Nearest-color comparison
Charcoal #36454F vs Dark Slate Gray #2F4F4F: RGB distance 12.2 and contrast 1.11:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Charcoal and Dark Slate Gray are very close, with an RGB distance of 12.2. Dark Slate Gray is lighter by 0.0115, and Dark Slate Gray is more saturated by 6 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.11:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Charcoal and Dark Slate Gray across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
gray color
Charcoal is #36454F, a cool gray with hue 204°, saturation 19% and luminance 0.0561. Beside Dark Slate Gray, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 9.9:1.
cyan color
Dark Slate Gray is #2F4F4F, a cool cyan with hue 180°, saturation 25% and luminance 0.0676. Beside Charcoal, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 8.93:1.
Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.
Downloadable color comparison infographic
Save a high-resolution comparison infographic with both HEX colors, visual distance, mutual contrast, and accessibility guidance.
A compact visual strip showing the two compared colors with nearby harmony and variant context.
Machine-readable data
Structured comparison data for Charcoal and Dark Slate Gray, including color systems, RGB distance, HSL deltas, contrast, accessibility guidance, use cases, and API links.
Colors Encyclopedia
colorsBoth named color records with HEX, RGB, HSL, CMYK, luminance, WCAG, and linksdifferencesRGB distance, HSL deltas, luminance delta, contrast, and shared attributesaccessibilityPair contrast and safer text choices for each coloruseCasesWhen to choose each color and when to use them togetherrelatedApiMachine-readable comparison and color endpoints[
{
"slug": "charcoal",
"name": "Charcoal",
"hex": "#36454F",
"rgb": [
54,
69,
79
],
"hsl": [
204,
19,
26
],
"cmyk": [
32,
13,
0,
69
],
"family": "gray",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"dark",
"neutral"
],
"luminance": 0.0561,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.12,
"white": 9.9
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.9
},
"description": "Charcoal is #36454F, a cool gray color with dark and neutral character. Compared with Dark Slate Gray, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for text, ui surfaces, and minimal branding, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/charcoal/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/charcoal.json"
},
{
"slug": "dark-slate-gray",
"name": "Dark Slate Gray",
"hex": "#2F4F4F",
"rgb": [
47,
79,
79
],
"hsl": [
180,
25,
25
],
"cmyk": [
41,
0,
0,
69
],
"family": "cyan",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.0676,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.35,
"white": 8.93
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.93
},
"description": "Dark Slate Gray is #2F4F4F, a cool cyan color with muted character. Compared with Charcoal, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/dark-slate-gray/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-slate-gray.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 12.2,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 24,
"saturation": 6,
"lightness": 1
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0115,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Dark Slate Gray",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Dark Slate Gray"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.11,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Charcoal",
"background": "#36454F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.9
},
{
"color": "Dark Slate Gray",
"background": "#2F4F4F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.93
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Charcoal is better when the design needs dark and neutral gray character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #36454F.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Dark Slate Gray is better when the design needs muted cyan character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #2F4F4F.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
}[
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/charcoal-vs-dark-slate-gray.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/charcoal.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-slate-gray.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "charcoal-vs-dark-slate-gray",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Charcoal vs Dark Slate Gray",
"verdict": "Charcoal and Dark Slate Gray are very close colors. Dark Slate Gray is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.11:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Charcoal and Dark Slate Gray are different gray and cyan colors with HEX values #36454F and #2F4F4F. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 12.2, their contrast ratio is 1.11:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 12.2,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "charcoal",
"name": "Charcoal",
"hex": "#36454F",
"rgb": [
54,
69,
79
],
"hsl": [
204,
19,
26
],
"cmyk": [
32,
13,
0,
69
],
"family": "gray",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"dark",
"neutral"
],
"luminance": 0.0561,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.12,
"white": 9.9
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.9
},
"description": "Charcoal is #36454F, a cool gray color with dark and neutral character. Compared with Dark Slate Gray, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for text, ui surfaces, and minimal branding, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/charcoal/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/charcoal.json"
},
{
"slug": "dark-slate-gray",
"name": "Dark Slate Gray",
"hex": "#2F4F4F",
"rgb": [
47,
79,
79
],
"hsl": [
180,
25,
25
],
"cmyk": [
41,
0,
0,
69
],
"family": "cyan",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.0676,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.35,
"white": 8.93
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.93
},
"description": "Dark Slate Gray is #2F4F4F, a cool cyan color with muted character. Compared with Charcoal, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/dark-slate-gray/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-slate-gray.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 12.2,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 24,
"saturation": 6,
"lightness": 1
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0115,
"sameFamily": false,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Dark Slate Gray",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Dark Slate Gray"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.11,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Charcoal",
"background": "#36454F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.9
},
{
"color": "Dark Slate Gray",
"background": "#2F4F4F",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.93
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Charcoal is better when the design needs dark and neutral gray character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #36454F.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Dark Slate Gray is better when the design needs muted cyan character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #2F4F4F.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
},
"relatedApi": [
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/charcoal-vs-dark-slate-gray.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/charcoal.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-slate-gray.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/charcoal-vs-dark-slate-gray/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/charcoal-vs-dark-slate-gray.json"
}