What color is #121417?

#121417 is a very dark low-chroma blue-gray with a subtle blue cast. In RGB it is rgb(18, 20, 23), and in HSL hsl(216, 12%, 8%).

Is #121417 accessible as text?

On white, #121417 has a contrast ratio of 18.45:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.14:1 (fails). For text placed on #121417, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #121417?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is neutral-900 (#171717).

What colors go well with #121417?

As a neutral, #121417 pairs cleanly with white, off-white and light grays for text, and sits under accent hues like blue, violet, emerald or warm orange — use it as a dark surface or high-contrast base and let the accent carry the color.

Is #121417 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #121417 is not the CSS named color midnightblue, but midnightblue (#191970) is the closest CSS named color by perceptual color distance — it sits in a different color family, so treat it as a rough reference, not a match.

#121417 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #121417

Not just a swatch — here's how #121417 works with other colors. Named schemes with #121417 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #121417 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #2E3134

Graphite is the vivid signal in this product UI — on a near-black surface with cool white, a slate grey and a lighter tint of Graphite.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #121417 Secondary #7F4537 Surface #E1DDC1 Accent #375246 Anchor #57223A

Graphite plays the worn-leather lead, deepened by saddle brown and an oxblood anchor, softened by aged cream and cooled by a muted forest green.

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #121417 Surface #EBEADC Highlight #F4F2E7 Secondary #B1B2A0 Ink #2C2724

Graphite sets a calm, sun-bleached base here, wrapped in bone and paper off-whites and a soft greige, with a single ink accent for wabi-sabi restraint.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #121417 Accent #A5C4C1 Surface #DDDBBF Secondary #9AA0A1 Anchor #20344A

Graphite opens this coastal palette with sea-glass and warm sand alongside it, grounded by driftwood grey and a deep-navy anchor.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #121417 Secondary #353537 Support #9D8F89 Ink #16140F

Graphite is the single accent in this high-contrast editorial system — set on near-white paper against near-black ink, with a warm grey and a desaturated tint of Graphite carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #121417 actually behaves in design work — read from its OKLCH lightness, chroma and hue, not just its raw numbers. Ten signals to help you decide where this color earns its place.

Warmth 48/100

Neutral

Balanced temperature — flexible, sits between warm and cool schemes.

Softness 22/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 75/100

High

Deep and grounding — anchors a layout, strong dark-mode base.

Naturalness 0/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 16/100

Very low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 74/100

High

Restrained and premium — deep, quiet, high-end packaging and fashion.

Brand distinctiveness 3/100

Very low

Quiet and neutral — a supporting tone, not a signature.

UI accent fit 7/100

Very low

Weak as an action color — too pale, too dark or too muted to signal.

Surface fit 71/100

High

Calm enough for large fills — backgrounds, cards, sections.

Print safety 99/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #121417

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #121417 with

Gunmetal Gray Graphite Gainsboro Charcoal

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with white label. AAA

Body text Passes on white at 16px and above. Pass

Large display Fine for headings 24px+ on white. Pass

Background Pair with white text at 18.5:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #CCCFD4 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #121217 — the hue gap is too small to read as intentional. Clash

In real applications

Not a swatch to memorise — a color to build with. Here is #121417 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

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Dashboard

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$48.2k ▲ 12%

Brand

AVELINE

Studio

Poster

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NIGHT
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Packaging

BLOOM

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250 ml

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Export

:root {
  --color-base: #121417;
  --color-base-rgb: 18 20 23;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(19.0% 0.007 258.4);
  --color-50: #F6F7F8;
  --color-100: #E8EAED;
  --color-200: #D1D5DB;
  --color-300: #B0B6BF;
  --color-400: #8F97A3;
  --color-500: #707885;
  --color-600: #595F68;
  --color-700: #43464C;
  --color-800: #2E3033;
  --color-900: #1D1E20;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  graphite: {
    50: '#F6F7F8',
    100: '#E8EAED',
    200: '#D1D5DB',
    300: '#B0B6BF',
    400: '#8F97A3',
    500: '#707885',
    600: '#595F68',
    700: '#43464C',
    800: '#2E3033',
    900: '#1D1E20',
  },
}

$base: #121417;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F6F7F8;
$base-100: #E8EAED;
$base-200: #D1D5DB;
$base-300: #B0B6BF;
$base-400: #8F97A3;
$base-500: #707885;
$base-600: #595F68;
$base-700: #43464C;
$base-800: #2E3033;
$base-900: #1D1E20;
$base-hover: #0E1012;
$base-subtle: #B2B7BF;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#121417",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F6F7F8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E8EAED",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#D1D5DB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#B0B6BF",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#8F97A3",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#707885",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#595F68",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#43464C",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2E3033",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1D1E20",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #121417

Color Lab

Pairs with #121417

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export