What color is #281B26?

#281B26 is a very dark low-chroma warm gray with a subtle warm cast. In RGB it is rgb(40, 27, 38), and in HSL hsl(309, 19%, 13%).

Is #281B26 accessible as text?

On white, #281B26 has a contrast ratio of 16.47:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.27:1 (fails). For text placed on #281B26, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #281B26?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is stone-800 (#292524).

What colors go well with #281B26?

As a neutral, #281B26 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 #281B26 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #281B26 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.

#281B26 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #281B26

Not just a swatch — here's how #281B26 works with other colors. Named schemes with #281B26 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #281B26 Secondary #7D472E Surface #ECD8C1 Accent #464F38 Anchor #592233

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 #281B26 Surface #F1E8DC Highlight #F7F0E7 Secondary #BDADA1 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.

Luxury Packaging Feature · 5 colors

Feature #281B26 Anchor #141210 Accent #D79A52 Secondary #2F252D Surface #F3EDE3

Graphite 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 #F7F4EF Accent #281B26 Secondary #464145 Support #9C9087 Ink #18140F

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.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #281B26 Surface #F4E6D7 Anchor #5D203D Accent #E6C2C5 Secondary #332B2E

Graphite sits between cream and a deep berry here, softened by a blush accent and grounded by charcoal.

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Color Lab

How #281B26 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 52/100

Neutral

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

Softness 26/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 71/100

High

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

Naturalness 1/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 31/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 72/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 11/100

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 61/100

High

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

Print safety 97/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #281B26

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #281B26 with

Gunmetal Gray Graphite Gainsboro Eggplant

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 16.5:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #D9CDD7 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #271B21 — 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 #281B26 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: #281B26;
  --color-base-rgb: 40 27 38;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(24.3% 0.028 331.8);
  --color-50: #F9F6F8;
  --color-100: #EFE7ED;
  --color-200: #DECEDC;
  --color-300: #C4ABC0;
  --color-400: #A989A4;
  --color-500: #8B6A86;
  --color-600: #6D5569;
  --color-700: #4F404D;
  --color-800: #352C34;
  --color-900: #211C20;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  graphite: {
    50: '#F9F6F8',
    100: '#EFE7ED',
    200: '#DECEDC',
    300: '#C4ABC0',
    400: '#A989A4',
    500: '#8B6A86',
    600: '#6D5569',
    700: '#4F404D',
    800: '#352C34',
    900: '#211C20',
  },
}

$base: #281B26;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F9F6F8;
$base-100: #EFE7ED;
$base-200: #DECEDC;
$base-300: #C4ABC0;
$base-400: #A989A4;
$base-500: #8B6A86;
$base-600: #6D5569;
$base-700: #4F404D;
$base-800: #352C34;
$base-900: #211C20;
$base-hover: #20151E;
$base-subtle: #C6B3C3;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#281B26",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F9F6F8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#EFE7ED",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#DECEDC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#C4ABC0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#A989A4",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#8B6A86",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#6D5569",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#4F404D",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#352C34",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#211C20",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #281B26

Color Lab

Pairs with #281B26

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export