What color is #281F38?

#281F38 is a very dark, desaturated violet, closest to the named color Midnight Velvet. It belongs to the purple family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #281F38?

The RGB value is 40, 31, 56: 40 red, 31 green and 56 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #281F38?

The complementary color is #2F381F, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #281F38?

White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.34:1 and white text 15.63:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#281F38 color

#281F38 rgb(40, 31, 56)

Shades of purple

The hex color #281F38 is a very dark, desaturated violet.

In the RGB color model it is made of 15.7% red, 12.2% green and 22% blue (40, 31, 56).

Its hue angle is 262°, with 29% saturation and 17% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 29% cyan, 45% magenta, 0% yellow and 78% black.

The closest named color is Midnight Velvet (#2A2243), a difference of 3.1 ΔE, a small difference.

White text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 15.63:1).

#281F38 color codes

HEX	`#281F38`
RGB	`rgb(40, 31, 56)`
RGB percent	`rgb(15.7%, 12.2%, 22%)`
HSL	`hsl(262, 29%, 17%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(262, 45%, 22%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(29%, 45%, 0%, 78%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(13.92, 10.84, -14.68)`
CIE LCH	`lch(13.92, 18.26, 306.45)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(2.079, 1.717, 3.962)`
Decimal	`2629432`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #281F38, based on their position on the color wheel.

Complementary

The color opposite on the color wheel (180°). Strongest contrast.

Analogous

Neighbors 30° either side. Calm, natural combinations.

Split complementary

The two colors next to the complement (150° and 210°).

Triadic

Three colors evenly spaced, 120° apart.

Tetradic (square)

Four colors 90° apart.

Shades, tints and tones

Shades (darker, mixed with black)

Tints (lighter, mixed with white)

Tones (mixed with gray)

Contrast and accessibility

Text on #281F38	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	1.34:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	15.63:1	Pass	Pass	Pass

#281F38 as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	15.63:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	1.34:1	Fail	Fail	Fail

WCAG 2 asks for 4.5:1 for normal text (AA), 7:1 for AAA, and 3:1 for large text. Check other pairs.

Color blindness simulation

How #281F38 looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #281f38; }
.text { color: #281f38; }
.border { border: 2px solid #281f38; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(40 31 56 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #281f38, #351f38); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Questions

What color is #281F38?: #281F38 is a very dark, desaturated violet, closest to the named color Midnight Velvet. It belongs to the purple family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #281F38?: The RGB value is 40, 31, 56: 40 red, 31 green and 56 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #281F38?: The complementary color is #2F381F, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #281F38?: White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.34:1 and white text 15.63:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.