What color is #38393D?

#38393D is a dark gray, closest to the named color Artist’s Charcoal. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #38393D?

The RGB value is 56, 57, 61: 56 red, 57 green and 61 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #38393D?

The complementary color is #3D3C38, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #38393D?

White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.82:1 and white text 11.53:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#38393D color

#38393D rgb(56, 57, 61)

Shades of gray

The hex color #38393D is a dark gray.

In the RGB color model it is made of 22% red, 22.4% green and 23.9% blue (56, 57, 61).

Its hue angle is 228°, with 4% saturation and 23% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 8% cyan, 7% magenta, 0% yellow and 76% black.

The closest named color is Artist’s Charcoal (#37393E), a difference of 0.7 ΔE, which is barely visible.

White text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 11.53:1).

#38393D color codes

HEX	`#38393D`
RGB	`rgb(56, 57, 61)`
RGB percent	`rgb(22%, 22.4%, 23.9%)`
HSL	`hsl(228, 4%, 23%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(228, 8%, 24%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(8%, 7%, 0%, 76%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(24.01, 0.52, -2.63)`
CIE LCH	`lch(24.01, 2.68, 281.23)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(3.936, 4.104, 4.999)`
Decimal	`3684669`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #38393D, 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 #38393D	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	1.82:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	11.53:1	Pass	Pass	Pass

#38393D as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	11.53:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	1.82:1	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 #38393D looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #38393d; }
.text { color: #38393d; }
.border { border: 2px solid #38393d; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(56 57 61 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #38393d, #3a383d); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Questions

What color is #38393D?: #38393D is a dark gray, closest to the named color Artist’s Charcoal. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #38393D?: The RGB value is 56, 57, 61: 56 red, 57 green and 61 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #38393D?: The complementary color is #3D3C38, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #38393D?: White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 1.82:1 and white text 11.53:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.