#e9eceb
a pale, muted near-white · neutral · closest name: White Smoke
Token name suggestion: Mist Porcelain
#e9eceb is a pale muted near-white, 160° on the wheel and 56/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (17.66:1). As text it scores 1.19:1 on white — use #687873 instead. Nearest name is White Smoke, nearest Tailwind family is cyan.
At a glance
Every number on this page in one read: what #e9eceb is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.
Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #e9eceb.
Near-neutral, so temperature is a whisper rather than a statement — the tinted siblings below show which way it can lean.
Green carries most of what the eye calls brightness — that is why WCAG weights it 0.7152.
Every format
| HEX | #e9eceb |
| HEX (8-digit) | #e9ecebff |
| RGB | rgb(233, 236, 235) |
| RGBA | rgba(233, 236, 235, 1) |
| HSL | hsl(160, 7%, 92%) |
| HSV / HSB | hsv(160, 1%, 93%) |
| HWB | hwb(160 91% 7%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(1%, 0%, 0%, 8%) |
| LAB | lab(93.2 -1.2 0.1) |
| LCH | lch(93.2 1.2 173.7) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.941 0.004 174.5) |
| XYZ (D65) | xyz(78.59, 83.31, 90.52) |
| Decimal | 15330539 |
| Display P3 | color(display-p3 0.914 0.925 0.922) |
| Web-safe | #FFFFFF |
Copy-ready code
/* CSS */
color: #e9eceb;
background-color: #e9eceb;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #e9eceb;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#e9eceb] bg-[#e9eceb]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #e9eceb;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.914, green: 0.925, blue: 0.922)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.914, green: 0.925, blue: 0.922, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#E9ECEB</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFE9ECEB)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFE9ECEB)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(235, 236, 233)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(233, 236, 235)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(233, 236, 235)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 233, 236, 235)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.9137f, 0.9255f, 0.9216f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{233,236,235}/* mix without leaving CSS */ background: color-mix(in oklab, #e9eceb 85%, white); border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #e9eceb 40%, transparent); /* theme-aware in one line */ color: light-dark(#3B4441, #DEE3E1); /* relative colour syntax */ --hover: hsl(from #e9eceb h s calc(l - 7));
Design tokens
The same ramp in the four formats a team actually needs. Paste one and the whole palette lands with it.
:root {
--brand-50: #F7F8F7;
--brand-100: #e9eceb;
--brand-200: #DCE0DF;
--brand-300: #C3CBC8;
--brand-400: #A5B1AD;
--brand-500: #879792;
--brand-600: #71837D;
--brand-700: #5F6D68;
--brand-800: #4C5854;
--brand-900: #39413F;
--brand-950: #242927;
--brand: #e9eceb;
--brand-ink: #000000;
--brand-surface: #F7F8F8;
--brand-border: #D3D9D7;
--brand-hover: #D6DCDA;
--brand-pressed: #C3CBC8;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
:root {
--brand-surface: #1A1E1D;
--brand-ink: #DEE3E1;
}
}theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
brand: {
50: '#F7F8F7',
100: '#e9eceb',
200: '#DCE0DF',
300: '#C3CBC8',
400: '#A5B1AD',
500: '#879792',
600: '#71837D',
700: '#5F6D68',
800: '#4C5854',
900: '#39413F',
950: '#242927',
DEFAULT: '#e9eceb',
},
},
},
}$brand: (
'50': #F7F8F7,
'100': #e9eceb,
'200': #DCE0DF,
'300': #C3CBC8,
'400': #A5B1AD,
'500': #879792,
'600': #71837D,
'700': #5F6D68,
'800': #4C5854,
'900': #39413F,
'950': #242927,
);
$brand-base: #e9eceb;
$brand-ink: #000000;
@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }{
"color": {
"brand": {
"50": { "$value": "#F7F8F7", "$type": "color" },
"100": { "$value": "#e9eceb", "$type": "color" },
"200": { "$value": "#DCE0DF", "$type": "color" },
"300": { "$value": "#C3CBC8", "$type": "color" },
"400": { "$value": "#A5B1AD", "$type": "color" },
"500": { "$value": "#879792", "$type": "color" },
"600": { "$value": "#71837D", "$type": "color" },
"700": { "$value": "#5F6D68", "$type": "color" },
"800": { "$value": "#4C5854", "$type": "color" },
"900": { "$value": "#39413F", "$type": "color" },
"950": { "$value": "#242927", "$type": "color" }
},
"brandInk": { "$value": "#000000", "$type": "color" }
}
}Best text color
Only one of black and white can be right. This is the one, with the number that proves it.
Make it accessible
A contrast checker tells you that you failed. This tells you what to ship instead — same hue, same saturation, lightness moved only as far as WCAG demands.
Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #879792 is enough for headings on white. Non-text elements such as icons, chart strokes and focus rings also sit at 3:1 under WCAG 2.2 (1.4.11).
Accessibility — WCAG contrast
Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #e9eceb as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #e9eceb.
| Neutral | Ratio | Verdict | Both directions |
|---|---|---|---|
| White#ffffff | 1.19:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 50#f8fafc | 1.14:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 100#f1f5f9 | 1.09:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 200#e2e8f0 | 1.04:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 300#cbd5e1 | 1.25:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 400#94a3b8 | 2.16:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 500#64748b | 4.00:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 600#475569 | 6.37:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 700#334155 | 8.71:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 800#1e293b | 12.30:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Slate 900#0f172a | 15.02:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
| Black#000000 | 17.66:1 | AAAA lgAAA | AaAa |
Roughly one man in twelve has some form of colour vision deficiency. If any of the three panels above is hard to tell apart from a neighbouring colour in your palette, add a shape, an icon or a label so the meaning does not rest on hue alone.
Color scale — 50 to 950
A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #e9eceb is pinned to step 100; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.
The same eleven steps expressed in OKLCH, where equal lightness numbers actually look equally spaced. HSL ramps go muddy in the yellows and washed out in the blues; this one does not. Modern browsers render it natively — the hex ramp above is the fallback.
:root {
--brand-50: oklch(0.97 0.001 174.5);
--brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.001 174.5);
--brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.002 174.5);
--brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.003 174.5);
--brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.003 174.5);
--brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.004 174.5);
--brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.004 174.5);
--brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.003 174.5);
--brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.003 174.5);
--brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.002 174.5);
--brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.002 174.5);
}Colors that work with #e9eceb
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.
In real components
The same eight roles, wired into the interface patterns you will actually build with them. Every state below is a computed value, not a mock-up.
Focus ring uses the light variant so the field still reads as one shape.
The file stays available for seven days. Download it before it expires.
How to use #e9eceb
Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.
- ✓Text and icons on dark surfaces
- ✓Borders, dividers and quiet backgrounds
- ✓Long-form reading surfaces
- ✓Card and section backgrounds
- ✓Neutral UI chrome and typography
- ⚠Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
- ⚠White text placed on it
- ⚠Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Meaning and mood
What a colour in this family tends to signal, and how this particular chroma and lightness change the reading.
Off-whites do the work of white without the glare, and give shadows something to land on.
With almost no chroma left, the family association is barely present; treat it as a neutral that happens to lean this way. The high lightness makes it recede — a surface colour rather than a statement.
Too many near-whites in one system look like a mistake rather than a decision. Keep two, maximum.
- FormalityMedium
- EnergyLow
- Weight8/100
- TemperatureNeutral
- ApproachabilityBalanced
Colour associations are cultural and vary by market. Treat these as a starting point for a conversation with your audience, not a finding about them.
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 | #ECE9EA | Directly opposite — maximum tension | |
| Analogous left | #E9ECEA | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Analogous right | #E9ECEC | Neighbour, quieter | |
| Split-complement 1 | #ECE9EC | Contrast without the clash | |
| Split-complement 2 | #ECEAE9 | Contrast without the clash | |
| Triadic 1 | #EBE9EC | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Triadic 2 | #ECEBE9 | Even thirds — balanced and loud | |
| Tetradic | #EAE9EC | Fourth corner of the square scheme |
#e9eceb sits at 160°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.
RGB percentages
CMYK percentages
Total ink coverage is 9%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.
Color previews
#e9eceb text on a black background
contrast 17.66:1
#e9eceb text on a white background
contrast 1.19:1
#e9eceb on grey
1.09:1
#e9eceb on its own surface
1.12:1
#e9eceb on its dark surface
14.16:1
CSS3 live lab
The quick brown fox
color: #e9eceb;
background-color: #e9eceb;
Glowing headline
text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #e9eceb;
Soft neon halo
text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(233, 236, 235, 0.45);
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(233, 236, 235, 0.45);
border: 3px solid #e9eceb; background: linear-gradient(135deg, #e9eceb, #E9EBEC);
Gradient headline
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #e9eceb, #E9EAEC); -webkit-background-clip: text; color: transparent;
outline: 2px solid #e9eceb; outline-offset: 3px;
Marked up text
text-decoration-color: #e9eceb; caret-color: #e9eceb;
border-left: 4px solid #e9eceb;
background: #F1F3F3; box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #e9eceb;
background: conic-gradient(#e9eceb 68%, #e2e8f0 0);
Transparency
What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #e9eceb over white; the bottom row is the same alpha over a checkerboard, so you can see what survives on a photo or a video.
Bottom row of hexes is the flattened result over white — use those when a design tool refuses transparency, or when you need a solid fallback.
rgba(233, 236, 235, 0.5) rgb(233 236 235 / 50%) #e9eceb80 hsl(160 7% 92% / 50%) color-mix(in srgb, #e9eceb 50%, transparent)
| Alpha | 8-digit hex | Flat on white |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | #e9eceb1a | #FDFDFD |
| 20% | #e9eceb33 | #FBFBFB |
| 40% | #e9eceb66 | #F6F7F7 |
| 60% | #e9eceb99 | #F2F4F3 |
| 80% | #e9ecebcc | #EDF0EF |
Gradients from #e9eceb
Six recipes, each built from this hex and shown with the exact CSS that produced it.
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #F4F6F5, #e9eceb 45%, #3B4441);
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #e9eceb, #D9DCDE);
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #e9eceb, #ECE9EA);
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #F7F8F8 0%, #e9eceb 45%, #3B4441 100%);
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F7F8F8, #ffffff);
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #FFFFFF 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #FAFAFA 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #3B4441 0%, transparent 65%), #e9eceb;
Monochromatic scale
Palettes built from #e9eceb
Shades — darker
Tints — lighter
Tones — desaturated
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: Gainsboro (#dcdcdc) — ΔE2000 3.8 away, with its history, psychology and brand usage.
#e9eceb in the real world
Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.
Very light tints can drop out on uncoated stock; check it at 100% size before signing off.
Holds up across typical panel gamma. Still worth checking on an uncalibrated laptop, where mid-tones shift most.
Usable as-is on a dark surface at 17.66:1.
Explore nearby colors
Small, deliberate steps away from this hex — useful when you are hunting for the version of a colour that finally feels right.
#e9eceb, answered
What color is #e9eceb?
#e9eceb is a pale muted near-white, closest to White Smoke (ΔE2000 2.7). It sits at 160° on the hue wheel with 7% saturation and 92% lightness, which reads as neutral.
What is the RGB value of #e9eceb?
rgb(233, 236, 235) — 233 red, 236 green and 235 blue out of 255, or 91.4% / 92.5% / 92.2% by channel.
What is #e9eceb in HSL and HSV?
hsl(160, 7%, 92%) and hsv(160, 1%, 93%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.
Is #e9eceb a light or a dark color?
It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.8331 and perceived brightness is 92%, so black text on it reaches 17.66:1.
Should I use black or white text on #e9eceb?
Black. It scores 17.66:1 against #e9eceb, versus 1.19:1 for white — AAA at any size.
Is #e9eceb accessible on a white background?
#e9eceb on white scores 1.19:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #687873 to reach 4.5:1, or #4E5A56 for 7:1.
What is the complementary color of #e9eceb?
#ECE9EA sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #ECE9EC and #ECEAE9, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.
What colors go well with #e9eceb?
For interface work: #F7F8F8 as the surface, #D3D9D7 for borders, #6A7B76 for secondary text, #725A68 as an accent and #3B4441 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #E9ECEA and #E9ECEC stays calm, while #ECE9EA is the loudest partner.
What is #e9eceb in CMYK for printing?
cmyk(1%, 0%, 0%, 8%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.
Is #e9eceb warm or cool?
Neutral — it scores 56 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #F2EFEE; nudged cooler, #E2E5E9.
Which Tailwind color is closest to #e9eceb?
The cyan family — its 500 step is #06b6d4, ΔE2000 27.5 away. That is a visible difference, so define #e9eceb as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.
How do I use #e9eceb in Tailwind CSS?
Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#e9eceb] or text-[#e9eceb], or register the whole ramp under theme.extend.colors.brand so you get bg-brand-500 and friends. The generated 50–950 scale on this page is ready to paste into your config.
What is #e9eceb with 50% opacity?
rgba(233, 236, 235, 0.5), or #e9eceb80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #F4F6F5; over black, #757676.
Is #e9eceb a web-safe color?
No. The nearest web-safe colour is #FFFFFF, ΔE2000 4.4 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.
What does the color #e9eceb mean?
As a near-white, it reads clean, open, calm. Off-whites do the work of white without the glare, and give shadows something to land on. At this low chroma the association is faint; it behaves more like a neutral.
What gradient works with #e9eceb?
The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #F4F6F5, #e9eceb 45%, #3B4441). For more colour, a short hue run to #D9DCDE keeps it rich without turning muddy.
Work with #e9eceb in the Color Lab
Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.
Every value on this page is computed from #e9eceb at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.