What color is #273231?

#273231 is a very dark low-chroma cool gray with a subtle cool cast. In RGB it is rgb(39, 50, 49), and in HSL hsl(175, 12%, 17%).

Is #273231 accessible as text?

On white, #273231 has a contrast ratio of 13.23:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.59:1 (fails). For text placed on #273231, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #273231?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is zinc-800 (#27272A).

What colors go well with #273231?

As a neutral, #273231 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 #273231 the same as CSS darkslategray?

No — #273231 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.

#273231 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #273231

Not just a swatch — here's how #273231 works with other colors. Named schemes with #273231 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #273231 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #586771 Accent #475150

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.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #273231 Secondary #725018 Surface #E4DCC0 Accent #3A5142 Anchor #552341

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.

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #273231 Surface #EDEADC Highlight #F5F2E7 Secondary #B5B19F Ink #2A2723

Gunmetal Gray 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.

Luxury Packaging Feature · 5 colors

Feature #273231 Anchor #141210 Accent #B9A94D Secondary #1D2C2B Surface #F1EDE3

Gunmetal Gray carries the depth in this luxury scheme, offset by a brass accent and near-black and held together by a deep neutral and an off-white surface.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #273231 Secondary #515555 Support #979286 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 #273231 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 47/100

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 6/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 25/100

Low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 66/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 6/100

Very low

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

UI accent fit 22/100

Low

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

Surface fit 61/100

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 #273231

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #273231 with

Outer Space Gunmetal Gray Bistre Platinum

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 #D1D8D8 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #262E31 — 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 #273231 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

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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: #273231;
  --color-base-rgb: 39 50 49;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(30.7% 0.015 189.6);
  --color-50: #F6F8F8;
  --color-100: #E8EDED;
  --color-200: #D1DBDA;
  --color-300: #B0BFBE;
  --color-400: #8FA3A1;
  --color-500: #708583;
  --color-600: #596867;
  --color-700: #434C4B;
  --color-800: #2E3333;
  --color-900: #1D2020;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  gunmetal-gray: {
    50: '#F6F8F8',
    100: '#E8EDED',
    200: '#D1DBDA',
    300: '#B0BFBE',
    400: '#8FA3A1',
    500: '#708583',
    600: '#596867',
    700: '#434C4B',
    800: '#2E3333',
    900: '#1D2020',
  },
}

$base: #273231;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F6F8F8;
$base-100: #E8EDED;
$base-200: #D1DBDA;
$base-300: #B0BFBE;
$base-400: #8FA3A1;
$base-500: #708583;
$base-600: #596867;
$base-700: #434C4B;
$base-800: #2E3333;
$base-900: #1D2020;
$base-hover: #1F2726;
$base-subtle: #BAC5C4;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#273231",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F6F8F8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E8EDED",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#D1DBDA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#B0BFBE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#8FA3A1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#708583",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#596867",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#434C4B",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2E3333",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1D2020",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #273231

Color Lab

Pairs with #273231

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export