Color reference

#A9A9A9 color reference

Dark Gray / Dark Grey

This is a light neutral because its OKLCH chroma falls below the deterministic hue-family threshold.

Exact CSS name
Dark Gray / Dark Grey
Recommended text
Black · 8.94:1
Relative luminance
0.396755
Build a palette from #A9A9A9 in Palette Generator Convert #A9A9A9 in Color Converter
Formats UI preview Contrast 50–900 scale Harmonies Matches Related colors Color vision Exports

Copyable values

#A9A9A9 in common color formats

Values are calculated from the same opaque sRGB color. Display rounding does not alter the internal calculations.

Color conversions for #A9A9A9
Format Value Action
HEX #A9A9A9
RGB rgb(169 169 169)
HSL hsl(0 0% 66.27%)
HSV hsv(0 0% 66.27%)
HWB hwb(0 66.27% 33.73%)
XYZ D65 color(xyz-d65 0.377098 0.396755 0.432089)
LAB lab(69.2378% 0 0)
LCH lch(69.2378% 0 0)
OKLAB oklab(73.4809% 0 0)
OKLCH oklch(73.4809% 0 0)

Real-world test

Try #A9A9A9 on interface components

Preview the source as a primary action, subtle status, form treatment, and card surface. Persistent state controls help touch and keyboard users inspect the same normal, hover, and active colors.

Normal state uses #A9A9A9 with black text at 8.94:1.

Action

Primary button

Use the controls above or point to and press the button to inspect its visual states.

Status

Subtle alert badge

A 12% source tint over white provides the background; readable text is selected separately.

Ready for review

Form

Border and focus ring

Source ring on white: 2.35:1 · does not meet the 3:1 non-text threshold where applicable.

Surface

Card component

The selected state becomes the card surface with its strongest black-or-white text pairing.

Design system Color decision ready Review states and surrounding surfaces before shipping.

Accessibility diagnostics

WCAG contrast for exact color pairs

Each result applies only to the named foreground, background, text size, and requirement. It is not a complete accessibility or component-conformance claim.

Source #A9A9A9 Exact pair assessment Results for source text on white appear below.

On white

2.35:1

  • Fail AA normal text · 4.5:1
  • Fail AAA normal text · 7:1
  • Fail AA large text · 3:1
  • Fail UI/non-text where applicable · 3:1
Source #A9A9A9 Exact pair assessment Results for source text on black appear below.

On black

8.94:1

  • Pass AA normal text · 4.5:1
  • Pass AAA normal text · 7:1
  • Pass AA large text · 3:1
  • Pass UI/non-text where applicable · 3:1

Use guidance

What this color may be suitable for

Not recommended

Normal-sized text

#A9A9A9 does not reach 4.5:1 on white or Hue Codex paper, so it should not be used there for normal-sized text.

Needs a boundary

Controls and interface graphics

Against Hue Codex paper, the color reaches only 2.25:1. Use a contrasting border or another non-color boundary for meaningful controls and graphics.

Readable pairing available

Colored surface or button fill

Black text provides the stronger black/white pairing on #A9A9A9 at 8.94:1. This validates only that text pair, not hover, focus, disabled, or adjacent-color states.

Restrained neutral

Palette role

Its OKLCH chroma of 0 is restrained, which is generally more suitable for surfaces, borders, or neutral system roles than for a vivid accent.

Pair available

Color used as foreground

The stronger black/white background is black at 8.94:1. Always retest against the actual rendered background and text size.

Tested backgrounds

Foreground pairing comparison

#A9A9A9 foreground contrast on tested backgrounds
Pair Background Contrast ratio
Black#000000 8.94:1
Hue Codex ink#10212B 7.01:1
White#FFFFFF 2.35:1
Hue Codex paper#FBFAF5 2.25:1
Soft neutral#F2EFE6 2.04:1
Check #A9A9A9 on another background in Contrast Checker

Design-system starting point

A perceptual 50–900 reference scale

The source color is preserved at the nearest lightness step. Other swatches keep its OKLCH hue, moderate chroma toward the extremes, and reduce chroma only when needed to remain in sRGB.

50 #F5F5F5
100 #DEDEDE
200
300 #A9A9A9 Source
400
500
600 #636363
700
800
900

This is a Hue Codex reference scale, not a claim that the values match Tailwind, Material, or another framework’s named palette.

Adjust the #A9A9A9 scale in Tints, Shades & Tones

Color relationships

Complementary, analogous, and triadic colors

Hue rotations use OKLCH while preserving lightness and requested chroma. When a rotated result falls outside sRGB, chroma is reduced deterministically and disclosed.

Hue relationships are not meaningful for this near-neutral color

Its OKLCH chroma is too low for hue rotation to produce a trustworthy complementary or triadic recommendation. Use the lightness scale or pair it with a deliberately selected accent instead.

Explore #A9A9A9 in Color Harmonies

Distance matching

Closest standardized and framework colors

Matches use straight-line OKLab distance ×100. A smaller value means the coordinates are closer in this model; it is not a claim that two tokens are interchangeable in a design system.

CSS named color

Dark Gray

#A9A9A9

Exact standardized CSS match.

Tailwind v4 default

mist-400

oklch(72.3% 0.014 214.4)

OKLab distance ×100: 1.83 · sRGB preview #9CA8AB

Print boundary

Pantone match not estimated

Reliable print matching needs licensed reference data plus a defined ink, paper, profile, and viewing condition.

Read the print methodology

Color-vision screening

Approximate color-vision-deficiency views

These encoded-sRGB matrix previews are screening approximations. They help reveal possible color-only distinctions but do not reproduce every person’s vision or establish accessibility conformance.

Original#A9A9A9
Approx.#A9A9A9

Protanopia

Red-vision deficiency approximation

Original#A9A9A9
Approx.#A9A9A9

Deuteranopia

Green-vision deficiency approximation

Original#A9A9A9
Approx.#A9A9A9

Tritanopia

Blue-yellow deficiency approximation

Original#A9A9A9
Approx.#A9A9A9

Achromatopsia

Monochromatic-vision approximation

Test #A9A9A9 with a complete palette in the CVD Simulator

Ready to use

Copy framework-ready color tokens

Exports preserve the source, readable foreground, and generated 50–900 scale. Tailwind v4 CSS-first and Tailwind v3 JavaScript-config formats are labeled separately.

CSS custom properties

Semantic aliases and the complete 50–900 scale.

:root {
  --color-primary: #A9A9A9;
  --color-on-primary: #000000;
  --color-primary-oklch: oklch(73.4809% 0 0);
  --color-primary-50: #F5F5F5;
  --color-primary-100: #DEDEDE;
  --color-primary-200: #C4C4C4;
  --color-primary-300: #A9A9A9;
  --color-primary-400: #929292;
  --color-primary-500: #7A7A7A;
  --color-primary-600: #636363;
  --color-primary-700: #4D4D4D;
  --color-primary-800: #383838;
  --color-primary-900: #242424;
}

Tailwind v4 CSS-first theme

Current @theme syntax for bg-brand, text-brand, and scale utilities.

@import "tailwindcss";

@theme {
  --color-brand: #A9A9A9;
  --color-brand-foreground: #000000;
  --color-brand-50: #F5F5F5;
  --color-brand-100: #DEDEDE;
  --color-brand-200: #C4C4C4;
  --color-brand-300: #A9A9A9;
  --color-brand-400: #929292;
  --color-brand-500: #7A7A7A;
  --color-brand-600: #636363;
  --color-brand-700: #4D4D4D;
  --color-brand-800: #383838;
  --color-brand-900: #242424;
}

Tailwind v3 / legacy config

CommonJS theme.extend.colors for JavaScript-config projects.

module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        brand: {
          '50': '#F5F5F5',
          '100': '#DEDEDE',
          '200': '#C4C4C4',
          '300': '#A9A9A9',
          '400': '#929292',
          '500': '#7A7A7A',
          '600': '#636363',
          '700': '#4D4D4D',
          '800': '#383838',
          '900': '#242424',
          DEFAULT: '#A9A9A9',
          foreground: '#000000',
        },
      },
    },
  },
};

Sass variables

Semantic source, foreground, OKLCH, and scale variables.

$color-primary: #A9A9A9;
$color-on-primary: #000000;
$color-primary-oklch: oklch(73.4809% 0 0);
$color-primary-50: #F5F5F5;
$color-primary-100: #DEDEDE;
$color-primary-200: #C4C4C4;
$color-primary-300: #A9A9A9;
$color-primary-400: #929292;
$color-primary-500: #7A7A7A;
$color-primary-600: #636363;
$color-primary-700: #4D4D4D;
$color-primary-800: #383838;
$color-primary-900: #242424;

Modern color-mix()

Static fallbacks followed by OKLab tint and shade declarations.

:root {
  --color-primary: #A9A9A9;
  --color-primary-tint: #C4C4C4;
  --color-primary-tint: color-mix(in oklab, var(--color-primary) 72%, white);
  --color-primary-shade: #4D4D4D;
  --color-primary-shade: color-mix(in oklab, var(--color-primary) 82%, black);
}

JSON design data

Source formats, readable text, and the generated scale.

{
    "name": "Dark Gray / Dark Grey",
    "hex": "#A9A9A9",
    "rgb": "rgb(169 169 169)",
    "oklch": "oklch(73.4809% 0 0)",
    "recommendedText": "#000000",
    "scale": {
        "50": "#F5F5F5",
        "100": "#DEDEDE",
        "200": "#C4C4C4",
        "300": "#A9A9A9",
        "400": "#929292",
        "500": "#7A7A7A",
        "600": "#636363",
        "700": "#4D4D4D",
        "800": "#383838",
        "900": "#242424"
    }
}

Continue the decision

Use #A9A9A9 in a complete workflow

Reference values are a starting point. Test the color in its real role, background, states, typography, and surrounding palette before shipping.

Adjust #A9A9A9 in Color PickerStart with this exact color and white as the working background for role and accessibility decisions. Build a palette from #A9A9A9 in Palette GeneratorUse this exact HEX as the seed for a deterministic, role-based palette. Check #A9A9A9 on white in Contrast CheckerStart with this color as the foreground and white as the background, then test the real pair.