#8a2ab8
a dark, vivid violet · cool · closest name: Dark Violet
At a glance
Every number on this page in one read: what #8a2ab8 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.
Reads cool. Warm and cool siblings keep the same lightness, so you can swap one in without redoing your contrast maths.
Every format
| HEX | #8a2ab8 |
| RGB | rgb(138, 42, 184) |
| HSL | hsl(281, 63%, 44%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(25%, 77%, 0%, 28%) |
| LAB | lab(38.8 61.2 -56.0) |
| LCH | lch(38.8 82.9 317.5) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.500 0.213 311.8) |
| Decimal | 9054904 |
| Display P3 | color(display-p3 0.541 0.165 0.722) |
Copy-ready code
/* CSS */
color: #8a2ab8;
background-color: #8a2ab8;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#8a2ab8] bg-[#8a2ab8]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #8a2ab8;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.541, green: 0.165, blue: 0.722)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#8a2ab8")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFF8A2AB8)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(184, 42, 138)Best text color
Only one of black and white can be right. This is the one, with the number that proves it.
Accessibility — WCAG contrast
Color scale — 50 to 950
A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #8a2ab8 is pinned to step 600; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.
:root {
--brand-50: #F9F4FB;
--brand-100: #F2E8F7;
--brand-200: #E4CCF0;
--brand-300: #D3A4EA;
--brand-400: #BE76E0;
--brand-500: #A848D5;
--brand-600: #8a2ab8;
--brand-700: #7D26A6;
--brand-800: #641E85;
--brand-900: #4A1A61;
--brand-950: #2E103C;
--brand: #8a2ab8;
--brand-ink: #ffffff;
}Colors that work with #8a2ab8
Not a palette — a role sheet. Each swatch answers one question you will hit while building the component.
Surface, border, heading and body all derive from this one hue, so the screen stays coherent without a second palette.
Lightness flips, hue holds. The accent stays the anchor in both themes.
How to use #8a2ab8
Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.
- ✓Body text and links on white
- ✓Primary buttons and calls to action
- ✓Focus rings, active and selected states
- ✓Headers, footers and dark-mode surfaces
- ✓Brand accents, badges and data highlights
- ⚠Full-page backgrounds — tiring over long sessions
- ⚠Black text placed on it
- ⚠Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Similar colors
One move away from this hex in each direction. Every swatch is its own page.
Color relationships
The wheel positions with their names attached, so you can grab the one you actually need.
| Complementary | #58B82A | Directly opposite — maximum tension | |
| Analogous left | #432AB8 | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Analogous right | #B82A9F | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Split-complement 1 | #9FB82A | Contrast without the clash | |
| Split-complement 2 | #2AB843 | Contrast without the clash | |
| Triadic 1 | #B88A2A | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Triadic 2 | #2AB88A | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Tetradic | #B8432A | Fourth corner of the square scheme |
RGB percentages
CMYK percentages
Color previews
#8a2ab8 text on a black background
contrast 3.10:1
#8a2ab8 text on a white background
contrast 6.77:1
CSS3 live lab
The quick brown fox
color: #8a2ab8;
background-color: #8a2ab8;
Glowing headline
text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #8a2ab8;
Soft neon halo
text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(138, 42, 184, 0.45);
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(138, 42, 184, 0.45);
border: 3px solid #8a2ab8; background: linear-gradient(135deg, #8a2ab8, #B82A87);
Monochromatic scale
Palettes built from #8a2ab8
Shades — darker
Tints — lighter
Color harmonies
Nearest named colors
Ranked with CIEDE2000 across all 139 CSS keywords. Under ΔE 2 the eye stops telling them apart; over ΔE 10 they are plainly different colors.
Closest color with a full write-up: Purple (#800080) — ΔE2000 10.2 away, with its history, psychology and brand usage.
#8a2ab8 in the real world
Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.
Converts to four-color process without much drama. Proof it anyway.
#8a2ab8, answered
What color is #8a2ab8?
#8a2ab8 is a dark vivid violet, closest to Dark Violet (ΔE2000 4.1). It sits at 281° on the hue wheel with 63% saturation and 44% lightness, which reads as cool.
What is the RGB value of #8a2ab8?
rgb(138, 42, 184) — 138 red, 42 green and 184 blue out of 255, or 54.1% / 16.5% / 72.2% by channel.
Is #8a2ab8 a light or a dark color?
It is a dark color. Relative luminance is 0.1052 and perceived brightness is 40%, so white text on it reaches 6.77:1.
Should I use black or white text on #8a2ab8?
White. It scores 6.77:1 against #8a2ab8, versus 3.10:1 for black — AA at any size.
What is the complementary color of #8a2ab8?
#58B82A sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #9FB82A and #2AB843, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.
What colors go well with #8a2ab8?
For interface work: #F8F4FA as the surface, #DEC0ED for borders, #814B9B for secondary text, #70AA22 as an accent and #4E1868 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #432AB8 and #B82A9F stays calm, while #58B82A is the loudest partner.
What is #8a2ab8 in CMYK for printing?
cmyk(25%, 77%, 0%, 28%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.
Is #8a2ab8 warm or cool?
Cool — it scores 61 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #B82AB2; nudged cooler, #5528BA.