What color is #281A09?

#281A09 is a very dark low-chroma warm gray with a subtle warm cast. In RGB it is rgb(40, 26, 9), and in HSL hsl(33, 63%, 10%).

Is #281A09 accessible as text?

On white, #281A09 has a contrast ratio of 16.91:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.24:1 (fails). For text placed on #281A09, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #281A09?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is stone-900 (#1C1917).

What colors go well with #281A09?

As a neutral, #281A09 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 #281A09 the same as CSS darkslategray?

No — #281A09 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.

#281A09 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #281A09

Not just a swatch — here's how #281A09 works with other colors. Named schemes with #281A09 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Warm Autumn Interior Dominant · 5 colors

Dominant #281A09 Secondary #B46619 Accent #727945 Surface #F3ECDD Anchor #3B2A20

This palette keeps Graphite as the dominant warm neutral, balanced by muted terracotta and olive earth tones and grounded by a deep espresso anchor.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #281A09 Secondary #794B23 Surface #E8DAC0 Accent #40503C Anchor #5B222A

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.

Desert Clay Center · 5 colors

Center #281A09 Surface #E1CFA8 Secondary #AF7B54 Accent #94986F Anchor #3E2C20

Graphite holds the warm center of this desert palette with sand and clay beside it, a muted-sage accent and a dark-brown anchor.

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #281A09 Surface #EFE9DC Highlight #F6F1E7 Secondary #B9AF9F Ink #2B2723

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.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F7F4EF Accent #281A09 Secondary #453F39 Support #9A9186 Ink #17140F

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.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #281A09 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 60/100

Neutral

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

Softness 25/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 73/100

High

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

Naturalness 50/100

Moderate

Loosely natural — an earthy edge without being rustic.

Vintage feel 37/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 74/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 14/100

Very low

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

UI accent fit 14/100

Very low

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

Surface fit 59/100

Moderate

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 96/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #281A09

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #281A09 with

Oxblood Bistre Graphite Greige Taupe

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 16.9:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #E6D3BC for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #2A2609 — 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 #281A09 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: #281A09;
  --color-base-rgb: 40 26 9;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(23.1% 0.036 69.8);
  --color-50: #FDF8F2;
  --color-100: #F8ECDD;
  --color-200: #F0D9BD;
  --color-300: #E0BC8F;
  --color-400: #CD9E65;
  --color-500: #B28043;
  --color-600: #88653A;
  --color-700: #614A2E;
  --color-800: #403221;
  --color-900: #271F16;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  graphite: {
    50: '#FDF8F2',
    100: '#F8ECDD',
    200: '#F0D9BD',
    300: '#E0BC8F',
    400: '#CD9E65',
    500: '#B28043',
    600: '#88653A',
    700: '#614A2E',
    800: '#403221',
    900: '#271F16',
  },
}

$base: #281A09;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #FDF8F2;
$base-100: #F8ECDD;
$base-200: #F0D9BD;
$base-300: #E0BC8F;
$base-400: #CD9E65;
$base-500: #B28043;
$base-600: #88653A;
$base-700: #614A2E;
$base-800: #403221;
$base-900: #271F16;
$base-hover: #211608;
$base-subtle: #DBBD99;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#281A09",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#FDF8F2",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#F8ECDD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#F0D9BD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#E0BC8F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#CD9E65",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#B28043",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#88653A",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#614A2E",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#403221",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#271F16",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}