#343837Charcoal (#343837) is a grey neutral with an OKLCH hue of 179°, lightness 0.34 and chroma 0.006. In practice it behaves as a grounding tone — suited to text, outlines, and shadowed surfaces.
| HEX | #343837 |
|---|---|
| RGB | rgb(52, 56, 55) |
| HSL | hsl(165, 4%, 21%) |
| HSV | hsv(165, 7%, 22%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(7%, 0%, 2%, 78%) |
| CIE Lab | lab(23.1 -1.9 0) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.336 0.006 179) |
Under warm 2700K interior light Charcoal is virtually unchanged; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 0.9), so it is a lighting-stable choice.
#373633 — ΔE 0.9, is virtually unchanged#363836 — ΔE 0.4, is virtually unchanged#343837 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged#343838 — ΔE 0.2, is virtually unchangedAgainst white it measures 11.89:1 and against black 1.77:1, so white text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid black text on this color entirely.
One color explored: close hues with real lightness and chroma structure, so the palette is the anchor through value rather than a set of colors.
#9a9e9d · #757878 · #525554 · #343837 · #131716 · #010201
The anchor's neighbours on the wheel — everything shares an undertone, so the chord carries color without anything having to be muted to get along.
#426f82 · #23616b · #005252 · #343837 · #003422 · #08270e
The mid-gap pairing — sage and mustard, terracotta and olive. A foil rotated 40–65° toward warm or cool: too far to be kin, too near to argue, carried by temperature and a deliberate value offset.
#90afbf · #61978c · #3b7591 · #3c5663 · #343837 · #00251f
One deliberately opposed voice — a single restrained counterpoint across the wheel, or temperature against temperature where the anchor is too muted to carry a loud opposite.
#a5bcb7 · #b57c8d · #475955 · #343837 · #00221d · #000805
The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.
#f8eff1 · #aebbb8 · #867f81 · #45524f · #343837 · #261e21
This color as a ground rather than a subject — its own restraint held across a narrow value band, carrying one saturated voice from the opposite temperature.
#f0f2f2 · #cacccc · #a0a3a2 · #343837 · #0d100f · #e64f8b
The same quiet ground carrying one bright gold voice — the high-energy pairing a cool or muted anchor cannot reach through its own temperature.
#f0f2f2 · #cacccc · #a0a3a2 · #343837 · #0d100f · #f0bb4d
The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.
#ffecf1 · #d9a9b7 · #a76f80 · #6b404e · #343837 · #082721
The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.
#ffecf1 · #cfabcb · #aa7067 · #624260 · #343837 · #311a16
Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.
#f4efff · #bdb0da · #a37753 · #694629 · #343837 · #231d30
Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.
#edf2ff · #a8b7df · #a76f80 · #5d4d22 · #343837 · #2f1920
#565958 · #787a7a · #9a9c9b · #bbbdbc · #dddede
#2b2f2e · #232525 · #1a1c1c · #111312 · #090909
As a deep tone it works for grounding elements — text, outlines, and shadowed surfaces — rather than open fields.