White Smoke `#F5F5F5`

White Smoke (#F5F5F5) is a near-white neutral with an OKLCH hue of 90°, lightness 0.97 and chroma 0. In practice it behaves as a background color — quiet over large surfaces.

Color values

HEX	`#F5F5F5`
RGB	`rgb(245, 245, 245)`
HSL	`hsl(0, 0%, 96%)`
HSV	`hsv(0, 0%, 96%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(0%, 0%, 0%, 4%)`
CIE Lab	`lab(96.5 0 0)`
OKLCH	`oklch(0.970 0.000 90)`

How White Smoke behaves under real light

Under warm 2700K interior light White Smoke shifts subtly: takes on a orange cast, gains intensity; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 2.3), so it is a lighting-stable choice.

Warm interior (2700K incandescent / warm LED): → #ffefe5 — ΔE 2.3, shifts subtly: takes on a orange cast, gains intensity
Neutral LED (4000K task and retail lighting): → #fdf6f0 — ΔE 1.3, shifts only faintly, with no single dominant change
Daylight (6500K standard daylight (reference)): → #f5f5f5 — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged
North light / shade (~7500K diffuse blue-sky light): → #f5f6f8 — ΔE 0.4, is virtually unchanged

Contrast & accessibility

Against white it measures 1.09:1 and against black 19.26:1, so black text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid white text on this color entirely.

Palettes built from White Smoke

Tonal

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.

#f5f5f5 · #c9c9c9 · #a2a2a2 · #7c7c7c · #595959 · #383838

Analogous

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.

#f5f5f5 · #ffdbad · #f1c3a2 · #e0ad9a · #cc9994 · #b6878d

Shifted

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.

#f5f5f5 · #a7bba5 · #a59468 · #5e8359 · #685932 · #334531

Contrast

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.

#f5f5f5 · #d7d1c1 · #b8ad91 · #958c73 · #495784 · #353021

Quiet Support

The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.

#f5f5f5 · #d5d7df · #9a978d · #595b60 · #29251b · #010102

Bright Accent

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.

#f5f5f5 · #c9c9c9 · #9c9c9c · #222222 · #030303 · #e7c04d

Complementary

The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.

#f5f5f5 · #d1d7e7 · #8896bd · #4a5885 · #192344 · #0b0500

Split-complementary

The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.

#f5f5f5 · #d1d7e7 · #759cb8 · #61517f · #002840 · #020006

Triadic

Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.

#f5f5f5 · #c7dce0 · #6aa1ab · #734b6f · #361834 · #000305

Tetradic

Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.

#f5f5f5 · #c9ddd8 · #6da398 · #4a5885 · #3d1624 · #000008

Tints, shades & muted variants

Tints

#f7f7f7 · #f8f8f8 · #fafafa · #fcfcfc · #fdfdfd

Shades

#cccccc · #a3a3a3 · #7b7b7b · #525252 · #292929

Using White Smoke

Its high lightness and low chroma make it a natural background or large-surface color.