CSS named color

Gainsboro #DCDCDC

The CSS keyword gainsboro is #DCDCDC. It is a light gray in the neutral family. In OKLCH it sits at lightness 0.894 with chroma 0.000, too low for hue to matter.

Relative luminance
0.7157
OKLCH L · C · h
0.894 · 0.000 · —
Best text
Black 15.31:1
Hue family
Neutral
Inspect this color Check contrast

#DCDCDC color codes

HEX
#DCDCDC
RGB
rgb(220, 220, 220)
HSL
hsl(0, 0%, 86%)
OKLCH
oklch(0.894 0.000 0)
OKLab
oklab(0.894 0.000 0.000)
CIELAB (D65)
L* 87.76, a* 0.00, b* 0.00
XYZ (D65)
X 68.02, Y 71.57, Z 77.93
CMYK (naive)
cmyk(0%, 0%, 0%, 14%)

CIELAB and XYZ use the D65 white point; CSS lab() uses D50, so paste the OKLCH or HEX value into stylesheets. CMYK here is a plain formula with no press profile.

Legibility

Contrast: is #DCDCDC accessible?

Black text on it reaches 15.31:1, passing AAA. White text fails at 1.37:1.

WCAG 2 gives the same ratio whichever color is the text; APCA does not, so its Lc changes sign and size with polarity.

Open the Contrast System

  • Black text on it

    15.31:1

    • AA passes
    • AA large passes
    • AAA passes
    • APCA Lc +85

  • White text on it

    1.37:1

    • AA fails
    • AA large fails
    • AAA fails
    • APCA Lc −20

    Text is here, unreadable at 1.37:1

  • As text on black

    15.31:1

    • AA passes
    • AA large passes
    • AAA passes
    • APCA Lc −85

  • As text on white

    1.37:1

    • AA fails
    • AA large fails
    • AAA fails
    • APCA Lc +18

    Text is here, unreadable at 1.37:1

Nearest versions that pass 4.5:1

  • For text on white

    #767676 4.54:1

    Darkening its OKLCH lightness from 0.89 to 0.56 reaches 4.54:1 on white, keeping the hue.

    Compare both in the Contrast System

  • For text on black

    #DCDCDC 15.31:1

    It already reaches 15.31:1 on black, so no change is needed.

Checking another pair? Use the Contrast Checker.

Studio

Adjust #DCDCDC live

Move lightness, chroma and hue in OKLCH, or drag on the map. The map is every lightness and chroma at the current hue: sRGB inside the solid area, Display P3 out to the dashed line.

The studio needs JavaScript.

Scale

Shades and tints of #DCDCDC

Eleven OKLCH lightness steps at this hue, each with its contrast against white and black. #DCDCDC sits at step 200.

  1. 50#F5F5F5
    White
    1.09
    Black
    19.26
  2. 100#EBEBEB
    White
    1.19
    Black
    17.61
  3. 200This color#DCDCDC
    White
    1.37
    Black
    15.31
  4. 300#BEBEBE
    White
    1.85
    Black
    11.29
  5. 400#A1A1A1
    White
    2.58
    Black
    8.12
  6. 500#868686
    White
    3.64
    Black
    5.76
  7. 600#6F6F6F
    White
    5.02
    Black
    4.17
  8. 700#585858
    White
    7.11
    Black
    2.95
  9. 800#404040
    White
    10.36
    Black
    2.02
  10. 900#292929
    White
    14.54
    Black
    1.44
  11. 950#161616
    White
    18.09
    Black
    1.16

Under each step, white and black text on it; a bold figure passes 4.5:1.

Gamut

How vivid #DCDCDC can get

A gray has no hue, so no gamut holds a more vivid version of #DCDCDC: more chroma would make it another color.

0.00.20.40.60.80.20.40.60.8 460480500520540560580600620
  • sRGB
  • Display P3
  • Rec. 2020
  • Dominant wavelength
OKLCH chroma
0.000
sRGB edge
No hue
Display P3 edge
No hue
Rec. 2020 edge
No hue
Dominant wavelength
None, near white
Excitation purity
0%
Chromaticity
x 0.3127, y 0.3290

Mixing

Mixing #DCDCDC

Each row is the same mix worked out in a different space, with the halfway color at its end. sRGB, which older CSS gradients use, can sag gray or dark in the middle; OKLab keeps the lightness steps even; OKLCH holds chroma and hue as it goes.

White #FFFFFF

  • sRGB50%#EEEEEE
  • OKLab50%#EDEDED
  • OKLCH50%#EDEDED

Black #000000

  • sRGB50%#6E6E6E
  • OKLab50%#545454
  • OKLCH50%#545454
In CSS
/* A gradient and a mix, worked out in OKLCH */
background: linear-gradient(in oklch, #dcdcdc, white);
color: color-mix(in oklch, #dcdcdc 50%, white);

In use

#DCDCDC in an interface

A button, a link, a heading, a focused field, an icon and a chart line in this color, on a light page and a dark one. Each check is a WCAG 2 contrast minimum: 1.4.3 for text, 1.4.11 for the rest.

Light page

  • Button labelText, 4.5:115.31:1 Passes
  • Link and body-size textText, 4.5:11.37:1 Fails
  • Large headingLarge text, 3:11.37:1 Fails
  • Icons, borders and focus ringsNon-text, 3:11.37:1 Fails

For text on this page, the nearest shade that passes is #767676 4.54:1

Dark page

  • Button labelText, 4.5:115.31:1 Passes
  • Link and body-size textText, 4.5:113.66:1 Passes
  • Large headingLarge text, 3:113.66:1 Passes
  • Icons, borders and focus ringsNon-text, 3:113.66:1 Passes

Color vision

How #DCDCDC looks with color blindness

As a neutral it barely changes under any simulation, ΔE2000 0.0 at most.

Simulated with Machado et al. (2009) at full severity, in linear light.

Simulate a whole page What each type sees

  • Protanopia

    No working red (long-wavelength) cones

    #DCDCDC ΔE2000 0.0

    Imperceptible

    Reads as light gray

  • Deuteranopia

    No working green (medium-wavelength) cones

    #DCDCDC ΔE2000 0.0

    Imperceptible

    Reads as light gray

  • Tritanopia

    No working blue (short-wavelength) cones

    #DCDCDC ΔE2000 0.0

    Imperceptible

    Reads as light gray

  • Achromatopsia

    No cone color vision; lightness only

    #DCDCDC ΔE2000 0.0

    Imperceptible

    Reads as light gray

Pairing check

A near-neutral has no complementary hue to pair with, so tell it apart from neighboring grays by lightness contrast alone.

Harmony

Color harmonies for #DCDCDC

A neutral has no hue to rotate, so every harmony collapses back to the same gray. Pair it with an accent color instead.

Or pair it by lightness: steps of its own scale as text on it, and what each can carry.

Build a lightness scale in Harmony Studio

  • Step 950 #161616 · 13.19:1

    Body text, AAA

  • Step 700 #585858 · 5.18:1

    Body text, AA

  • Step 300 #BEBEBE · 1.35:1

    Decoration only, under 3:1

Code

Design tokens

Ready-to-paste tokens in six formats. Rename them to fit your system.

CSS custom property

:root {
  --color-gainsboro: #dcdcdc;
}

Tailwind config

// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        gainsboro: '#dcdcdc',
      },
    },
  },
};

Tailwind v4 theme

/* app.css — Tailwind CSS v4 */
@import "tailwindcss";

@theme {
  --color-gainsboro: oklch(0.894 0.000 0);
}

Design token (W3C DTCG)

{
  "color": {
    "gainsboro": {
      "$type": "color",
      "$value": {
        "colorSpace": "srgb",
        "components": [0.8627, 0.8627, 0.8627],
        "hex": "#dcdcdc"
      },
      "$description": "CSS named color gainsboro"
    }
  }
}

SwiftUI color

import SwiftUI

enum Palette {
    static let gainsboro = Color(.sRGB, red: 0.863, green: 0.863, blue: 0.863, opacity: 1)
}

Jetpack Compose color

import androidx.compose.ui.graphics.Color

object Palette {
    val Gainsboro = Color(0xFFDCDCDC)
}

Matches

The nearest match in each system

The closest CSS name, Tailwind shade, RAL Classic paint and Crayola crayon by ΔE2000; under 2 is hard to tell apart side by side. RAL and Crayola values approximate physical colors.

Neighbors

The eight nearest colors on this site by ΔE2000, closest first. Under 2 is hard to tell apart side by side.

Tools

Open #DCDCDC in the tools

Each opens over this page. More colors live in the Color Library, and every color page is listed on the hub.