Color brief · Grey
#333138 (#333138) — practical notes
#333138 (#333138) sits in the grey family at about 257° hue, 7% saturation, and 21% lightness. Contrast is 12.83:1 on white and 1.64:1 on black, so white labels read more clearly on the swatch itself. Nearest Tailwind token: zinc-800 (approximation unless the hex is an official scale stop).
- supporting UI accents
- text or icons on a white canvas
On a black or near-black UI, #333138 is 1.64:1. Prefer it as a fill, border, or large heading rather than 16px copy.
Low saturation makes this easy to overuse as a neutral. Keep one chromatic accent elsewhere so the interface does not go muddy.
Specs & accessibility references: W3C WCAG 2.1 contrast minimum · MDN CSS color values · CSS Color Module Level 4 · WebAIM contrast guide.
COLOR EXPLORER
THE ORIGINAL SWATCH#333138
100% opacity · sRGB
YOUR NEXT GREAT ACCENT
#333138
Explore the codes, find a readable pairing, and see how this color feels in a real design.
HEX
#333138RGB
rgb(51, 49, 56)HSL
hsl(257, 7%, 21%)PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
A color is only half the story.
Try it with another color before you commit.
MAKE ROOM FOR SOMETHING GOOD
A little color. A whole lot of possibility.
Selected text: #333138CONTRAST RATIO12.83:1
- AA · normal text
- Pass
- AA · large text
- Pass
- AAA · normal text
- Pass
Normal text: AA 4.5:1, AAA 7:1. Large text: AA 3:1 (24px regular or about 19px bold).
Against white12.83:1
Against black1.64:1
Results use the exact pair, at full opacity. WCAG contrast guidance ↗
A color worth keeping? Save it above or share it.
COPY. PASTE. CREATE.
Color codes
HEX
#333138
RGB
rgb(51, 49, 56)
HSL
hsl(257, 7%, 21%)
OKLCH
oklch(0.318 0.0125 298.61)
CMYK
cmyk(9%, 13%, 0%, 78%)
CSS variable
--color-333138: #333138;
CMYK is an approximate reference; print output depends on the color profile. HSV and CMYK are not CSS color functions.
OKLCH
Perceptual 50–950 scale
Generated in OKLCH from this hex. Not an official Tailwind scale unless the hex itself is a Tailwind token.
Palette
Tints & shades
Full scale from light tints through the base color into deep shades
Palette
Tints
Mixed toward white — soft backgrounds and highlights
Palette
Shades
Mixed toward black — depth, text, and emphasis
Palette
Tones
Mixed toward neutral grey — muted UI surfaces
Harmony
Complementary
Opposite on the color wheel for contrast
Harmony
Analogous
Neighbors that sit comfortably together
Harmony
Triadic
Evenly spaced triad for vibrant sets
Harmony
Split complementary
Base plus two accents beside the complement
Harmony
Monochromatic
Same hue, varied lightness and saturation
Export
Developer code
css
:root {
--color333138-1: #333138;
}Design systems
Nearest official tokens
An arbitrary HEX is not an official Tailwind, Material, or Bootstrap color. Distance is CIEDE2000.
Nearest Tailwind color
zinc-800
Noticeably different · ΔE 4.52 · #27272A
Nearest CSS named color
Black
Very different · ΔE 13.98 · #000000
Nearest Material color
grey-800
Very different · ΔE 7.22 · #424242
Nearest Bootstrap color
dark
Very different · ΔE 6.37 · #212529
Using this color
Where #333138 works
#333138 (#333138) sits in the grey family at about 257° hue, 7% saturation, and 21% lightness. Contrast is 12.83:1 on white and 1.64:1 on black, so white labels read more clearly on the swatch itself. Nearest Tailwind token: zinc-800 (approximation unless the hex is an official scale stop).
Sensible jobs for this swatch
- supporting UI accents
- text or icons on a white canvas
On a black or near-black UI, #333138 is 1.64:1. Prefer it as a fill, border, or large heading rather than 16px copy.
Low saturation makes this easy to overuse as a neutral. Keep one chromatic accent elsewhere so the interface does not go muddy.
Family context: Neutrality, balance, and modernity. Essential for UI chrome, typography, and systems. Common uses still include buttons, charts, and accents in the Grey range — always verify the pair for this exact hex in the contrast checker.
Related
Similar & related colors
Nearby colors from the library by perceptual distance