Nearest-color comparison
Dark Magenta #8B008B vs Purple #800080: RGB distance 15.6 and contrast 1.11:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Dark Magenta and Purple are very close, with an RGB distance of 15.6. Dark Magenta is lighter by 0.012, and their saturation is equal. 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 Dark Magenta and Purple across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
pink color
Dark Magenta is #8B008B, a warm pink with hue 300°, saturation 100% and luminance 0.0735. Beside Purple, it is lighter and equally saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 8.5:1.
pink color
Purple is #800080, a warm pink with hue 300°, saturation 100% and luminance 0.0615. Beside Dark Magenta, it is darker and equally saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 9.42:1.
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 Dark Magenta and Purple, 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": "dark-magenta",
"name": "Dark Magenta",
"hex": "#8B008B",
"rgb": [
139,
0,
139
],
"hsl": [
300,
100,
27
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
0,
45
],
"family": "pink",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0735,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.47,
"white": 8.5
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.5
},
"description": "Dark Magenta is #8B008B, a warm pink color with balanced character. Compared with Purple, it is lighter and similar in saturation. 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-magenta/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-magenta.json"
},
{
"slug": "purple",
"name": "Purple",
"hex": "#800080",
"rgb": [
128,
0,
128
],
"hsl": [
300,
100,
25
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
0,
50
],
"family": "pink",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0615,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.23,
"white": 9.42
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.42
},
"description": "Purple is #800080, a warm pink color with balanced character. Compared with Dark Magenta, it is darker and similar in saturation. 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/purple/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/purple.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 15.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 0,
"saturation": 0,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.012,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"balanced"
],
"lighterColor": "Dark Magenta",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Dark Magenta"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.11,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Dark Magenta",
"background": "#8B008B",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.5
},
{
"color": "Purple",
"background": "#800080",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.42
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Dark Magenta is better when the design needs balanced pink character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #8B008B.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Purple is better when the design needs balanced pink character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #800080.",
"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/dark-magenta-vs-purple.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-magenta.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/purple.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "dark-magenta-vs-purple",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Dark Magenta vs Purple",
"verdict": "Dark Magenta and Purple are very close colors. Dark Magenta 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": "Dark Magenta and Purple are different pink colors with HEX values #8B008B and #800080. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 15.6, their contrast ratio is 1.11:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 15.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "dark-magenta",
"name": "Dark Magenta",
"hex": "#8B008B",
"rgb": [
139,
0,
139
],
"hsl": [
300,
100,
27
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
0,
45
],
"family": "pink",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0735,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.47,
"white": 8.5
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.5
},
"description": "Dark Magenta is #8B008B, a warm pink color with balanced character. Compared with Purple, it is lighter and similar in saturation. 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-magenta/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-magenta.json"
},
{
"slug": "purple",
"name": "Purple",
"hex": "#800080",
"rgb": [
128,
0,
128
],
"hsl": [
300,
100,
25
],
"cmyk": [
0,
100,
0,
50
],
"family": "pink",
"temperature": "warm",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.0615,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.23,
"white": 9.42
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.42
},
"description": "Purple is #800080, a warm pink color with balanced character. Compared with Dark Magenta, it is darker and similar in saturation. 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/purple/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/purple.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 15.6,
"contrastRatio": 1.11,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 0,
"saturation": 0,
"lightness": 2
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.012,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"balanced"
],
"lighterColor": "Dark Magenta",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Dark Magenta"
},
"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": "Dark Magenta",
"background": "#8B008B",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.5
},
{
"color": "Purple",
"background": "#800080",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 9.42
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Dark Magenta is better when the design needs balanced pink character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #8B008B.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Purple is better when the design needs balanced pink character, warm temperature, and the specific HEX value #800080.",
"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/dark-magenta-vs-purple.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/dark-magenta.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/purple.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/dark-magenta-vs-purple/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/dark-magenta-vs-purple.json"
}