Charcoal

#514b55

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

Charcoal carries almost no chroma, so it works as a neutral. 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 #514b55, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#514b55

RGB81, 75, 85

HSL276, 6%, 31%

HSV276, 12%, 33%

CMYK5%, 12%, 0%, 67%

Lab32.78, 4.66, -5.01

XYZ7.55, 7.44, 9.63

Decimal5327701

Web safe#663366

Pantone532 C

Shades of charcoal

#4a454e #443f47 #3d3940 #37333a #302d33 #2a272c #232125 #1d1a1e #161417 #0f0e10

Tints of charcoal

#625b67 #736a78 #837a8a #948c99 #a49da9 #b5afb8 #c5c1c8 #d5d2d7 #e6e4e7 #f6f6f7

Colors that go with charcoal

Complementary#4f554b Analogous#4c4b55 Analogous#554b54 Triadic#55514b Triadic#4b5551 Split complementary#54554b Split complementary#4b554c

Charcoal in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 5, 12, 0, 67.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #514b55 on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

5 12 0 67

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

9 15 4 73

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 #514b55 straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #514b55; }
.text { color: #514b55; }
.border { border: 2px solid #514b55; }

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 #514b55 against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use white text on this color for readable body copy. To test #514b55 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 #514b55 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 #514b55 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

Every value on this page for #514b55 is computed, not guessed. 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.