HEX atlas value

#383838

#383838 is a neutral gray HEX color close to Graphite. According to Colors Encyclopedia, it converts to RGB 56, 56, 56, HSL 0, 0%, 22%, has luminance 0.0395, and belongs to the dark group.

gray neutral dark

#383838 Sample readable text

HEX #383838

RGB rgb(56, 56, 56)

HSL hsl(0 0% 22%)

CMYK cmyk(0, 0, 0, 78)

Luminance 0.0395

Contrast Black 1.79:1White 11.73:1

CSS

--color-383838: #383838;
.background-383838 { background-color: #383838; }
.text-383838 { color: #383838; }

Luminance0.0395

Black text1.79:1AA Fail

White text11.73:1AA 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":"#383838","rgb":[56,56,56],"hsl":[0,0,22],"cmyk":[0,0,0,78],"luminance":0.0395,"contrast":{"black":1.79,"white":11.73}}

WCAG

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

Safe pairings

[{"name":"Black text","hex":"#000000","contrast":1.79,"wcagAA":false,"wcagAAA":false},{"name":"White text","hex":"#FFFFFF","contrast":11.73,"wcagAA":true,"wcagAAA":true}]

Accessible alternatives

[{"name":"#0A0A0A","hex":"#0A0A0A","family":"gray","bestTextColor":"#FFFFFF","contrastBlack":1.06,"contrastWhite":19.81,"wcagAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"wcagAAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"]},{"name":"Peat","hex":"#3B2F2F","family":"red","bestTextColor":"#FFFFFF","contrastBlack":1.63,"contrastWhite":12.85,"wcagAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"wcagAAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"]},{"name":"#442C2C","hex":"#442C2C","family":"red","bestTextColor":"#FFFFFF","contrastBlack":1.64,"contrastWhite":12.79,"wcagAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"wcagAAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"]},{"name":"Gunmetal","hex":"#2A3439","family":"blue","bestTextColor":"#FFFFFF","contrastBlack":1.65,"contrastWhite":12.74,"wcagAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"wcagAAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"]},{"name":"Jet","hex":"#343434","family":"gray","bestTextColor":"#FFFFFF","contrastBlack":1.69,"contrastWhite":12.46,"wcagAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"wcagAAA":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"]}]

AI context

{"semanticGroups":["neutral gray","dark","dark gray","Graphite adjacent"],"useCases":["color conversion","WCAG contrast checks","CSS color tokens","dark theme accents","neutral UI systems"],"contrastSafeWith":["#FFFFFF","#F5F5F5"],"relatedEndpoints":["https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/hex/383838.json","https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/hex.json","https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/graphite.json","https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/onyx.json","https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/jet.json"]}

Harmonies

{"complementary":"#383838","analogous":["#383838","#383838"],"triadic":["#383838","#383838"],"tetradic":["#383838","#383838","#383838"],"splitComplementary":["#383838","#383838"],"monochromatic":["#666666","#383838","#0A0A0A"]}

Variants

{"light":"#666666","dark":"#0A0A0A","saturated":"#442C2C","desaturated":"#383838","pastel":"#787878","neon":"#990000"}

Nearest named colors

[{"slug":"graphite","name":"Graphite","hex":"#383838","distance":0},{"slug":"onyx","name":"Onyx","hex":"#353839","distance":3.1622776601683795},{"slug":"jet","name":"Jet","hex":"#343434","distance":6.928203230275509},{"slug":"peat","name":"Peat","hex":"#3B2F2F","distance":13.076696830622021},{"slug":"gunmetal","name":"Gunmetal","hex":"#2A3439","distance":14.594519519326424}]

HEX meaning and use

About #383838

#383838 is classified as a neutral gray value with dark visual character. #383838 is visually closest to Graphite, a named gray color with HEX #383838.

The RGB channels are 56, 56, and 56, with red carrying the strongest channel weight. In HSL, the hue is 0deg with 0% saturation and 22% lightness, so this page treats it as a low-saturation, dark atlas color rather than a generic swatch.

According to Colors Encyclopedia, this HEX value works best for color conversion, WCAG contrast checks, CSS color tokens, and dark theme accents. Its luminance is 0.0395, white text provides the stronger contrast for readable interface or documentation use, and Its nearest named-color distance is 0.00, which helps separate this atlas value from adjacent named color records.

WCAG Accessibility

Black text1.79:1AA Fail

White text11.73:1AA Pass

AA text options: #FFFFFF, #F5F5F5.

AAA text options: #FFFFFF, #F5F5F5.

Accessibility-Safe Pairings and Alternatives

Use these pairings when #383838 needs readable text, badges, interface states, or nearby accessible alternatives.

Black text#0000001.79:1 · Fail

White text#FFFFFF11.73:1 · AAA

Accessible Alternatives

#0A0A0A#FFFFFF text · best 19.81:1#0A0A0A

Peat#FFFFFF text · best 12.85:1#3B2F2F

#442C2C#FFFFFF text · best 12.79:1#442C2C

Gunmetal#FFFFFF text · best 12.74:1#2A3439

Jet#FFFFFF text · best 12.46:1#343434

Generated Palette

Graphite#383838

#666666#666666

#0A0A0A#0A0A0A

Color Harmonies

Graphite#383838

Variants

#666666#666666

#0A0A0A#0A0A0A

#442C2C#442C2C

Graphite#383838

#787878#787878

Crimson Red#990000

Nearest Named Colors

Graphite#383838

Onyx#353839

Jet#343434

Peat#3B2F2F

Gunmetal#2A3439

#383838

CSS

Machine-Readable HEX Data (JSON)

About #383838

WCAG Accessibility

Accessibility-Safe Pairings and Alternatives

Accessible Alternatives

Generated Palette

Color Harmonies

Variants

Nearest Named Colors

Related HEX Guides