Autumn family · 12-season color analysis

Autumn Color Palette: Soft, True and Deep Autumn Compared

All three Autumn palettes are warm and earthy, but they differ in how muted, how golden and how dark they are. Compare them here, then open the one that fits.

By StyleFind Editorial Team · Published November 8, 2026

Created with AI assistance. StyleFind is responsible for this page and corrects errors when they are found.

An Autumn palette is warm and blended: spice, moss, bronze and turning leaves rather than clean brights or icy pastels. The 12-season system splits it into three. Soft Autumn is led by mutedness, True Autumn by warmth and Deep Autumn by darkness, so the useful question is which of those three traits is strongest in your own coloring.

Not sure? Take the color analysis quiz →

The three Autumn palettes compared

Season	Undertone	Value	Chroma	Lightness (L*)	Color strength (C*)
Soft Autumn	Warm-neutral	Medium	Soft (muted)	56	26
True Autumn	Warm (golden)	Medium to medium-deep	Rich, moderately muted	52	46
Deep Autumn	Warm-neutral	Deep	Rich	37	39

True Autumn is darker (L* 52 vs 56) and stronger in color (C* 46 vs 26) than Soft Autumn. Deep Autumn is darker (L* 37 vs 52) and softer in color (C* 39 vs 46) than True Autumn.

Calculated from the core and accent hex codes in each StyleFind palette, using CIELAB lightness (L*, 0 to 100) and chroma (C*, higher means stronger color).

Autumn color palette hex codes

These palettes are guidance from the seasonal color analysis tradition, not a scientific rule. Screens and dyes vary, so treat each hex value as a close reference rather than an exact fabric match.

Season	Signature colors	Neutrals
Soft Autumn	Sage `#9aa082` Terracotta Rose `#b07a66` Soft Teal `#5f8580` Dusty Coral `#c88f78`	Mushroom `#a39484` Warm Taupe `#8c7b6b` Soft Olive-Brown `#6e6450` Cream `#e8dcc4`
True Autumn	Rust `#b5532a` Mustard `#c9a032` Olive Green `#7a7a2e` Warm Teal `#2f7a6e`	Camel `#b5895a` Chocolate `#5a3a26` Khaki `#a8996a` Olive Drab `#6b6a3a`
Deep Autumn	Oxblood `#6a1f1f` Deep Teal `#1f4a4a` Burnt Orange `#a8481c` Forest `#2a4a2e`	Espresso `#3b2a22` Dark Chocolate `#4a3326` Deep Olive `#474528` Warm Charcoal `#3d3833`

All Soft Autumn hex and RGB codes in one table

Color	Group	Hex	RGB
Mushroom	Neutral	`#a39484`	163, 148, 132
Warm Taupe	Neutral	`#8c7b6b`	140, 123, 107
Soft Olive-Brown	Neutral	`#6e6450`	110, 100, 80
Cream	Neutral	`#e8dcc4`	232, 220, 196
Camel	Neutral	`#b8976e`	184, 151, 110
Cocoa	Neutral	`#6b5344`	107, 83, 68
Stone	Neutral	`#a09684`	160, 150, 132
Milk Chocolate	Neutral	`#7d6150`	125, 97, 80
Sage	Core	`#9aa082`	154, 160, 130
Moss	Core	`#7d7d55`	125, 125, 85
Soft Teal	Core	`#5f8580`	95, 133, 128
Muted Jade	Core	`#6f9483`	111, 148, 131
Terracotta Rose	Core	`#b07a66`	176, 122, 102
Dusty Coral	Core	`#c88f78`	200, 143, 120
Dusty Peach	Core	`#cfa88f`	207, 168, 143
Rosewood	Core	`#9e6b62`	158, 107, 98
Soft Rust	Core	`#a3674a`	163, 103, 74
Muted Mustard	Core	`#bfa25e`	191, 162, 94
Khaki	Core	`#a99d76`	169, 157, 118
Brick	Accent	`#9a5a45`	154, 90, 69
Olive Gold	Accent	`#a8934a`	168, 147, 74
Deep Jade	Accent	`#4f7a6a`	79, 122, 106
Plum Brown	Accent	`#7a5a5e`	122, 90, 94
Honeyed Ochre	Accent	`#b88c4f`	184, 140, 79
Deep Teal	Accent	`#3f6663`	63, 102, 99
Burnished Copper	Accent	`#a8714f`	168, 113, 79

All True Autumn hex and RGB codes in one table

Color	Group	Hex	RGB
Camel	Neutral	`#b5895a`	181, 137, 90
Chocolate	Neutral	`#5a3a26`	90, 58, 38
Khaki	Neutral	`#a8996a`	168, 153, 106
Olive Drab	Neutral	`#6b6a3a`	107, 106, 58
Cream	Neutral	`#f0e3c4`	240, 227, 196
Bronze Brown	Neutral	`#7a5530`	122, 85, 48
Coffee	Neutral	`#4a3424`	74, 52, 36
Fawn	Neutral	`#c9ad85`	201, 173, 133
Rust	Core	`#b5532a`	181, 83, 42
Pumpkin	Core	`#c7702f`	199, 112, 47
Mustard	Core	`#c9a032`	201, 160, 50
Olive Green	Core	`#7a7a2e`	122, 122, 46
Warm Teal	Core	`#2f7a6e`	47, 122, 110
Terracotta	Core	`#b8613f`	184, 97, 63
Paprika	Core	`#a63f2a`	166, 63, 42
Moss	Core	`#5f6b2c`	95, 107, 44
Antique Brass	Core	`#a68a30`	166, 138, 48
Tomato Red	Core	`#c24a2c`	194, 74, 44
Warm Forest	Core	`#3f5a32`	63, 90, 50
Green Turquoise	Accent	`#2a8a80`	42, 138, 128
Marigold	Accent	`#d4952f`	212, 149, 47
Burnt Sienna	Accent	`#9c4a1e`	156, 74, 30
Peacock	Accent	`#1f6b6b`	31, 107, 107
Saffron	Accent	`#d6aa48`	214, 170, 72
Warm Salmon	Accent	`#d48a62`	212, 138, 98
Ginger	Accent	`#c07a3a`	192, 122, 58

All Deep Autumn hex and RGB codes in one table

Color	Group	Hex	RGB
Espresso	Neutral	`#3b2a22`	59, 42, 34
Dark Chocolate	Neutral	`#4a3326`	74, 51, 38
Deep Olive	Neutral	`#474528`	71, 69, 40
Warm Charcoal	Neutral	`#3d3833`	61, 56, 51
Cream	Neutral	`#efe2c8`	239, 226, 200
Coffee Bean	Neutral	`#2e221c`	46, 34, 28
Dark Khaki	Neutral	`#5c4e33`	92, 78, 51
Mahogany	Neutral	`#5a2e22`	90, 46, 34
Oxblood	Core	`#6a1f1f`	106, 31, 31
Burnt Orange	Core	`#a8481c`	168, 72, 28
Deep Teal	Core	`#1f4a4a`	31, 74, 74
Forest	Core	`#2a4a2e`	42, 74, 46
Aubergine Brown	Core	`#4a2a35`	74, 42, 53
Rust Brown	Core	`#8a3a1e`	138, 58, 30
Dark Olive	Core	`#5a5a1e`	90, 90, 30
Bronze	Core	`#7a5a1f`	122, 90, 31
Petrol	Core	`#1e4550`	30, 69, 80
Brick	Core	`#7d2e22`	125, 46, 34
Mulberry Brown	Core	`#5a2433`	90, 36, 51
Dark Moss	Core	`#3e4a22`	62, 74, 34
Pumpkin Spice	Accent	`#c9652a`	201, 101, 42
Saffron	Accent	`#c9952a`	201, 149, 42
Deep Turquoise	Accent	`#1f7a72`	31, 122, 114
Tomato Red	Accent	`#b03a24`	176, 58, 36
Copper	Accent	`#b0683a`	176, 104, 58
Warm Ruby	Accent	`#8a1f2c`	138, 31, 44
Golden Olive	Accent	`#8a8a2e`	138, 138, 46

Each season guide explains how to wear its palette: Soft Autumn, True Autumn and Deep Autumn.

Which Autumn are you?

Read across each row and note which column sounds most like you. Judge your natural coloring where you can, since dye and tanning shift the picture. If one column wins clearly, start with that palette. If two tie, open both season guides and compare their neighbor sections.

On deep skin with dark hair and eyes, contrast between features says little. Skip the first row and rely on how fabric looks next to your face: whether your skin stays rich and even or turns gray or ashy.

Check	Soft Autumn	True Autumn	Deep Autumn
Overall depth and contrast	Low to medium. Features blend together.	Medium. Less blended than Soft, less dramatic than Deep.	Medium to high. Hair or eyes are notably dark.
How the warmth shows up	Gently. Undertone tests often come out ambiguous.	Clearly. Gold, copper or bronze shows in your overall coloring.	Under the depth. Neutral-warm, olive or golden-bronze.
What goes wrong	Saturated jewel tones look harsh.	Cool, icy, blue-based colors pull against the gold.	Pastels and pale shades make features look less defined.
Metals that tend to work	Brushed gold, antique brass, matte finishes.	Yellow gold, brass and copper, polished or hammered.	Antique gold, bronze and copper in chunkier pieces.

A rough first impression

Find clothes or fabric close to these three colors and hold each under your chin in daylight. The three differ in depth and hue as well as softness, so simply liking one color can sway this. Treat it as a first impression. The right color lets your skin keep its own depth and warmth; the wrong one can turn it gray, ashy or yellow. Ignore features a color cannot change.

Sage #9aa082: points toward Soft Autumn
Rust #b5532a: points toward True Autumn
Oxblood #6a1f1f: points toward Deep Autumn

If you are between two Autumns

Both palettes in each pair contain these close matches, so they are a low-risk place to start while you decide.

Soft and True Autumn: Deep Jade (#4f7a6a) and Warm Teal (#2f7a6e); Deep Teal (#3f6663) and Peacock (#1f6b6b); Olive Gold (#a8934a) and Antique Brass (#a68a30).
True and Deep Autumn: Warm Teal (#2f7a6e) and Deep Turquoise (#1f7a72); Rust (#b5532a) and Burnt Orange (#a8481c); Marigold (#d4952f) and Saffron (#c9952a).

If none of these fit

Autumn may not be your family at all. Soft Autumn borders Soft Summer, which is just as muted but cooler. Deep Autumn borders Deep Winter, which is just as dark but cooler and sharper. If cool versions of these colors look better on you, read those guides or take the color analysis quiz.

Autumn palette FAQ

Can autumn palettes include black?

Autumn palettes usually replace black with dark browns and deep olive because those stay warm. You can still wear black. If it looks heavy on you, keep it away from your face or wear a warm color or gold jewelry near it.

Does an autumn color palette depend on skin tone?

No. The system does not tie any season to a skin depth, so all three can apply to light, medium or deep skin. The season describes how depth, warmth and softness relate across your skin, hair and eyes, not how light or dark your skin is.

Do I only wear these colors in the fall?

No. The season names are a metaphor for the character of the colors. An Autumn palette works all year, and in warm weather you can lean on its lighter creams, sages and camels.

Is seasonal color analysis scientific?

No. It is a styling tradition, and these palettes are guidance. An analyst can compare more fabric drapes under controlled light than you can at home, but results can differ between analysts, and no system limits what you are allowed to wear.

Explore the other color seasons

Compare all twelve in the seasonal color analysis overview.