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gray · neutral

#dbd6dc

a pale, muted gray · neutral · closest name: Gainsboro

Token name suggestion: Whisper Graphite

RGB
219, 214, 220
HSL
290°, 8%, 85%
CMYK
1, 3, 0, 14
Luminance
0.6832

#dbd6dc is a pale muted gray, 290° on the wheel and 51/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (14.66:1). As text it scores 1.43:1 on white — use #817184 instead. Nearest name is Gainsboro, nearest Tailwind family is neutral.

hsl(290 8% 85%)rgb(219 214 220)Base step 200AAA inkNeutral

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #dbd6dc is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#dbd6dc
Hue
290°
gray
Saturation
8%
muted
Lightness
85%
pale
Brightness
86%
HSV value
Perceived
85%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.6832
WCAG relative
Temperature
Neutral
51/100 cool
Color family
Gray
Tone
Muted
Best ink
Black
14.66:1
Closest name
Gainsboro
ΔE2000 4.4
Chroma
3.6
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.882
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
neutral
500 · ΔE 30.5
Web-safe
#CCCCCC
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue290° of 360°
Saturation8%
Lightness85%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #dbd6dc.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool51% cool

Near-neutral, so temperature is a whisper rather than a statement — the tinted siblings below show which way it can lean.

Luminance by channel
Red22%
Green70%
Blue8%

Green carries most of what the eye calls brightness — that is why WCAG weights it 0.7152.

Every format

HEX#dbd6dc
HEX (8-digit)#dbd6dcff
RGBrgb(219, 214, 220)
RGBArgba(219, 214, 220, 1)
HSLhsl(290, 8%, 85%)
HSV / HSBhsv(290, 3%, 86%)
HWBhwb(290 84% 14%)
CMYKcmyk(1%, 3%, 0%, 14%)
LABlab(86.2 2.8 -2.3)
LCHlch(86.2 3.6 319.9)
OKLCHoklch(0.882 0.010 320.5)
XYZ (D65)xyz(66.18, 68.32, 77.40)
Decimal14407388
Display P3color(display-p3 0.859 0.839 0.863)
Web-safe#CCCCCC

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #dbd6dc;
background-color: #dbd6dc;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #dbd6dc;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#dbd6dc] bg-[#dbd6dc]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #dbd6dc;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.859, green: 0.839, blue: 0.863)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.859, green: 0.839, blue: 0.863, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#DBD6DC</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFDBD6DC)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFDBD6DC)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(220, 214, 219)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(219, 214, 220)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(219, 214, 220)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 219, 214, 220)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.8588f, 0.8392f, 0.8627f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{219,214,220}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #dbd6dc 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #dbd6dc 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#433B45, #E2DEE3);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #dbd6dc 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.

css custom propertiesclick to select
:root {
  --brand-50: #F8F7F8;
  --brand-100: #F0EFF1;
  --brand-200: #dbd6dc;
  --brand-300: #CAC2CB;
  --brand-400: #AFA4B1;
  --brand-500: #958698;
  --brand-600: #817184;
  --brand-700: #6B5E6E;
  --brand-800: #564B58;
  --brand-900: #403942;
  --brand-950: #282329;
  --brand: #dbd6dc;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F8F7F8;
  --brand-border: #D8D3D9;
  --brand-hover: #CAC3CC;
  --brand-pressed: #B9AFBB;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #1E1A1E;
    --brand-ink: #E2DEE3;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F8F7F8',
        100: '#F0EFF1',
        200: '#dbd6dc',
        300: '#CAC2CB',
        400: '#AFA4B1',
        500: '#958698',
        600: '#817184',
        700: '#6B5E6E',
        800: '#564B58',
        900: '#403942',
        950: '#282329',
        DEFAULT: '#dbd6dc',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F8F7F8,
  '100': #F0EFF1,
  '200': #dbd6dc,
  '300': #CAC2CB,
  '400': #AFA4B1,
  '500': #958698,
  '600': #817184,
  '700': #6B5E6E,
  '800': #564B58,
  '900': #403942,
  '950': #282329,
);
$brand-base: #dbd6dc;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F8F7F8", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#F0EFF1", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#dbd6dc", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#CAC2CB", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#AFA4B1", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#958698", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#817184", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#6B5E6E", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#564B58", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#403942", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#282329", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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.

Readable at a glance#000000 on #dbd6dc · 14.66:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 1.43:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 14.66:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #dbd6dc as text scores 1.43:1 on white and 14.66:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #433B45 at 7.52:1.

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.

The quick fox
#817184 · 4.54:1
AA on white−37% L
#817184
The quick fox
#615563 · 7.03:1
AAA on white−49% L
#615563
The quick fox
#dbd6dc · 14.66:1
AA on blackalready passes
#dbd6dc
The quick fox
#dbd6dc · 14.66:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#dbd6dc

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #9C8E9F 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

Aa
#dbd6dc on white: 1.43:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#dbd6dc on black: 14.66:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #dbd6dc as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #dbd6dc.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White1.43:1AaAa
Slate 501.37:1AaAa
Slate 1001.31:1AaAa
Slate 2001.16:1AaAa
Slate 3001.04:1AaAa
Slate 4001.79:1AaAa
Slate 5003.32:1AaAa
Slate 6005.29:1AaAa
Slate 7007.23:1AaAa
Slate 80010.22:1AaAa
Slate 90012.47:1AaAa
Black14.66:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #D6D7DC
deuteranopia · #D6D8DC
tritanopia · #DBD7D8

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. #dbd6dc is pinned to step 200; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#F8F7F8
#F0EFF1
#dbd6dc
#CAC2CB
#AFA4B1
#958698
#817184
#6B5E6E
#564B58
#403942
#282329
Base = 200Lightest = 50 · #F8F7F8Darkest = 950 · #282329Text step on white = 600
Perceptual ramp — OKLCH

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.

50100200300400500600700800900950
oklch tokensclick to select
:root {
  --brand-50: oklch(0.97 0.002 320.5);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.004 320.5);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.006 320.5);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.008 320.5);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.009 320.5);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.010 320.5);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.010 320.5);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.009 320.5);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.008 320.5);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.007 320.5);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.005 320.5);
}

Colors that work with #dbd6dc

Not a palette — a role sheet. Each swatch answers one question you will hit while building the component.

Text on it#000000
Black wins here
Surface#F8F7F8
Tinted page background
Border#D8D3D9
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#796A7C
Captions on the surface
Accent#637359
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#433B45
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#F3F1F3
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#1E1A1E
Dark-mode background
Hover#CAC3CC
One step down in lightness
Pressed#B9AFBB
Two steps down
Disabled#F5F4F6
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#E7DEE8
Offset from the fill so it reads
Light mode
Everything in its place

Surface, border, heading and body all derive from this one hue, so the screen stays coherent without a second palette.

Primary actionSecondaryBadge
Dark mode
Same hue, inverted

Lightness flips, hue holds. The accent stays the anchor in both themes.

Primary actionSecondaryAccent

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.

Buttons and states
Save changesHoverPressedDisabled
OutlineSubtleLinkFocused
Form field
you@company.com

Focus ring uses the light variant so the field still reads as one shape.

Send me product updates
Notice
Your export is ready

The file stays available for seven days. Download it before it expires.

NewBetaDraft
Data
Storage used68%
Acme LtdActive
NorthwindTrial
GlobexActive

How to use #dbd6dc

Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.

Works well for
  • Text and icons on dark surfaces
  • Borders, dividers and quiet backgrounds
  • Long-form reading surfaces
  • Card and section backgrounds
  • Neutral UI chrome and typography
Use with care
  • Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
  • White text placed on it
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Minimum size as text on white
Not as text
Safe as a fill behind white type
No — use #433B45
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #9C8E9F

Meaning and mood

What a colour in this family tends to signal, and how this particular chroma and lightness change the reading.

neutralquieteditorialengineered

Grey is the material the rest of the interface is built from: type, rules, surfaces, disabled states.

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.

Worth knowing

Mid-greys are where accessibility quietly fails — check every step of your ladder, not just the ends.

Reads as
  • FormalityMedium
  • EnergyLow
  • Weight15/100
  • 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#D7DCD6
Analogous left#D8D6DC
Analogous right#DCD6DA
Split-complement 1#DADCD6
Split-complement 2#D6DCD8
Triadic 1#DCDBD6
Triadic 2#D6DCDB
Tetradic#DCD8D6
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°290°

#dbd6dc sits at 290°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red85.9%
Green83.9%
Blue86.3%
R · 0–255
219
0xdb
G · 0–255
214
0xd6
B · 0–255
220
0xdc

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.5%
Magenta2.7%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)13.7%

Total ink coverage is 17%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#dbd6dc text on a black background

contrast 14.66:1

Card sample

#dbd6dc text on a white background

contrast 1.43:1

Card sample

#dbd6dc on grey

1.31:1

#dbd6dc on its own surface

1.34:1

#dbd6dc on its dark surface

12.00:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #dbd6dc;
Background color
Panel with #dbd6dc background
background-color: #dbd6dc;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #dbd6dc;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(219, 214, 220, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(219, 214, 220, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #dbd6dc;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #dbd6dc, #DCD6D9);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #dbd6dc, #DCD6D8);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #dbd6dc;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #dbd6dc;
caret-color: #dbd6dc;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #dbd6dc;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #F3F1F3;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #dbd6dc;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#dbd6dc 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #dbd6dc 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.

alpha in every syntaxclick to select
rgba(219, 214, 220, 0.5)
rgb(219 214 220 / 50%)
#dbd6dc80
hsl(290 8% 85% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #dbd6dc 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#dbd6dc1a#FBFBFC
20%#dbd6dc33#F8F7F8
40%#dbd6dc66#F1EFF1
60%#dbd6dc99#E9E6EA
80%#dbd6dccc#E2DEE3

Gradients from #dbd6dc

Six recipes, each built from this hex and shown with the exact CSS that produced it.

Elevation
Same hue, three lightnesses — safe anywhere
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #F5F4F6, #dbd6dc 45%, #433B45);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #dbd6dc, #CEC5C9);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #dbd6dc, #D7DCD6);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #F8F7F8 0%, #dbd6dc 45%, #433B45 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F8F7F8, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #F2F2F3 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #EAE7E9 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #433B45 0%, transparent 65%), #dbd6dc;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #dbd6dc

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.

#dbd6dc in the real world

Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.

Industries
EditorialArchitectureEnterpriseLuxury goods
Common UI roles
BackgroundsBordersBody textDividers
Print note

Very light tints can drop out on uncoated stock; check it at 100% size before signing off.

On screens

Holds up across typical panel gamma. Still worth checking on an uncalibrated laptop, where mid-tones shift most.

In dark mode

Usable as-is on a dark surface at 14.66:1.

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.

#dbd6dc, answered

What color is #dbd6dc?

#dbd6dc is a pale muted gray, closest to Gainsboro (ΔE2000 4.4). It sits at 290° on the hue wheel with 8% saturation and 85% lightness, which reads as neutral.

What is the RGB value of #dbd6dc?

rgb(219, 214, 220) — 219 red, 214 green and 220 blue out of 255, or 85.9% / 83.9% / 86.3% by channel.

What is #dbd6dc in HSL and HSV?

hsl(290, 8%, 85%) and hsv(290, 3%, 86%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #dbd6dc a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.6832 and perceived brightness is 85%, so black text on it reaches 14.66:1.

Should I use black or white text on #dbd6dc?

Black. It scores 14.66:1 against #dbd6dc, versus 1.43:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #dbd6dc accessible on a white background?

#dbd6dc on white scores 1.43:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #817184 to reach 4.5:1, or #615563 for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #dbd6dc?

#D7DCD6 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #DADCD6 and #D6DCD8, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #dbd6dc?

For interface work: #F8F7F8 as the surface, #D8D3D9 for borders, #796A7C for secondary text, #637359 as an accent and #433B45 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #D8D6DC and #DCD6DA stays calm, while #D7DCD6 is the loudest partner.

What is #dbd6dc in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(1%, 3%, 0%, 14%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #dbd6dc warm or cool?

Neutral — it scores 51 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #E3DDD9; nudged cooler, #CED4DA.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #dbd6dc?

The neutral family — its 500 step is #737373, ΔE2000 30.5 away. That is a visible difference, so define #dbd6dc as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #dbd6dc in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#dbd6dc] or text-[#dbd6dc], 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 #dbd6dc with 50% opacity?

rgba(219, 214, 220, 0.5), or #dbd6dc80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #EDEBEE; over black, #6E6B6E.

Is #dbd6dc a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #CCCCCC, ΔE2000 5.1 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #dbd6dc mean?

As a gray, it reads neutral, quiet, editorial. Grey is the material the rest of the interface is built from: type, rules, surfaces, disabled states. At this low chroma the association is faint; it behaves more like a neutral.

What gradient works with #dbd6dc?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #F5F4F6, #dbd6dc 45%, #433B45). For more colour, a short hue run to #CEC5C9 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #dbd6dc in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #dbd6dc at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.