How many CSS color names are there?

There are 148 keywords, but only 139 distinct colors, because nine names are exact duplicates of another name. The figure of 140 gets repeated a lot and is not quite right. All 148 work in every modern browser.

Why does CSS have both gray and grey?

Because the original HTML palette and the SVG palette were merged and neither spelling was dropped. Seven grey keywords carry both spellings: gray, darkgray, dimgray, lightgray, slategray, darkslategray and lightslategray. Both spellings resolve to identical values, so the choice is purely stylistic.

What is the difference between aqua and cyan?

Nothing. Both are #00FFFF. Aqua came from the sixteen HTML 4 colors and cyan from SVG, and CSS kept both. Fuchsia and magenta are the same story, both #FF00FF.

Why is darkgray lighter than gray?

Because they came from different palettes that were never reconciled. CSS gray is #808080 and darkgray is #A9A9A9, which is genuinely lighter. If a grey is behaving unexpectedly in a stylesheet, this is usually the reason. The keyword that actually sits below gray is dimgray at #696969.

Should I use color names or hex codes?

Names are readable and impossible to mistype silently, since an unrecognised name is simply ignored rather than rendering the wrong color. But 139 colors is a narrow palette, and the names carry no system: there is no relationship between lightblue, mediumblue and darkblue beyond the words. For anything designed rather than sketched, hex or a token scale will serve better.

What is rebeccapurple?

It is #663399, added to the CSS color list in 2014 in memory of Rebecca Alison Meyer, daughter of the web standards writer Eric Meyer, who died of a brain tumor on her sixth birthday. It is the only keyword added since the original set was inherited from X11 and SVG.

CSS color names

Every keyword a browser understands by name, with its hex, RGB and HSL. There are 148 of them but only 139 distinct colors, because 9 names are exact duplicates of another name. Values here are what a rendering engine resolves the keyword to, not a transcription. 60 of them open a full page.

A

Keyword	RGB	HSL
aliceblue	240, 248, 255	208, 100%, 97%
antiquewhite	250, 235, 215	34, 78%, 91%
aqua is the same color as cyan	0, 255, 255	180, 100%, 50%
aquamarine	127, 255, 212	160, 100%, 75%
azure	240, 255, 255	180, 100%, 97%

B

Keyword	RGB	HSL
beige	245, 245, 220	60, 56%, 91%
bisque	255, 228, 196	33, 100%, 88%
black	0, 0, 0	0, 0%, 0%
blanchedalmond	255, 235, 205	36, 100%, 90%
blue	0, 0, 255	240, 100%, 50%
blueviolet	138, 43, 226	271, 76%, 53%
brown	165, 42, 42	0, 59%, 41%
burlywood	222, 184, 135	34, 57%, 70%

C

Keyword	RGB	HSL
cadetblue	95, 158, 160	182, 25%, 50%
chartreuse	127, 255, 0	90, 100%, 50%
chocolate	210, 105, 30	25, 75%, 47%
coral	255, 127, 80	16, 100%, 66%
cornflowerblue	100, 149, 237	219, 79%, 66%
cornsilk	255, 248, 220	48, 100%, 93%
crimson	220, 20, 60	348, 83%, 47%
cyan is the same color as aqua	0, 255, 255	180, 100%, 50%

D

Keyword	RGB	HSL
darkblue	0, 0, 139	240, 100%, 27%
darkcyan	0, 139, 139	180, 100%, 27%
darkgoldenrod	184, 134, 11	43, 89%, 38%
darkgray is the same color as darkgrey	169, 169, 169	0, 0%, 66%
darkgreen	0, 100, 0	120, 100%, 20%
darkgrey is the same color as darkgray	169, 169, 169	0, 0%, 66%
darkkhaki	189, 183, 107	56, 38%, 58%
darkmagenta	139, 0, 139	300, 100%, 27%
darkolivegreen	85, 107, 47	82, 39%, 30%
darkorange	255, 140, 0	33, 100%, 50%
darkorchid	153, 50, 204	280, 61%, 50%
darkred	139, 0, 0	0, 100%, 27%
darksalmon	233, 150, 122	15, 72%, 70%
darkseagreen	143, 188, 143	120, 25%, 65%
darkslateblue	72, 61, 139	248, 39%, 39%
darkslategray is the same color as darkslategrey	47, 79, 79	180, 25%, 25%
darkslategrey is the same color as darkslategray	47, 79, 79	180, 25%, 25%
darkturquoise	0, 206, 209	181, 100%, 41%
darkviolet	148, 0, 211	282, 100%, 41%
deeppink	255, 20, 147	328, 100%, 54%
deepskyblue	0, 191, 255	195, 100%, 50%
dimgray is the same color as dimgrey	105, 105, 105	0, 0%, 41%
dimgrey is the same color as dimgray	105, 105, 105	0, 0%, 41%
dodgerblue	30, 144, 255	210, 100%, 56%

F

Keyword	RGB	HSL
firebrick	178, 34, 34	0, 68%, 42%
floralwhite	255, 250, 240	40, 100%, 97%
forestgreen	34, 139, 34	120, 61%, 34%
fuchsia is the same color as magenta	255, 0, 255	300, 100%, 50%

G

Keyword	RGB	HSL
gainsboro	220, 220, 220	0, 0%, 86%
ghostwhite	248, 248, 255	240, 100%, 99%
gold	255, 215, 0	51, 100%, 50%
goldenrod	218, 165, 32	43, 74%, 49%
gray is the same color as grey	128, 128, 128	0, 0%, 50%
green	0, 128, 0	120, 100%, 25%
greenyellow	173, 255, 47	84, 100%, 59%
grey is the same color as gray	128, 128, 128	0, 0%, 50%

H

Swatch	Keyword	Hex	RGB	HSL
	honeydew		240, 255, 240	120, 100%, 97%
	hotpink		255, 105, 180	330, 100%, 71%

I

Keyword	RGB	HSL
indianred	205, 92, 92	0, 53%, 58%
indigo	75, 0, 130	275, 100%, 25%
ivory	255, 255, 240	60, 100%, 97%

K

Swatch	Keyword	Hex	RGB	HSL
	khaki		240, 230, 140	54, 77%, 75%

L

Keyword	RGB	HSL
lavender	230, 230, 250	240, 67%, 94%
lavenderblush	255, 240, 245	340, 100%, 97%
lawngreen	124, 252, 0	90, 100%, 49%
lemonchiffon	255, 250, 205	54, 100%, 90%
lightblue	173, 216, 230	195, 53%, 79%
lightcoral	240, 128, 128	0, 79%, 72%
lightcyan	224, 255, 255	180, 100%, 94%
lightgoldenrodyellow	250, 250, 210	60, 80%, 90%
lightgray is the same color as lightgrey	211, 211, 211	0, 0%, 83%
lightgreen	144, 238, 144	120, 73%, 75%
lightgrey is the same color as lightgray	211, 211, 211	0, 0%, 83%
lightpink	255, 182, 193	351, 100%, 86%
lightsalmon	255, 160, 122	17, 100%, 74%
lightseagreen	32, 178, 170	177, 70%, 41%
lightskyblue	135, 206, 250	203, 92%, 75%
lightslategray is the same color as lightslategrey	119, 136, 153	210, 14%, 53%
lightslategrey is the same color as lightslategray	119, 136, 153	210, 14%, 53%
lightsteelblue	176, 196, 222	214, 41%, 78%
lightyellow	255, 255, 224	60, 100%, 94%
lime	0, 255, 0	120, 100%, 50%
limegreen	50, 205, 50	120, 61%, 50%
linen	250, 240, 230	30, 67%, 94%

M

Keyword	RGB	HSL
magenta is the same color as fuchsia	255, 0, 255	300, 100%, 50%
maroon	128, 0, 0	0, 100%, 25%
mediumaquamarine	102, 205, 170	160, 51%, 60%
mediumblue	0, 0, 205	240, 100%, 40%
mediumorchid	186, 85, 211	288, 59%, 58%
mediumpurple	147, 112, 219	260, 60%, 65%
mediumseagreen	60, 179, 113	147, 50%, 47%
mediumslateblue	123, 104, 238	249, 80%, 67%
mediumspringgreen	0, 250, 154	157, 100%, 49%
mediumturquoise	72, 209, 204	178, 60%, 55%
mediumvioletred	199, 21, 133	322, 81%, 43%
midnightblue	25, 25, 112	240, 64%, 27%
mintcream	245, 255, 250	150, 100%, 98%
mistyrose	255, 228, 225	6, 100%, 94%
moccasin	255, 228, 181	38, 100%, 85%

N

Swatch	Keyword	Hex	RGB	HSL
	navajowhite		255, 222, 173	36, 100%, 84%
	navy		0, 0, 128	240, 100%, 25%

O

Keyword	RGB	HSL
oldlace	253, 245, 230	39, 85%, 95%
olive	128, 128, 0	60, 100%, 25%
olivedrab	107, 142, 35	80, 60%, 35%
orange	255, 165, 0	39, 100%, 50%
orangered	255, 69, 0	16, 100%, 50%
orchid	218, 112, 214	302, 59%, 65%

P

Keyword	RGB	HSL
palegoldenrod	238, 232, 170	55, 67%, 80%
palegreen	152, 251, 152	120, 93%, 79%
paleturquoise	175, 238, 238	180, 65%, 81%
palevioletred	219, 112, 147	340, 60%, 65%
papayawhip	255, 239, 213	37, 100%, 92%
peachpuff	255, 218, 185	28, 100%, 86%
peru	205, 133, 63	30, 59%, 53%
pink	255, 192, 203	350, 100%, 88%
plum	221, 160, 221	300, 47%, 75%
powderblue	176, 224, 230	187, 52%, 80%
purple	128, 0, 128	300, 100%, 25%

R

Keyword	RGB	HSL
rebeccapurple	102, 51, 153	270, 50%, 40%
red	255, 0, 0	0, 100%, 50%
rosybrown	188, 143, 143	0, 25%, 65%
royalblue	65, 105, 225	225, 73%, 57%

S

Keyword	RGB	HSL
saddlebrown	139, 69, 19	25, 76%, 31%
salmon	250, 128, 114	6, 93%, 71%
sandybrown	244, 164, 96	28, 87%, 67%
seagreen	46, 139, 87	146, 50%, 36%
seashell	255, 245, 238	25, 100%, 97%
sienna	160, 82, 45	19, 56%, 40%
silver	192, 192, 192	0, 0%, 75%
skyblue	135, 206, 235	197, 71%, 73%
slateblue	106, 90, 205	248, 53%, 58%
slategray is the same color as slategrey	112, 128, 144	210, 13%, 50%
slategrey is the same color as slategray	112, 128, 144	210, 13%, 50%
snow	255, 250, 250	0, 100%, 99%
springgreen	0, 255, 127	150, 100%, 50%
steelblue	70, 130, 180	207, 44%, 49%

T

Keyword	RGB	HSL
tan	210, 180, 140	34, 44%, 69%
teal	0, 128, 128	180, 100%, 25%
thistle	216, 191, 216	300, 24%, 80%
tomato	255, 99, 71	9, 100%, 64%
turquoise	64, 224, 208	174, 72%, 56%

V

Swatch	Keyword	Hex	RGB	HSL
	violet		238, 130, 238	300, 76%, 72%

W

Keyword	RGB	HSL
wheat	245, 222, 179	39, 77%, 83%
white	255, 255, 255	0, 0%, 100%
whitesmoke	245, 245, 245	0, 0%, 96%

Y

Swatch	Keyword	Hex	RGB	HSL
	yellow		255, 255, 0	60, 100%, 50%
	yellowgreen		154, 205, 50	80, 61%, 50%

Common questions

How many CSS color names are there?: There are 148 keywords, but only 139 distinct colors, because nine names are exact duplicates of another name. The figure of 140 gets repeated a lot and is not quite right. All 148 work in every modern browser.
Why does CSS have both gray and grey?: Because the original HTML palette and the SVG palette were merged and neither spelling was dropped. Seven grey keywords carry both spellings: gray, darkgray, dimgray, lightgray, slategray, darkslategray and lightslategray. Both spellings resolve to identical values, so the choice is purely stylistic.
What is the difference between aqua and cyan?: Nothing. Both are #00FFFF. Aqua came from the sixteen HTML 4 colors and cyan from SVG, and CSS kept both. Fuchsia and magenta are the same story, both #FF00FF.
Why is darkgray lighter than gray?: Because they came from different palettes that were never reconciled. CSS gray is #808080 and darkgray is #A9A9A9, which is genuinely lighter. If a grey is behaving unexpectedly in a stylesheet, this is usually the reason. The keyword that actually sits below gray is dimgray at #696969.
Should I use color names or hex codes?: Names are readable and impossible to mistype silently, since an unrecognised name is simply ignored rather than rendering the wrong color. But 139 colors is a narrow palette, and the names carry no system: there is no relationship between lightblue, mediumblue and darkblue beyond the words. For anything designed rather than sketched, hex or a token scale will serve better.
What is rebeccapurple?: It is #663399, added to the CSS color list in 2014 in memory of Rebecca Alison Meyer, daughter of the web standards writer Eric Meyer, who died of a brain tumor on her sixth birthday. It is the only keyword added since the original set was inherited from X11 and SVG.