What color is #85538E?

#85538E is a medium, muted purple. In RGB it is rgb(133, 83, 142), and in HSL hsl(291, 26%, 44%).

Is #85538E accessible as text?

On white, #85538E has a contrast ratio of 5.79:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 3.63:1 (fails). For text placed on #85538E, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #85538E?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is mauve-500 (#79697B).

What colors go well with #85538E?

#85538E pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #5C8D53. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #85538E below.

Is #85538E good for buttons?

#85538E works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #85538E — black text only reaches 3.63:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #85538E the same as CSS rebeccapurple?

No — #85538E is not the CSS named color rebeccapurple, but rebeccapurple (#663399) is the closest CSS named color.

#85538E Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #85538E

Not just a swatch — here's how #85538E works with other colors. Named schemes with #85538E in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #85538E Surface #F5E6D7 Anchor #5D203E Accent #E5C2C6 Secondary #332B2E

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

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #85538E Secondary #7E472F Surface #ECD8C1 Accent #345249 Anchor #592234

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

Modern Café Dominant · 5 colors

Dominant #85538E Anchor #3B2922 Surface #F2E2D1 Accent #9E9362 Secondary #3C3733

Plum anchors this café scheme as the warm mid-tone, lifted by latte cream and a muted sage accent and grounded by espresso brown and a warm charcoal.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F8F4EF Accent #85538E Secondary #9D8BA1 Support #9C9087 Ink #18140F

Plum 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 Plum carrying the quiet middle.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #85538E Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5C6573 Accent #A779B0

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

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #85538E 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 51/100

Neutral

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

Softness 44/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 48/100

Moderate

Mid depth — usable as an accent or a muted ground.

Naturalness 1/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 69/100

High

Faded, nostalgic quality — editorial, heritage and retro work.

Luxury 55/100

Moderate

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

Brand distinctiveness 29/100

Low

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

UI accent fit 95/100

Very high

Strong interactive accent — visible and can carry a legible label.

Surface fit 22/100

Low

Too saturated or mid-toned for big areas — keep it to accents.

Print safety 88/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #85538E

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #85538E with

Very Peri Mauve Taupe Russian Green Gainsboro Eggplant

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with white label. AA

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 5.8:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #E6DDE8 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #8D5383 — 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 #85538E at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

Northwind Sign up

Build faster.

A working theme, generated in seconds.

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: #85538E;
  --color-base-rgb: 133 83 142;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(52.1% 0.107 321.3);
  --color-50: #F9F5FA;
  --color-100: #EFE5F0;
  --color-200: #DECCE1;
  --color-300: #C3A7C8;
  --color-400: #A883AF;
  --color-500: #8A6491;
  --color-600: #6C5171;
  --color-700: #4F3D52;
  --color-800: #352A37;
  --color-900: #211B22;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  plum: {
    50: '#F9F5FA',
    100: '#EFE5F0',
    200: '#DECCE1',
    300: '#C3A7C8',
    400: '#A883AF',
    500: '#8A6491',
    600: '#6C5171',
    700: '#4F3D52',
    800: '#352A37',
    900: '#211B22',
  },
}

$base: #85538E;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F9F5FA;
$base-100: #EFE5F0;
$base-200: #DECCE1;
$base-300: #C3A7C8;
$base-400: #A883AF;
$base-500: #8A6491;
$base-600: #6C5171;
$base-700: #4F3D52;
$base-800: #352A37;
$base-900: #211B22;
$base-hover: #6A4271;
$base-subtle: #DACCDD;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#85538E",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F9F5FA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#EFE5F0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#DECCE1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#C3A7C8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#A883AF",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#8A6491",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#6C5171",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#4F3D52",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#352A37",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#211B22",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #85538E

Color Lab

Pairs with #85538E

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export