Dark gray

#aaa5ae

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

Dark gray carries almost no chroma, so it works as a neutral. Mid greys like this are the backbone of clean, editorial layouts. It works under any accent color, holding a scheme together without competing.

Dark gray color values

Every conversion for #aaa5ae, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#aaa5ae
RGB170, 165, 174
HSL273, 5%, 66%
HSV273, 5%, 68%
CMYK2%, 5%, 0%, 32%
Lab68.4, 3.5, -4.01
XYZ37.67, 38.51, 45.49
Decimal11183534
Web safe#999999
Pantone5295 C
Pantone5295 CHex#aaa5aeRgb170 165 174Cmyk2 5 0 32Lab68 4 -4Darker#635d67Deep#877f8cLighter#cdcbd0

Shades of dark gray

Tints of dark gray

Colors that go with dark gray

Dark gray in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 2, 5, 0, 32.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #aaa5ae on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C
2 5 0 32
Ink sits on the surface, so colors stay bright and close to screen.
Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U
6 9 4 38
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.

Dark gray in css

Copy #aaa5ae straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #aaa5ae; }
.text { color: #aaa5ae; }
.border { border: 2px solid #aaa5ae; }

How dark gray looks on light and dark

Dark gray and accessibility

Contrast ratios for #aaa5ae against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Textwhite text on this color
2.41:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Textblack text on this color
8.70:1
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #aaa5ae against any other color, not just black and white, run the pair through our contrast checker for a live WCAG reading.

Dark gray on a business card, sticker and pattern

A quick look at how #aaa5ae sits on real print products. Start any of these in the maker.

Your nameFounderhello@brand.comBusiness card
Sticker
Repeat pattern

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

Turn dark gray into a seamless pattern

Four patterns built from #aaa5ae and its shades, free at print quality. Click any one to keep editing in the pattern maker.

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

Open in pattern maker

How we calculate these values

Every value on this page for #aaa5ae 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 figure is the nearest match in our reference set by perceptual distance and it is an approximation, not an exact spot color.