What color is #243238?

#243238 is a dark low-chroma blue-gray with a subtle blue cast. In RGB it is rgb(36, 50, 56), and in HSL hsl(198, 22%, 18%).

Is #243238 accessible as text?

On white, #243238 has a contrast ratio of 13.22:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.59:1 (fails). For text placed on #243238, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #243238?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is gray-800 (#1E2939).

What colors go well with #243238?

As a neutral, #243238 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 #243238 the same as CSS darkslategray?

No — #243238 is not the CSS named color darkslategray, but darkslategray (#2F4F4F) 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.

#243238 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #243238

Not just a swatch — here's how #243238 works with other colors. Named schemes with #243238 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #243238 Accent #A6C4BF Surface #DEDABF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1E344A

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

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #243238 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #596672 Accent #445157

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

Nordic Calm Accent · 5 colors

Accent #243238 Secondary #AEB4B8 Surface #F1F2F0 Support #7B93A5 Anchor #2E3236

Gunmetal Gray keeps this Nordic scheme quiet — cool greys and a soft white around it, a muted-blue support and a charcoal anchor.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #243238 Secondary #6F5116 Surface #E2DCC0 Accent #385244 Anchor #56233D

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

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #243238 Secondary #505558 Support #969386 Ink #16140F

Gunmetal Gray 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 Gunmetal Gray carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #243238 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 44/100

Neutral

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

Softness 33/100

Low

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 65/100

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 24/100

Low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 66/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 8/100

Very low

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

UI accent fit 24/100

Low

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

Surface fit 58/100

Moderate

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 94/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #243238

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #243238 with

Dark Slate Gray Gunmetal Gray Bistre 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 13.2:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #CFD8DC for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #242B38 — 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 #243238 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

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Build faster.

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Dashboard

Revenue

$48.2k ▲ 12%

Brand

AVELINE

Studio

Poster

Nov 14 · 8PM

NIGHT
MARKET

Packaging

BLOOM

Botanical Wash

250 ml

Interior

Every model

Export

:root {
  --color-base: #243238;
  --color-base-rgb: 36 50 56;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(30.7% 0.022 226.1);
  --color-50: #F6F8F9;
  --color-100: #E6ECEF;
  --color-200: #CDDADF;
  --color-300: #A9BDC6;
  --color-400: #87A0AB;
  --color-500: #67828E;
  --color-600: #53666F;
  --color-700: #3F4B50;
  --color-800: #2B3336;
  --color-900: #1C2022;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  gunmetal-gray: {
    50: '#F6F8F9',
    100: '#E6ECEF',
    200: '#CDDADF',
    300: '#A9BDC6',
    400: '#87A0AB',
    500: '#67828E',
    600: '#53666F',
    700: '#3F4B50',
    800: '#2B3336',
    900: '#1C2022',
  },
}

$base: #243238;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F6F8F9;
$base-100: #E6ECEF;
$base-200: #CDDADF;
$base-300: #A9BDC6;
$base-400: #87A0AB;
$base-500: #67828E;
$base-600: #53666F;
$base-700: #3F4B50;
$base-800: #2B3336;
$base-900: #1C2022;
$base-hover: #1D282D;
$base-subtle: #B6C4CB;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#243238",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F6F8F9",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E6ECEF",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#CDDADF",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#A9BDC6",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#87A0AB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#67828E",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#53666F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#3F4B50",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2B3336",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1C2022",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}