Colors Encyclopedia

Brand colors

Stanford Brand Colors

Stanford palette: #8C1515, #FFFFFF, #2E2D29. Compare HEX/RGB, WCAG contrast and CSS tokens; open independent JSON data.

Commonly referenced brand color values. This page is an independent technical reference and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Stanford.

EducationBrand indexAPIDataset
Commonly referenced palette Stanford
#8C1515#FFFFFF#2E2D29
Listed without an implied color hierarchy

Palette

Palette color 1#8C1515RGB 140, 21, 21
White#FFFFFFRGB 255, 255, 255
Palette color 3#2E2D29RGB 46, 45, 41

CSS Tokens

:root {
  --brand-stanford-1: #8C1515;
  --brand-stanford-2: #FFFFFF;
  --brand-stanford-3: #2E2D29;
}

Accessibility Snapshot

#8C1515Black 2.23:1 / White 9.4:1
#FFFFFFBlack 21:1 / White 1:1
#2E2D29Black 1.52:1 / White 13.78:1

Brand palette context · Editorially reviewed

About Stanford Brand Colors

Stanford’s identity guide describes Cardinal red as the university’s official color since its earliest days and asks communicators to rely heavily on the primary palette for immediate recognition. The supporting colors draw from campus architecture and the California landscape, connecting the wider system to place rather than adding arbitrary accents.

Cardinal red carries the institutional signal, while white and a very dark neutral provide the contrast needed for documents, signs, and digital interfaces. Accent palettes can express individual schools or programs, but the official guide treats accessibility, color matching, and consistent primary-color use as separate practical requirements.

This independent page does not provide Stanford templates or marks, represent the university, or replace its current identity and licensing guidance.

Downloadable brand colors infographic

Stanford Brand Colors Infographic

Save an independent infographic of the commonly referenced Stanford HEX palette and its accessibility guidance. No logo or proprietary artwork is included.

1200 × 800
Stanford brand colors infographic showing its commonly referenced HEX palette and accessibility guidance for every listed color without assigning a color hierarchy.
Stanford brand colors infographic. Commonly referenced brand color values. This page is an independent technical reference and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Stanford.
Download WebPDownload SVGOpen full size

Machine-readable data

Machine-Readable Brand Color Data (JSON)

Structured brand palette data for design systems, references, automations, and AI ingestion.

AI-Ready Dataset v1.0.0
Luminance0.0617
Black text2.23:1AA Fail
White text9.4:1AA Pass
hexCanonical HEX value
rgbRed, green, blue channels
hslHue, saturation, lightness
cmykApproximate print conversion
wcagAA and AAA contrast options
harmoniesMathematical harmony sets
variantsGenerated tone variants
nearestColorsKnowledge graph neighbors
Download JSON Open API
Structured sections
Brand
{
  "slug": "stanford",
  "name": "Stanford",
  "category": "education",
  "brandCategory": [
    "Education",
    "education"
  ],
  "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/brand-colors/stanford/",
  "categoryUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/brand-colors/education/",
  "disclaimer": "Commonly referenced brand color values. This page is an independent technical reference and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Stanford."
}
Palette
[
  {
    "name": "Palette color 1",
    "hex": "#8C1515",
    "rgb": [
      140,
      21,
      21
    ],
    "hsl": [
      0,
      74,
      32
    ],
    "cmyk": [
      0,
      85,
      85,
      45
    ],
    "luminance": 0.0617,
    "contrast": {
      "black": 2.23,
      "white": 9.4
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ]
    }
  },
  {
    "name": "White",
    "hex": "#FFFFFF",
    "rgb": [
      255,
      255,
      255
    ],
    "hsl": [
      0,
      0,
      100
    ],
    "cmyk": [
      0,
      0,
      0,
      0
    ],
    "luminance": 1,
    "contrast": {
      "black": 21,
      "white": 1
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#000000",
        "#1A1A1A",
        "#36454F"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#000000",
        "#1A1A1A",
        "#36454F"
      ]
    }
  },
  {
    "name": "Palette color 3",
    "hex": "#2E2D29",
    "rgb": [
      46,
      45,
      41
    ],
    "hsl": [
      48,
      6,
      17
    ],
    "cmyk": [
      0,
      2,
      11,
      82
    ],
    "luminance": 0.0262,
    "contrast": {
      "black": 1.52,
      "white": 13.78
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ]
    }
  }
]
AI context
{
  "brandUseCases": [
    "university identity",
    "campus web systems",
    "institutional design",
    "brand reference",
    "design systems",
    "CSS tokens",
    "accessibility checks"
  ],
  "semanticGroups": [
    "education brand colors",
    "red brand palette",
    "gray brand palette",
    "warm brand palette",
    "neutral brand palette",
    "balanced brand color",
    "light brand color",
    "dark brand color",
    "Stanford color reference"
  ],
  "contrastSafeWith": [
    "#FFFFFF",
    "#F5F5F5",
    "#000000",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#36454F"
  ],
  "relatedEndpoints": [
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/brand-colors/stanford.json",
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/brand-colors.json"
  ]
}
CSS tokens
{
  "css": "--brand-stanford-1: #8C1515;\n--brand-stanford-2: #FFFFFF;\n--brand-stanford-3: #2E2D29;"
}
Accessibility
[
  {
    "hex": "#8C1515",
    "contrast": {
      "black": 2.23,
      "white": 9.4
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ]
    }
  },
  {
    "hex": "#FFFFFF",
    "contrast": {
      "black": 21,
      "white": 1
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#000000",
        "#1A1A1A",
        "#36454F"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#000000",
        "#1A1A1A",
        "#36454F"
      ]
    }
  },
  {
    "hex": "#2E2D29",
    "contrast": {
      "black": 1.52,
      "white": 13.78
    },
    "wcag": {
      "AA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ],
      "AAA": [
        "#FFFFFF",
        "#F5F5F5"
      ]
    }
  }
]
Full JSON dataset 
{
  "slug": "stanford",
  "name": "Stanford",
  "category": "education",
  "brandCategory": [
    "Education",
    "education"
  ],
  "disclaimer": "Commonly referenced brand color values. This page is an independent technical reference and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Stanford.",
  "datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
  "url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/brand-colors/stanford/",
  "categoryUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/brand-colors/education/",
  "apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/brand-colors/stanford.json",
  "colors": [
    {
      "name": "Palette color 1",
      "hex": "#8C1515",
      "rgb": [
        140,
        21,
        21
      ],
      "hsl": [
        0,
        74,
        32
      ],
      "cmyk": [
        0,
        85,
        85,
        45
      ],
      "luminance": 0.0617,
      "contrast": {
        "black": 2.23,
        "white": 9.4
      },
      "wcag": {
        "AA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ],
        "AAA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "White",
      "hex": "#FFFFFF",
      "rgb": [
        255,
        255,
        255
      ],
      "hsl": [
        0,
        0,
        100
      ],
      "cmyk": [
        0,
        0,
        0,
        0
      ],
      "luminance": 1,
      "contrast": {
        "black": 21,
        "white": 1
      },
      "wcag": {
        "AA": [
          "#000000",
          "#1A1A1A",
          "#36454F"
        ],
        "AAA": [
          "#000000",
          "#1A1A1A",
          "#36454F"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Palette color 3",
      "hex": "#2E2D29",
      "rgb": [
        46,
        45,
        41
      ],
      "hsl": [
        48,
        6,
        17
      ],
      "cmyk": [
        0,
        2,
        11,
        82
      ],
      "luminance": 0.0262,
      "contrast": {
        "black": 1.52,
        "white": 13.78
      },
      "wcag": {
        "AA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ],
        "AAA": [
          "#FFFFFF",
          "#F5F5F5"
        ]
      }
    }
  ],
  "brandUseCases": [
    "university identity",
    "campus web systems",
    "institutional design",
    "brand reference",
    "design systems",
    "CSS tokens",
    "accessibility checks"
  ],
  "semanticGroups": [
    "education brand colors",
    "red brand palette",
    "gray brand palette",
    "warm brand palette",
    "neutral brand palette",
    "balanced brand color",
    "light brand color",
    "dark brand color",
    "Stanford color reference"
  ],
  "contrastSafeWith": [
    "#FFFFFF",
    "#F5F5F5",
    "#000000",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#36454F"
  ],
  "relatedEndpoints": [
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/brand-colors/stanford.json",
    "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/brand-colors.json"
  ]
}
Dataset manifest Version 1.0.0 Build hash published in manifest Canonical page

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