What color is #A9979B?

#A9979B is a light, grayish red, closest to the named color Sphinx. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #A9979B?

The RGB value is 169, 151, 155: 169 red, 151 green and 155 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #A9979B?

The complementary color is #97A9A5, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #A9979B?

Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 7.59:1 and white text 2.77:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#A9979B color

#A9979B rgb(169, 151, 155)

Shades of gray

The hex color #A9979B is a light, grayish red.

In the RGB color model it is made of 66.3% red, 59.2% green and 60.8% blue (169, 151, 155).

Its hue angle is 347°, with 9% saturation and 63% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 11% magenta, 8% yellow and 34% black.

The closest named color is Sphinx (#A99593), a difference of 3 ΔE, a small difference.

Black text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 7.59:1).

#A9979B color codes

HEX	`#A9979B`
RGB	`rgb(169, 151, 155)`
RGB percent	`rgb(66.3%, 59.2%, 60.8%)`
HSL	`hsl(347, 9%, 63%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(347, 11%, 66%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 11%, 8%, 34%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(64.11, 7.35, 0.33)`
CIE LCH	`lch(64.11, 7.35, 2.57)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(33.345, 32.935, 35.605)`
Decimal	`11114395`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #A9979B, 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 #A9979B	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	7.59:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	2.77:1	Fail	Fail	Fail

#A9979B as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	2.77:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	7.59:1	Pass	Pass	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 #A9979B looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #a9979b; }
.text { color: #a9979b; }
.border { border: 2px solid #a9979b; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(169 151 155 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #a9979b, #a99c97); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Pastel Purple.

Questions

What color is #A9979B?: #A9979B is a light, grayish red, closest to the named color Sphinx. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #A9979B?: The RGB value is 169, 151, 155: 169 red, 151 green and 155 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #A9979B?: The complementary color is #97A9A5, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #A9979B?: Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 7.59:1 and white text 2.77:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.