Black Coffee
Black Coffee is a muted red shade with RGB(59, 48, 47) and hex code #3B302F, reading as dark at a glance.
HEX
#3B302F
RGB
59, 48, 47
HSL
5°, 11%, 21%
CMYK
0%, 19%, 20%, 77%
LAB
21, 5, 2
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Description
- •Black Coffee (#3B302F) is a warm-toned red color defined by RGB values of 59, 48, 47 and HSL values of 5 degrees hue, 11% saturation, and 21% lightness. At 21% lightness it appears dark, and its muted character makes it well suited for backgrounds, text, or supporting UI elements. It pairs naturally with its complementary shade #2F3A3B for high-contrast schemes, or with the analogous tones #3B362F and #3B2F34 for a more harmonious palette.
Psychology
As a red shade, Black Coffee tends to carry the general associations of that hue family: power, passion, danger, and urgency. Red is one of the first colors humans evolved to distinguish and is commonly linked with energy, urgency, and appetite.
Hue family
red
Saturation level
muted
Lightness level
dark
Temperature
warm
Because Black Coffee is muted and dark, it tends to feel calm and unobtrusive in a design context.
Meaning
Within the red family, colors like Black Coffee are commonly associated with power, passion, danger, and urgency, though exact interpretation depends on cultural context and surrounding design elements.
Hue family
red
Common associations
power, passion, danger, and urgency
Temperature
warm
History
- 1Black Coffee is a named point in a modern digital color palette rather than a documented historical pigment, but the red family it belongs to has a long design history. Red is one of the first colors humans evolved to distinguish and is commonly linked with energy, urgency, and appetite.
Color info
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Visual perception
- At HSL(5, 11%, 21%), Black Coffee has a relative luminance of about 0.03 on a 0-1 scale, which can make it harder to distinguish for people with red-green color blindness if used alongside similarly saturated greens or reds; pair it with a distinct lightness or add non-color cues such as icons or labels.
Technology specific
- Black Coffee (#3B302F) renders consistently on standard sRGB displays; on wider-gamut or uncalibrated screens, expect minor shifts in perceived saturation. For print reproduction, convert from RGB to CMYK and proof physically, since muted colors like this can shift noticeably between screen and print.
Guidance
Use Black Coffee with white text for readability (contrast ratio approximately 12.7:1). It is versatile enough to use for larger surfaces such as backgrounds or cards.
Examples
web design
page backgrounds
branding
neutral brand background
UI design
card and panel backgrounds
body text or subtle fill
Purpose
Black Coffee works well for backgrounds, body text, or supporting UI surfaces where subtlety matters, given its muted and dark profile.
Benefits
visual contrast
pairs with white text for a WCAG contrast ratio of about 12.7:1
palette flexibility
combines with #2F3A3B (complementary) and #2F3B30/#302F3B (triadic) for varied schemes
brand consistency
reads as calm and neutral across most screens