What color is #BAB8AE?

#BAB8AE is a light gray, closest to the named color Zen Pebble. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #BAB8AE?

The RGB value is 186, 184, 174: 186 red, 184 green and 174 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #BAB8AE?

The complementary color is #AEB0BA, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #BAB8AE?

Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 10.56:1 and white text 1.99:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#BAB8AE color

#BAB8AE rgb(186, 184, 174)

Shades of gray

The hex color #BAB8AE is a light gray.

In the RGB color model it is made of 72.9% red, 72.2% green and 68.2% blue (186, 184, 174).

Its hue angle is 50°, with 8% saturation and 71% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 1% magenta, 6% yellow and 27% black.

The closest named color is Zen Pebble (#BAB8AD), a difference of 0.5 ΔE, which is barely visible.

Black text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 10.56:1).

#BAB8AE color codes

HEX	`#BAB8AE`
RGB	`rgb(186, 184, 174)`
RGB percent	`rgb(72.9%, 72.2%, 68.2%)`
HSL	`hsl(50, 8%, 71%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(50, 6%, 73%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 1%, 6%, 27%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(74.68, -1.1, 5.32)`
CIE LCH	`lch(74.68, 5.43, 101.63)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(45.029, 47.776, 46.886)`
Decimal	`12236974`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #BAB8AE, 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 #BAB8AE	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	10.56:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	1.99:1	Fail	Fail	Fail

#BAB8AE as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	1.99:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	10.56:1	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 #BAB8AE looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #bab8ae; }
.text { color: #bab8ae; }
.border { border: 2px solid #bab8ae; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(186 184 174 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #bab8ae, #b6baae); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Greige.

Questions

What color is #BAB8AE?: #BAB8AE is a light gray, closest to the named color Zen Pebble. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #BAB8AE?: The RGB value is 186, 184, 174: 186 red, 184 green and 174 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #BAB8AE?: The complementary color is #AEB0BA, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #BAB8AE?: Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 10.56:1 and white text 1.99:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.