#BCB5BE
Closest named color: French Gray (#ADB5BD). oklch(78.2% 0.015 318.7), rgb(188, 181, 190).
Aa
Black text reads best on this color (10.49:1).
About this color
#BCB5BE is a light close to neutral grey. In OKLCH its lightness is 78%, its chroma 0.015. It has too little chroma to lean warm or cool. The nearest named color is French Gray (#ADB5BD), ΔE 0.021 away. Black text reads best on it, at 10.49:1.
| Hue family | Neutrals |
| Lightness | light (78%) |
| Chroma | close to neutral grey (0.015) |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Nearest name | French Gray (#ADB5BD) |
| Black text | 10.49:1 |
| White text | 2.00:1 |
Values
| HEX | #BCB5BE |
| RGB | rgb(188, 181, 190) |
| HSL | hsl(287, 6%, 73%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(78.2% 0.015 318.7) |
Contrast
WCAG 2 contrast ratios are the conformance target: AA needs 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text, AAA needs 7:1. APCA Lc values are supplementary guidance from the WCAG 3 drafts.
| Pair | WCAG 2 | Result | APCA | APCA guidance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White text on #BCB5BE | 2.00:1 | Fails | Lc -43.3 | Non-text elements, placeholder text |
| Black text on #BCB5BE | 10.49:1 | AAA | Lc 65.1 | Content text, not long reading |
| #BCB5BE text on white | 2.00:1 | Fails | Lc 38.8 | Non-text elements, placeholder text |
| #BCB5BE text on black | 10.49:1 | AAA | Lc -63.6 | Content text, not long reading |
Tints and shades
A 50–950 scale built in OKLCH: the hue is held, lightness follows a Tailwind v4-like curve, and every step is kept inside the sRGB gamut. This color sits at step 300.
-
Step 50
50
#F6F5F6
oklch(97.1% 0.002 325.6)
-
Step 100
100
#EBE9EC
oklch(93.6% 0.005 314.8)
-
Step 200
200
#DBD7DD
oklch(88.4% 0.009 314.8)
-
Step 300
300 (this color)
#BCB5BE
oklch(78.2% 0.015 318.7)
-
Step 400
400
#A79CAA
oklch(70.7% 0.024 319)
-
Step 500
500
#928495
oklch(63.1% 0.03 320.3)
-
Step 600
600
#7C6D80
oklch(55.5% 0.034 319.1)
-
Step 700
700
#685B6C
oklch(49% 0.031 318.2)
-
Step 800
800
#554B58
oklch(42.7% 0.025 318.4)
-
Step 900
900
#463E48
oklch(37.6% 0.02 319.5)
-
Step 950
950
#29252A
oklch(27.1% 0.011 319.5)
#BCB5BE with color blindness
Simulated with the Machado et al. (2009) model. ΔE is how far the color moves: below about 0.02 you would not notice a change.
| Vision | Seen as | Shift (ΔE) |
|---|---|---|
| Protanopia (no red cones) | #B4B7BE | 0.012 |
| Deuteranopia (no green cones) | #B6B7BE | 0.009 |
| Tritanopia (no blue cones) | #BCB6B8 | 0.010 |
| Achromatopsia (no color) | #B7B7B7 | 0.015 |
Harmonies
Hue rotations in OKLCH that keep this color's lightness and chroma.
This color is close to neutral, so it has no meaningful hue to rotate. Hue harmonies are omitted.
Palettes with this color
Curated palettes that contain a color within ΔE 0.04 (OKLab) of #BCB5BE, closest first.
Similar named colors
The eight closest entries in our named color list, with their ΔE distance.
- French Gray #ADB5BD ΔE 0.021
- Silver #C0C0C0 ΔE 0.030
- Pinkish Grey #C8ACA9 ΔE 0.033
- Cloudy Blue #ACC2D9 ΔE 0.045
- Light Grey Blue #9DBCD4 ΔE 0.047
- Dark Gray #A9A9A9 ΔE 0.049
- Light Steel Blue #B0C4DE ΔE 0.050
- Light Cornflower Blue #98C1D9 ΔE 0.057
Use #BCB5BE in your product
Turn it into light and dark UI roles checked for contrast, then export to Tailwind v4, shadcn/ui, CSS or design tokens.