Named color

Matte Black

Matte Black is a dark gray color with HEX #1A1A1A. According to Colors Encyclopedia, it has RGB 26, 26, 26, HSL 0, 0%, 10%, neutral temperature, and is useful for industrial design, safety systems, and hardware palettes.

#1A1A1A gray neutral dark

HEX #1A1A1A

RGB rgb(26, 26, 26)

HSL hsl(0 0% 10%)

CMYK cmyk(0, 0, 0, 90)

Luminance 0.0103

Contrast Black 1.21:1White 17.41:1

CSS Utilities

--color-matte-black: #1A1A1A;
.bg-matte-black { background-color: #1A1A1A; }
.text-matte-black { color: #1A1A1A; }

Open CSS utility pageReusable variables, classes, examples, and implementation notes

Luminance0.0103

Black text1.21:1AA Fail

White text17.41:1AA 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

Structured sections

Color systems

{
  "hex": "#1A1A1A",
  "rgb": [
    26,
    26,
    26
  ],
  "hsl": [
    0,
    0,
    10
  ],
  "cmyk": [
    0,
    0,
    0,
    90
  ],
  "luminance": 0.0103,
  "contrast": {
    "black": 1.21,
    "white": 17.41
  }
}

WCAG

{
  "AA": [
    "#FFFFFF",
    "#F5F5F5"
  ],
  "AAA": [
    "#FFFFFF",
    "#F5F5F5"
  ]
}

Harmonies

{
  "complementary": "#1A1A1A",
  "analogous": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ],
  "triadic": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ],
  "tetradic": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ],
  "splitComplementary": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ],
  "monochromatic": [
    "#474747",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#000000"
  ]
}

Variants

{
  "light": "#474747",
  "dark": "#000000",
  "saturated": "#1F1414",
  "desaturated": "#1A1A1A",
  "pastel": "#595959",
  "neon": "#5C0000"
}

Pairings

{
  "best": [
    "#FFFFFF",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ],
  "avoid": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#474747"
  ],
  "neutral": [
    "#1A1A1A",
    "#F5F5F5",
    "#E8E8E4"
  ],
  "highContrast": [
    "#FFFFFF"
  ],
  "lowContrast": [
    "#474747",
    "#1A1A1A"
  ]
}

Knowledge graph

{
  "nearestColors": [
    "carbon-fiber",
    "raisin",
    "rubber",
    "carbon-black",
    "slate-black"
  ],
  "generatedPalettes": [
    "matte-black"
  ],
  "generatedComparisons": [
    "black-vs-matte-black",
    "carbon-black-vs-matte-black",
    "carbon-fiber-vs-matte-black",
    "matte-black-vs-raisin"
  ],
  "relatedFamilies": [
    "/colors/by-family/gray",
    "/colors/by-temperature/neutral",
    "/colors/by-tone/dark"
  ],
  "relatedTools": [
    "/harmonies/matte-black",
    "/wcag/matte-black",
    "/css/colors/matte-black",
    "/hex/1a1a1a"
  ],
  "semanticRelations": {
    "broader": [
      "/colors/by-family/gray",
      "/colors/by-temperature/neutral",
      "/colors/by-tone/dark"
    ],
    "narrower": [
      "/palettes/matte-black"
    ],
    "related": [
      "/colors/carbon-fiber",
      "/colors/raisin",
      "/colors/rubber",
      "/colors/carbon-black",
      "/colors/slate-black",
      "/compare/black-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/carbon-black-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/carbon-fiber-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/matte-black-vs-raisin",
      "/harmonies/matte-black",
      "/wcag/matte-black",
      "/css/colors/matte-black",
      "/hex/1a1a1a"
    ]
  }
}

Full JSON dataset

{
  "slug": "matte-black",
  "name": "Matte Black",
  "hex": "#1A1A1A",
  "uses": [
    "industrial design",
    "safety systems",
    "hardware palettes"
  ],
  "psychology": {
    "associations": [
      "utility",
      "visibility",
      "precision"
    ],
    "contexts": [
      "transportation",
      "tools",
      "hardware",
      "signage"
    ],
    "avoidIn": [
      "soft wellness palettes"
    ]
  },
  "aliases": [],
  "sourceType": "curated",
  "confidence": "medium",
  "reviewStatus": "manual",
  "sourceUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/assets/colors.json",
  "origin": {
    "type": "common",
    "notes": "Curated common color reference used in design, material, cultural, and editorial color systems."
  },
  "family": "gray",
  "temperature": "neutral",
  "tone": [
    "dark"
  ],
  "editorialNotes": "Curated internal color record with computed technical properties.",
  "tags": [
    "gray",
    "neutral",
    "dark",
    "industrial-design",
    "safety-systems",
    "hardware-palettes",
    "utility",
    "visibility",
    "precision"
  ],
  "popularity": 84,
  "rgb": [
    26,
    26,
    26
  ],
  "hsl": [
    0,
    0,
    10
  ],
  "cmyk": [
    0,
    0,
    0,
    90
  ],
  "luminance": 0.0103,
  "contrast": {
    "black": 1.21,
    "white": 17.41
  },
  "harmonies": {
    "complementary": "#1A1A1A",
    "analogous": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ],
    "triadic": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ],
    "tetradic": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ],
    "splitComplementary": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ],
    "monochromatic": [
      "#474747",
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#000000"
    ]
  },
  "variants": {
    "light": "#474747",
    "dark": "#000000",
    "saturated": "#1F1414",
    "desaturated": "#1A1A1A",
    "pastel": "#595959",
    "neon": "#5C0000"
  },
  "wcag": {
    "AA": [
      "#FFFFFF",
      "#F5F5F5"
    ],
    "AAA": [
      "#FFFFFF",
      "#F5F5F5"
    ]
  },
  "css": {
    "variable": "--color-matte-black: #1A1A1A;",
    "utility": ".bg-matte-black { background-color: #1A1A1A; }",
    "textUtility": ".text-matte-black { color: #1A1A1A; }"
  },
  "nearestColors": [
    "carbon-fiber",
    "raisin",
    "rubber",
    "carbon-black",
    "slate-black"
  ],
  "generatedPalettes": [
    "matte-black"
  ],
  "generatedComparisons": [
    "black-vs-matte-black",
    "carbon-black-vs-matte-black",
    "carbon-fiber-vs-matte-black",
    "matte-black-vs-raisin"
  ],
  "relatedFamilies": [
    "/colors/by-family/gray",
    "/colors/by-temperature/neutral",
    "/colors/by-tone/dark"
  ],
  "relatedTools": [
    "/harmonies/matte-black",
    "/wcag/matte-black",
    "/css/colors/matte-black",
    "/hex/1a1a1a"
  ],
  "semanticRelations": {
    "broader": [
      "/colors/by-family/gray",
      "/colors/by-temperature/neutral",
      "/colors/by-tone/dark"
    ],
    "narrower": [
      "/palettes/matte-black"
    ],
    "related": [
      "/colors/carbon-fiber",
      "/colors/raisin",
      "/colors/rubber",
      "/colors/carbon-black",
      "/colors/slate-black",
      "/compare/black-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/carbon-black-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/carbon-fiber-vs-matte-black",
      "/compare/matte-black-vs-raisin",
      "/harmonies/matte-black",
      "/wcag/matte-black",
      "/css/colors/matte-black",
      "/hex/1a1a1a"
    ]
  },
  "pairings": {
    "best": [
      "#FFFFFF",
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ],
    "avoid": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#474747"
    ],
    "neutral": [
      "#1A1A1A",
      "#F5F5F5",
      "#E8E8E4"
    ],
    "highContrast": [
      "#FFFFFF"
    ],
    "lowContrast": [
      "#474747",
      "#1A1A1A"
    ]
  }
}

Color meaning and use

About Matte Black Color

Matte Black sits in the gray family with neutral temperature and dark visual character. Matte Black is a commonly used color name in design references, palettes, and editorial color systems.

Its common associations include utility, visibility, and precision, which makes it relevant for transportation and tools. In design work, Matte Black is most useful for industrial design, safety systems, and hardware palettes, especially when paired with white text for stronger contrast.