Tints & Shades
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Scale from white (50) through Black (500) to black (900), interpolated in Lab color space.
Color Values
- HEX
- #000000
- RGB
- rgb(0, 0, 0)
- HSL
- hsl(0, 0%, 0%)
- OKLCH
- oklch(0 0 0)
- CMYK
- cmyk(0%, 0%, 0%, 100%)
--color-blackbg-[#000000]Accessibility
Score: 96/100On White (#FFF)
21:1
On Black (#000)
1:1
On Light Gray (#F5F5F5)
19.26:1
Best text color on this background:
Design Applications
background-color: #000000
color: #000000
bg-[#000000] text-[#FFFFFF]
border-left: 4px solid #000000
Color Harmonies
Similar Colors
Color Meaning & Psychology
Pure black is the maximum contrast point for any display or print system. It is the default text color of the web precisely because it achieves maximum readability. In design, black is used to separate: black backgrounds make colors pop; black borders define spaces; black typography establishes hierarchy.
Industry Usage
Common contexts and industries where Black is applied in professional design.
- Luxury fashion and premium apparel
- Prestige automotive brands
- High-end watches and jewelry
- Premium spirits and beverage brands
- Professional photography and videography
- Technology brands emphasizing premium tiers
- Music and entertainment industry branding
- Sophisticated cosmetics and fragrance
Accessibility Considerations
Normal Text
Passes AA
4.5:1 minimum required
Large Text
Passes AA Large
3:1 minimum required
UI Components
Meets 1.4.11
3:1 for non-text UI
Black is a dark color. Use white (#FFFFFF) text on top of it for maximum readability (21.00:1). Avoid small black text on this background.
CSS & Code Examples
Background
background-color: #000000;Text
color: #000000;Border
border: 2px solid #000000;Box Shadow
box-shadow: 0 4px 20px #00000040;Gradient
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #000000, #2c2c2c);Tailwind-style
--color-black: #000000;Tailwind CSS Utilities
Use arbitrary value syntax in Tailwind CSS to apply Black without a custom config.
Background
bg-[#000000]Text
text-[#000000]Border
border-[#000000]Ring
ring-[#000000]Fill
fill-[#000000]From (gradient)
from-[#000000]Via (gradient)
via-[#000000]To (gradient)
to-[#000000]Design Tokens
Ready-to-use Black design token in CSS custom properties, SCSS, Tailwind v3/v4, and JSON formats.
CSS Custom Properties
:root {
--color-black: #000000;
--color-black-rgb: 0, 0, 0;
--color-black-hsl: 0, 0%, 0%;
}SCSS Variables
$color-black: #000000; $color-black-rgb: 0, 0, 0; $color-black-hsl: 0, 0%, 0%;
Tailwind v3 Config
// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
'black': '#000000',
},
},
},
};Tailwind v4 (@theme)
/* tailwind.css */
@theme {
--color-black: #000000;
}JSON Design Token (W3C format)
{
"black": {
"value": "#000000",
"type": "color",
"description": "Black — #000000"
}
}Related Palettes & Combinations
Color Combinations
Accessible Color Pairs
More black colors
View all →What Does Black Mean? Color Psychology & Cultural Symbolism
The psychology of Black draws on one of visual perception's most fundamental facts: black is the absence of reflected light, and the brain processes this absolute darkness as power, finality, and authority. This is why Black reads as sophistication in every context where it appears.
- Across color psychology research, black consistently tests high for "luxury" associations, making Black a reliable vehicle for sophistication in cross-demographic audiences.
- Brand designers draw on black-family tones to project precision and power—values that Black communicates in a dark key.
- At 0% saturation, Black reads as neutral—Warm near-blacks (very dark browns, dark charcoal) soften pure black's coldness while retaining its authority—increasingly used in luxury and contemporary design as alternatives.
- Black's dark lightness (0%) shifts its psychological register: Pure and near-black tones are maximum design authority—the most contrast-giving background in all of design, and the foundation of luxury aesthetics worldwide.
Black is the most serious design choice. Make it when you mean it.
How to Use Black in Design: Applications, Pairings & Best Practices
Black is the designer's most powerful tool and most dangerous one. Its absolute authority concentrates attention perfectly—but used carelessly, it smothers what it should highlight.
- Avoid: children's products, healthcare spaces (clinical coldness without warmth), and brands that need to communicate friendliness or approachability as primary values.
- Color harmonies: Black's complementary color creates a high-energy split ideal for promotional design; its analogous palette (±30° hue) builds cohesive, monochromatic sophistication.
- Proportional use: Black's neutral quality means it scales well across proportions—from full-bleed backgrounds to single-pixel borders—making it an unusually versatile palette component.
- As a dark tone, Black creates maximum contrast with white and light neutrals—excellent for creating premium dark-mode sections, bold headers, and high-drama brand moments
- Typography: Black works as a background behind white text but requires careful sizing—test at intended heading and body sizes before finalizing.
Black is the most serious design choice. Make it when you mean it.
Black Accessibility: WCAG Contrast Ratios, Color Blindness & Inclusive Design
Black (#000000) achieves a 21.00:1 contrast ratio with white text, surpassing the WCAG 2.1 AAA threshold of 7:1. This exceptional contrast qualifies it for body text, UI components at any size, and all accessibility-sensitive interface contexts. Relative luminance: 0.0%.
- As text on white (#FFFFFF): 21.00:1 — AAA ✓
- As text on black (#000000): 1.00:1 — Fail
- Best text color on Black background: White (#FFFFFF) at 21.00:1
- WCAG 2.1 luminance: 0.0% — low luminance (dark)—it provides strong contrast for white and light overlaid text, functioning well as a background in dark-mode and header contexts
- Black qualifies for all text sizes including small body copy (AAA).
Always verify Black at its final intended size and weight using a real contrast checker—font weight and rendering environment affect perceived legibility beyond what raw ratios capture.
Black in Industry: Branding, Design & Market Applications
Across industry research, black-family tones consistently outperform competitors in categories built on power, sophistication, authority, and elegance. Black is a dark expression of this advantage—best positioned in Luxury & Fashion and adjacent markets.
- Luxury & Fashion: Black is luxury's default language—from Chanel's packaging to Apple's product photography, it signals premium, exclusive, and uncompromising quality. In fashion, it's simultaneously the most versatile and the most authoritative choice. Matte black signals premium restraint; glossy black signals dramatic luxury. The finish matters as much as the color.
- Technology: Dark mode interfaces and premium device aesthetics have made black a technology color as much as a luxury one. Apple's product line, premium audio equipment, and high-end consumer electronics all use black to signal technical precision and premium positioning. (examples: Notion, Slack, Salesforce) Black in tech interfaces benefits from accent colors that pop against it—cyan, neon, and pure white are classic pairings.
- Media & Entertainment: Movie credits, music packaging, editorial magazine design, and streaming platforms use black to focus attention and signal cultural seriousness. It's the color of concentrated attention—everything unnecessary falls away in a black-dominated design. (examples: Spotify, Netflix, Hulu) The black-and-white combination is the most timeless in editorial design for its ability to focus on content without visual noise.
- Brand positioning: Black is best suited for brands projecting luxury, authority, sophistication. Categories outside this positioning—children's products—tend to see weaker results.
- Adjacent applications: Beyond primary industries, Black works effectively in premium packaging, luxury retail, professional typography—contexts where power serves a secondary but reinforcing role.
Black earns its strongest ROI in industries where trust and recognition compound over time: Luxury & Fashion, Technology, Media & Entertainment. Use it to build the kind of brand recognition that decades reinforce.
Accessibility & Design Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the hex code for Black? ▾
- The hex code for Black is #000000. Its RGB values are rgb(0, 0, 0) and its HSL values are hsl(0, 0%, 0%).
- What does Black mean in design? ▾
- Pure black is the maximum contrast point for any display or print system. It is the default text color of the web precisely because it achieves maximum readability. In design, black is used to separate: black backgrounds make colors pop; black borders define spaces; black typography establishes hierarchy.
- Is Black WCAG accessible? ▾
- Black (#000000) passes WCAG AAA on white with a 21:1 contrast ratio. Its overall accessibility score is 96/100.
- What colors go well with Black? ▾
- Black pairs well with its complementary color Iron Gray (#595E5E). Analogous colors like Hot Pink and Burgundy also work harmoniously. Check the Color Harmonies section above for the full palette.
- What is Black used for? ▾
- Black is commonly used for: Luxury fashion and premium apparel; Prestige automotive brands; High-end watches and jewelry; Premium spirits and beverage brands; Professional photography and videography.
- What are the CSS and Tailwind values for Black? ▾
- In CSS, use `color: #000000` or `background-color: #000000`. The CSS custom property is `--color-black: #000000`. In Tailwind CSS, use the arbitrary value class `bg-[#000000]` for backgrounds or `text-[#000000]` for text.