Light Gray & Gray, Charcoal Color Palette

Back to palettes

#C9C9C9 201, 201, 201

#A0A0A0 160, 160, 160

#707070 112, 112, 112

#404040 64, 64, 64

#C9C9C9

Color 1

#A0A0A0

Color 2

#707070

Color 3

#404040

Color 4

:root {
  --color-1: #C9C9C9;
  --color-2: #A0A0A0;
  --color-3: #707070;
  --color-4: #404040;
}

colors: {
  'palette-1': '#C9C9C9',
  'palette-2': '#A0A0A0',
  'palette-3': '#707070',
  'palette-4': '#404040',
}

const palette = [
  '#C9C9C9',
  '#A0A0A0',
  '#707070',
  '#404040',
];

$color-1: #C9C9C9;
$color-2: #A0A0A0;
$color-3: #707070;
$color-4: #404040;

Palette Codes 4 COLORS

This is a neutral, soft, muted 4-colour palette with a comfortable balance of contrast and harmony.

2 Views

Added Aug 2026

About this color palette

This is a neutral, soft, muted 4-colour palette with a comfortable balance of contrast and harmony. It is anchored by Light Gray (#C9C9C9) and reads as well balanced in lightness, with an average saturation of 0% and lightness of 53%. It makes a clean, flexible base for minimal, content-focused designs.

The colors in this palette

Light Gray `#C9C9C9`

rgb(201, 201, 201) · hsl(0, 0%, 79%)

A light, airy tone — ideal for backgrounds and subtle fills.

Gray `#A0A0A0`

rgb(160, 160, 160) · hsl(0, 0%, 63%)

A soft, muted tone that suits calm backgrounds and large surfaces.

Gray `#707070`

rgb(112, 112, 112) · hsl(0, 0%, 44%)

A soft, muted tone that suits calm backgrounds and large surfaces.

Charcoal `#404040`

rgb(64, 64, 64) · hsl(0, 0%, 25%)

A deep, low-lightness tone — strong for text, headings and bold accents.

Accessibility & contrast

Colour contrast decides whether text stays readable. Here is how each pair of colours in this palette performs when one is used as text on the other, measured against the WCAG standard (AA needs 4.5:1, AAA needs 7:1).

Text	Background	Ratio	AA	AAA
#C9C9C9	#404040	6.26:1	Pass	Fail
#A0A0A0	#404040	3.96:1	Fail	Fail
#C9C9C9	#707070	2.99:1	Fail	Fail
#707070	#404040	2.09:1	Fail	Fail
#A0A0A0	#707070	1.89:1	Fail	Fail
#C9C9C9	#A0A0A0	1.58:1	Fail	Fail

How to use these colors

Background — Light Gray (#C9C9C9): the lightest tone — a clean base for large areas
Text — Charcoal (#404040): the darkest tone — readable for body copy and headings
Primary — Gray (#A0A0A0): the most saturated tone — buttons, links and key UI
Accent — Gray (#707070): a secondary highlight for badges and details

Colors that pair with this palette

Want to extend this palette? These colours pair naturally with its dominant Light Gray tone, based on colour-wheel harmony. Tap a swatch to explore that colour family.

#72CACA · Teal #CA9E72 · Orange #CA729E · Pink #72CA72 · Green