What color is #161718?

#161718 is a very dark near-black gray with essentially no hue. In RGB it is rgb(22, 23, 24), and in HSL hsl(210, 4%, 9%).

Is #161718 accessible as text?

On white, #161718 has a contrast ratio of 17.95:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.17:1 (fails). For text placed on #161718, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #161718?

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

What colors go well with #161718?

As a neutral, #161718 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 #161718 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #161718 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.

#161718 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #161718

Not just a swatch — here's how #161718 works with other colors. Named schemes with #161718 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #161718 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #333435

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 #161718 Secondary #7F4438 Surface #E1DDC0 Accent #375245 Anchor #57233B

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 #161718 Surface #ECEADC Highlight #F4F2E7 Secondary #B2B2A0 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 #161718 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 #161718 Secondary #383939 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 #161718 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 49/100

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 16/100

Very low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 72/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 1/100

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 #161718

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #161718 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 18.0:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #CFD1D2 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #161618 — 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 #161718 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

Botanical Wash

250 ml

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Export

:root {
  --color-base: #161718;
  --color-base-rgb: 22 23 24;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(20.4% 0.003 248.0);
  --color-50: #F7F7F8;
  --color-100: #EAEBEB;
  --color-200: #D5D6D8;
  --color-300: #B5B8BA;
  --color-400: #95999D;
  --color-500: #767A7F;
  --color-600: #5D6165;
  --color-700: #45474A;
  --color-800: #2F3032;
  --color-900: #1D1F20;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  graphite: {
    50: '#F7F7F8',
    100: '#EAEBEB',
    200: '#D5D6D8',
    300: '#B5B8BA',
    400: '#95999D',
    500: '#767A7F',
    600: '#5D6165',
    700: '#45474A',
    800: '#2F3032',
    900: '#1D1F20',
  },
}

$base: #161718;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F7F7F8;
$base-100: #EAEBEB;
$base-200: #D5D6D8;
$base-300: #B5B8BA;
$base-400: #95999D;
$base-500: #767A7F;
$base-600: #5D6165;
$base-700: #45474A;
$base-800: #2F3032;
$base-900: #1D1F20;
$base-hover: #121213;
$base-subtle: #B7B9BC;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#161718",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F7F7F8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#EAEBEB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#D5D6D8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#B5B8BA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#95999D",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#767A7F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#5D6165",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#45474A",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2F3032",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1D1F20",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #161718

Color Lab

Pairs with #161718

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export