Charcoal

#494340

Hex, rgb, cmyk and Pantone values for charcoal, with shades, tints, matching colors and free print quality patterns.

This is Charcoal, a deep neutral that behaves like a grey. Neutrals like this hold a palette together quietly. It works under any accent color, holding a scheme together without competing.

Charcoal color values

Every conversion for #494340, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#494340

RGB73, 67, 64

HSL20, 7%, 27%

HSV20, 12%, 29%

CMYK0%, 8%, 12%, 71%

Lab28.9, 1.93, 2.73

XYZ5.68, 5.8, 5.67

Decimal4801344

Web safe#333333

Pantone447 C

Shades of charcoal

#433e3b #3e3936 #383331 #322e2c #2d2927 #272422 #211f1d #1c1918 #161413

Tints of charcoal

#5c5451 #6f6661 #827772 #938984 #a49b97 #b4adaa #c5bfbd #d5d2d0 #e6e4e3 #f7f6f5

Colors that go with charcoal

Complementary#404649 Analogous#494042 Analogous#494840 Triadic#404943 Triadic#434049 Split complementary#404948 Split complementary#404249

Charcoal in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 0, 8, 12, 71.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #494340 on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

0 8 12 71

Ink sits on the surface, so colors stay bright and close to screen.

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

4 11 15 77

The stock absorbs ink and gains dot, so it needs a heavier build and reads a touch softer.

This color converts to cmyk comfortably and should hold on press.

See how it converts in the rgb to cmyk converter, or read rgb vs cmyk for print and what the k in cmyk means.

Charcoal in css

Copy #494340 straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #494340; }
.text { color: #494340; }
.border { border: 2px solid #494340; }

How charcoal looks on light and dark

Sample text on black

Sample text on white

Text on this color

Charcoal and accessibility

Contrast ratios for #494340 against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use white text on this color for readable body copy. To test #494340 against any other color, not just black and white, run the pair through our contrast checker for a live WCAG reading.

Charcoal on a business card, sticker and pattern

A quick look at how #494340 sits on real print products. Start any of these in the maker.

Business card

Sticker

Repeat pattern

Building a full palette around charcoal? Pull matching colors from any photo with the color palette generator, or check a design for print with the rgb to cmyk converter.

Turn charcoal into a seamless pattern

Four patterns built from #494340 and its shades, free at print quality. Click any one to keep editing in the pattern maker.

Arches Signature stripes Gem Shingles

Make posters, wallpaper and packaging art from charcoal, free and print ready.

Open in pattern maker

How we calculate these values

The figures for #494340 come from standard color math, shown so you can check them. The rgb, hsl, hsv, cie-lab and xyz values follow the standard conversions from the sRGB color space. The coated and uncoated cmyk builds differ because uncoated stock absorbs more ink and gains dot, so the same color needs a heavier, slightly duller build on press. The Pantone value is the closest reference by perceptual color distance and should be treated as a starting point, not a guaranteed match.