What color is #838E8B?

#838E8B is a gray, closest to the named color Mummy’s Tomb. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #838E8B?

The RGB value is 131, 142, 139: 131 red, 142 green and 139 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #838E8B?

The complementary color is #8E8386, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #838E8B?

Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 6.21:1 and white text 3.38:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#838E8B color

#838E8B rgb(131, 142, 139)

Shades of gray

The hex color #838E8B is a gray.

In the RGB color model it is made of 51.4% red, 55.7% green and 54.5% blue (131, 142, 139).

Its hue angle is 164°, with 5% saturation and 54% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 8% cyan, 0% magenta, 2% yellow and 44% black.

The closest named color is Mummy’s Tomb (#828E84), a difference of 3.5 ΔE, a small difference.

Black text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 6.21:1).

#838E8B color codes

HEX	`#838E8B`
RGB	`rgb(131, 142, 139)`
RGB percent	`rgb(51.4%, 55.7%, 54.5%)`
HSL	`hsl(164, 5%, 54%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(164, 8%, 56%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(8%, 0%, 2%, 44%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(58.07, -4.6, 0.23)`
CIE LCH	`lch(58.07, 4.6, 177.2)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(23.692, 26.035, 28.198)`
Decimal	`8621707`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #838E8B, 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 #838E8B	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	6.21:1	Pass	Fail	Pass
Sample text	3.38:1	Fail	Fail	Pass

#838E8B as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	3.38:1	Fail	Fail	Pass
Sample text	6.21:1	Pass	Fail	Pass

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 #838E8B looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #838e8b; }
.text { color: #838e8b; }
.border { border: 2px solid #838e8b; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(131 142 139 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #838e8b, #838c8e); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Questions

What color is #838E8B?: #838E8B is a gray, closest to the named color Mummy’s Tomb. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #838E8B?: The RGB value is 131, 142, 139: 131 red, 142 green and 139 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #838E8B?: The complementary color is #8E8386, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #838E8B?: Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 6.21:1 and white text 3.38:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.