How Should You Choose Colors for a Blog? | Web Design That Makes Long Text Easier to Read

When choosing a blog’s color scheme, consider more than the impression created by its homepage. Readers should also be able to follow a long article comfortably. Decorative backgrounds and bright headings do little to help if body text or links are difficult to recognize. A practical approach is to choose the body-text and background colors first, then assign colors to headings, the table of contents, and additional notes.

Start by pairing the article background with body text

Because written content is central to a blog, begin with the background and text colors of the article itself. Dark text against a pale surface provides a clear lightness difference, helping letter shapes remain distinct across long passages. The entire page does not need to be pure white: a slightly tinted outer background with a white article area is another option.

Give headings a different dark color from the body text, and use size and spacing to reinforce where each section begins. Links can share the heading’s color family, but should also be underlined rather than identified only through color. Dates, author names, and similar metadata can be less prominent while still keeping enough contrast for small text.

Before adding more colors, check whether a reader can tell where they are in an article and which items they can open next. Consistent roles for backgrounds, text, headings, and links help the site feel organized even when individual posts contain images or charts with different colors.

An example palette for body text, headings, and the table of contents

Consider a personal blog that publishes longer explanatory articles. HEX codes are hexadecimal values used to specify colors on the web.

• Outer page background: pale gray ■#F7F8F6. Use this subdued color around the article to distinguish its reading area from the sidebar.
• Article background: white ■#FFFFFF. Its contrast ratio with the surrounding gray ■#F7F8F6 is only about 1.07:1, so also use spacing and a visible border to define the article area.
• Body text: deep charcoal ■#28343A. It has a contrast ratio of about 12.79:1 on white ■#FFFFFF and 12.00:1 on pale gray ■#F7F8F6.
• Headings and text links: deep teal ■#23565F. It contrasts at about 8.18:1 on white ■#FFFFFF and 7.26:1 on the table-of-contents background ■#ECF3EF described below. Underline text links as well.
• Dates and author names: blue-gray ■#55676E. Its contrast ratio on white ■#FFFFFF is about 5.91:1. This is quieter than the main text while retaining sufficient contrast for smaller labels.
• Table of contents and supplementary notes: very pale gray-green ■#ECF3EF. Deep charcoal ■#28343A text on this background provides about 11.34:1, making supporting material easier to distinguish from the surrounding article.
• Article and table-of-contents borders: muted gray ■#71868A. This has a contrast ratio of about 3.83:1 against white ■#FFFFFF and 3.40:1 against the note background ■#ECF3EF. Use a border when identifying a boundary matters.
• “View All Articles” button: deep teal ■#23565F as the background with white ■#FFFFFF text, giving a contrast ratio of about 8.18:1.

Using the same teal for headings, links, and buttons gives navigation a consistent visual language while leaving the colors of photographs and diagrams intact. Most reading surfaces remain light, with a separate background reserved for material that needs a different role.

What to check when readers scroll through long articles

Avoid filling a long article with too many shaded tables of contents, quotations, or supplementary boxes. A sequence of pale panels can break up the flow of the main text. Apply colored backgrounds to a table of contents or important notes, and keep ordinary paragraphs on a consistent surface.

On phones, less of the article fits on screen at once, so pay attention to heading breaks, visible link underlines, and where background colors change. Review line spacing, line length, and the space around headings alongside your color choices. If you change a background, recalculate its contrast with any text placed on it.

WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.2 Level AA requires a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 between normal-sized text and its background, or 3:1 for large text. Essential non-text indicators, such as borders needed to identify a control or understand information, must contrast with adjacent colors by at least 3:1. The values above were calculated for the stated color pairs; they do not establish accessibility compliance for the entire website.