What color is #121B20?

#121B20 is a very dark low-chroma blue-gray with a subtle blue cast. In RGB it is rgb(18, 27, 32), and in HSL hsl(201, 28%, 10%).

Is #121B20 accessible as text?

On white, #121B20 has a contrast ratio of 17.45:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.20:1 (fails). For text placed on #121B20, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #121B20?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is zinc-900 (#18181B).

What colors go well with #121B20?

As a neutral, #121B20 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 #121B20 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #121B20 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.

#121B20 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #121B20

Not just a swatch — here's how #121B20 works with other colors. Named schemes with #121B20 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #121B20 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #30383D

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 #121B20 Secondary #6F5216 Surface #E2DCC0 Accent #385244 Anchor #56233D

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 #121B20 Surface #ECEADC Highlight #F4F2E7 Secondary #B3B2A0 Ink #2A2723

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 #121B20 Accent #A6C4C0 Surface #DEDABF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1F344A

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 #121B20 Secondary #393D3E Support #969386 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 #121B20 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 45/100

Neutral

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

Softness 24/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 73/100

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 18/100

Very low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 73/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 6/100

Very low

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

UI accent fit 10/100

Very low

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

Surface fit 66/100

High

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

Print safety 96/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #121B20

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #121B20 with

Bottle Green Graphite Platinum 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 17.5:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #C8D4DA for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #121721 — 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 #121B20 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

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Dashboard

Revenue

$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: #121B20;
  --color-base-rgb: 18 27 32;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(21.6% 0.016 232.8);
  --color-50: #F5F8FA;
  --color-100: #E5ECF1;
  --color-200: #CBDAE2;
  --color-300: #A6BDCA;
  --color-400: #82A0B0;
  --color-500: #628293;
  --color-600: #4F6672;
  --color-700: #3C4B53;
  --color-800: #2A3237;
  --color-900: #1B2022;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  graphite: {
    50: '#F5F8FA',
    100: '#E5ECF1',
    200: '#CBDAE2',
    300: '#A6BDCA',
    400: '#82A0B0',
    500: '#628293',
    600: '#4F6672',
    700: '#3C4B53',
    800: '#2A3237',
    900: '#1B2022',
  },
}

$base: #121B20;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F5F8FA;
$base-100: #E5ECF1;
$base-200: #CBDAE2;
$base-300: #A6BDCA;
$base-400: #82A0B0;
$base-500: #628293;
$base-600: #4F6672;
$base-700: #3C4B53;
$base-800: #2A3237;
$base-900: #1B2022;
$base-hover: #0F161A;
$base-subtle: #ABBFC9;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#121B20",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F5F8FA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E5ECF1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#CBDAE2",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#A6BDCA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#82A0B0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#628293",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#4F6672",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#3C4B53",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2A3237",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1B2022",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #121B20

Color Lab

Pairs with #121B20

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export