Designing for color blindness: a practical guide
5 min readUpdated May 26, 2026
About 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women see color differently. Designing for them is mostly about not making color carry meaning on its own.
The common types
- Deuteranopia / protanopia — red-green confusion, by far the most common.
- Tritanopia — blue-yellow confusion, rare.
- Achromatopsia — no color at all, very rare.
Run your palette through the Color Blindness Simulator to see how each type flattens your colors.
Three rules that fix most issues
- Never rely on color alone — add icons, labels, patterns or text. A red/green status dot needs a shape difference too.
- Keep contrast high — colorblind users lean on luminance, so a palette that passes WCAG contrast is already more robust.
- Avoid red/green pairings for critical distinctions; blue/orange survives almost every deficiency.
Frequently asked questions
What colors are best for color blindness?
Blue and orange remain distinguishable across nearly all types. Avoid using red and green as the only difference between two states.
How do I test my design for colorblind users?
Paste your colors into the Color Blindness Simulator to preview deuteranopia, protanopia, tritanopia and achromatopsia side by side.
Is high contrast enough for accessibility?
It is the foundation, but not sufficient alone — also avoid encoding meaning purely in hue, and provide non-color cues like icons or labels.