Accessibility
Vs white / black
2.29:1 · 9.18:1
Sources
Codes
HEX
#a9acab
RGB
rgb(169, 172, 171)
RGBA
rgba(169, 172, 171, 1)
HSL
hsl(160, 2%, 67%)
HSV
hsv(160, 2%, 67%)
LAB
lab(70.09% -1.25 0.14)
LCH
lch(70.09% 1.26 173.61)
OKLAB
oklab(0.7417 -0.0037 0.0004)
OKLCH
oklch(0.7417 0.0037 173.83)
XYZ
xyz(38.46, 40.88, 44.38)
CMYK
cmyk(2%, 0%, 1%, 33%)
CSS
color: #a9acab;
CSS variable
--color-a9acab: #a9acab;
SCSS
$color-a9acab: #a9acab;
Tailwind
slate-300
Export
:root {
--#a9acab-1: #a9acab;
}Palette
Full scale from light tints through the base color into deep shades
Palette
Mixed toward white — soft backgrounds and highlights
Palette
Mixed toward black — depth, text, and emphasis
Palette
Mixed toward neutral grey — muted UI surfaces
Harmony
Opposite on the color wheel for contrast
Harmony
Neighbors that sit comfortably together
Harmony
Evenly spaced triad for vibrant sets
Harmony
Base plus two accents beside the complement
Harmony
Same hue, varied lightness and saturation
Using this color
#A9ACAB (#a9acab) sits in the grey family at about 160° hue, 2% saturation, and 67% lightness. Contrast is 2.29:1 on white and 9.18:1 on black, so near-black labels read more clearly on the swatch itself. Closest Tailwind token in our matcher: slate-300.
Sensible jobs for this swatch
Do not use #a9acab as small body text on white — 2.29:1 misses WCAG AA (4.5:1). Pair it with a darker shade from the scale below, or check pairs in the contrast checker.
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
Nearby colors from the library by perceptual distance