Should Your Website Design Consider Color Blindness?

Many businesses don’t even think about color blindness during website design. However, according to the National Eye Institute, this disability is suffered by as many as 8 percent of men (approximately 10.5 million) and 0.5 percent of women with Northern European ancestry. Nonetheless, a crucial aspect of an effective website design is user experience and accessibility. Does your website address this visual impairment?

Essentially, color blindness is the inability to distinguish or perceive certain colors in the same way as those without the condition. In an extreme form, called monochromacy, things appear in grayscale, similar to a black and white movie. However, this form of the condition is very rare. In most cases, the issue for those suffering with color blindness is distinguishing between different shades or brightness of a color. Therefore, they can see color. The problem is more that some subtleties and details can become lost.  

Regardless, while color blindness can be a major issue for some of your website visitors, there tends to have some easy fixes. 

Website Design Considering Color Blindness

1. Use Contrasting Colors – This is, essentially, placing dark text on a light background or vice-versa. Even people with the most extreme form of this visual impairment can see the contrast between light and dark. 

2. Use Different Shades Rather than Different Colors – Using a monochromatic color scheme (multiple shades of one color) is an effective technique for reducing color frustration. It is similar to grayscale (black and white) but other colors can be used.

3. Carefully Select Your Color Scheme – It is important to carefully select your brand’s color scheme before website design. Unfortunately, it is sometimes difficult to get just the right look. Nonetheless, it is a good idea to test before establishing your website.

Ultimately, considering color blindness is about making your website user-friendly for all visitors. Moreover, color blindness is not different from any other disability, and businesses are accountable for accessibility. Regardless, enhancing your site should have no impact whatsoever on others without the impairment. 

What haven’t we covered yet that is important to you? If you would like to talk about website design and color blindness, or need more information, please contact us.