand color tokens at the time of writing.
How do I fix failing brand pairs in my own design system?
When a brand color fails AA on white, the standard fix is to introduce a darker variant (often suffixed -700 or -600 in design-system terminology) for use as text on light surfaces, while reserving the lighter brand color for large headings or background usage. The contrast checker above suggests the nearest passing color in either direction.

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