Charcoal Grey #3C4142
Charcoal Grey is a dark close to neutral grey with hex code #3C4142 and RGB rgb(60, 65, 66).
Aa
White text reads best on this color (10.36:1).
About this color
#3C4142 is a dark close to neutral grey. In OKLCH its lightness is 37%, its chroma 0.007. It has too little chroma to lean warm or cool. It is the named color Charcoal Grey. White text reads best on it, at 10.36:1.
| Hue family | Neutrals |
| Lightness | dark (37%) |
| Chroma | close to neutral grey (0.007) |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Nearest name | Charcoal Grey |
| Black text | 2.02:1 |
| White text | 10.36:1 |
Colors that go with Charcoal Grey
Matches found by rotating Charcoal Grey around the OKLCH hue wheel, each labelled with the closest name in our list.
Charcoal Grey is close to neutral, so it has no hue to rotate. It pairs with almost any color; try the palettes below.
Color palettes with Charcoal Grey
Curated color palettes that contain a color within ΔE 0.06 (OKLab) of Charcoal Grey, closest first.
Similar named colors
The eight named colors closest to Charcoal Grey, with their ΔE distance.
- Onyx #343A40 ΔE 0.027
- Charcoal #264653 ΔE 0.037
- Dark Slate Gray #2F4F4F ΔE 0.045
- Dark Grey Blue #29465B ΔE 0.045
- Dark Blue Grey #1F3B4D ΔE 0.052
- Dark Teal #014D4E ΔE 0.059
- Gunmetal #293241 ΔE 0.061
- Midnight Green #073B4C ΔE 0.067
More about Charcoal Grey
How to make Charcoal Grey
A starting recipe from common paint colors, found with a spectral paint model (the color mixer’s paint mode). Real pigments vary, so mix a small test batch and adjust.
- 1 part black
- 1 part white
Recipe result: #3F3F3F, a difference of ΔE 0.008 from Charcoal Grey. That is very close: most people will not see the difference.
Codes for Charcoal Grey in every format
| HEX | #3C4142 |
| RGB | rgb(60, 65, 66) |
| HSL | hsl(190, 5%, 25%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(37.1% 0.007 211) |
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 #3C4142 | 10.36:1 | AAA | Lc -98.1 | Preferred for body text |
| Black text on #3C4142 | 2.02:1 | Fails | Lc 9.8 | Not readable |
| #3C4142 text on white | 10.36:1 | AAA | Lc 94.1 | Preferred for body text |
| #3C4142 text on black | 2.02:1 | Fails | Lc -8.5 | Not readable |
Shades and tints of Charcoal Grey
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 900.
-
Step 50
50
#F5F5F6
oklch(97% 0.001 286.4)
-
Step 100
100
#E9EAEA
oklch(93.6% 0.001 197.1)
-
Step 200
200
#D7D9DA
oklch(88.4% 0.003 228.8)
-
Step 300
300
#BDC1C2
oklch(80.8% 0.005 214.3)
-
Step 400
400
#9BA2A3
oklch(70.7% 0.008 207.1)
-
Step 500
500
#838B8D
oklch(63.1% 0.01 214.4)
-
Step 600
600
#6C7577
oklch(55.5% 0.011 212.5)
-
Step 700
700
#5A6264
oklch(49% 0.01 214.4)
-
Step 800
800
#4A5052
oklch(42.7% 0.008 219.7)
-
Step 900
900 (this color)
#3C4142
oklch(37.1% 0.007 211)
-
Step 950
950
#242728
oklch(27% 0.005 219.6)
Charcoal Grey 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) | #404142 | 0.007 |
| Deuteranopia (no green cones) | #3F4042 | 0.006 |
| Tritanopia (no blue cones) | #3A4241 | 0.005 |
| Achromatopsia (no color) | #404040 | 0.007 |
Use Charcoal Grey 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.