What color is #281F3A?

#281F3A 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 #281F3A?

The RGB value is 40, 31, 58: 40 red, 31 green and 58 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #281F3A?

The complementary color is #313A1F, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #281F3A?

White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.35:1 and white text 15.59:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#281F3A color

#281F3A rgb(40, 31, 58)

Shades of purple

The hex color #281F3A is a very dark, desaturated violet.

In the RGB color model it is made of 15.7% red, 12.2% green and 22.7% blue (40, 31, 58).

Its hue angle is 260°, with 30% saturation and 17% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 31% cyan, 47% magenta, 0% yellow and 77% black.

The closest named color is Midnight Velvet (#2A2243), a difference of 2.4 ΔE, a small difference.

White text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 15.59:1).

#281F3A color codes

HEX	`#281F3A`
RGB	`rgb(40, 31, 58)`
RGB percent	`rgb(15.7%, 12.2%, 22.7%)`
HSL	`hsl(260, 30%, 17%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(260, 47%, 23%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(31%, 47%, 0%, 77%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(14.04, 11.46, -15.92)`
CIE LCH	`lch(14.04, 19.61, 305.74)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(2.129, 1.737, 4.225)`
Decimal	`2629434`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #281F3A, 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 #281F3A	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	1.35:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	15.59:1	Pass	Pass	Pass

#281F3A as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	15.59:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	1.35:1	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 #281F3A looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #281f3a; }
.text { color: #281f3a; }
.border { border: 2px solid #281f3a; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(40 31 58 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #281f3a, #351f3a); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Questions

What color is #281F3A?: #281F3A 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 #281F3A?: The RGB value is 40, 31, 58: 40 red, 31 green and 58 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #281F3A?: The complementary color is #313A1F, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #281F3A?: White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.35:1 and white text 15.59:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.