What is the hex code for plum?

Plum is #DDA0DD. In RGB that is 221, 160, 221, and in HSL it is 300 degrees, 47 percent saturation, 75 percent lightness.

What is the CMYK value of plum?

#DDA0DD converts to CMYK 0, 28, 0, 13. CMYK is a print space, so a screen can only ever approximate how it will actually be inked.

Can I use plum as a CSS color name?

Yes. plum is a CSS color keyword, so you can write it as a name instead of a hex code and every modern browser will render exactly #DDA0DD.

Plum

#DDA0DD

Plum is the hex color #DDA0DD, with RGB values 221, 160, 221. It is a CSS color keyword, so browsers render it from the name alone, and its value is fixed by the CSS Color Module.

PurpleCSS keyword

Quick colors, then fill the screen

Or a gradient

Or let it move

#DDA0DDrgb(221, 160, 221) · hsl(300, 47%, 75%)

Hue300°

Brightness100%

Plum color codes

Every value for #DDA0DD, ready to paste. Click any code to copy it.

Channel values for #DDA0DD in each number base
Channel	Decimal	Share	Hex	Octal	Binary
Red	221	86.67%	DD	335	11011101
Green	160	62.75%	A0	240	10100000
Blue	221	86.67%	DD	335	11011101

The nearest web-safe color is #CC99CC, from the 216-color palette browsers agreed on before displays could be trusted with more.

About plum

A soft, dusty purple. Considerably lighter than the fruit, which is a recurring theme among CSS color keywords named after food.

Shades, tints and tones

Every step is generated from #DDA0DD. Click a swatch to copy its hex.

Shades of plum

A shade is the base color with black mixed in. Shades read as deeper and more dramatic, and they are what you reach for when a color needs to recede or carry weight.

Tints of plum

A tint is the base color with white mixed in. Tints turn pastel as they lighten, which makes them useful for backgrounds and for anything that has to sit behind text.

Tones of plum

A tone is the base color with grey mixed in. Tones lose the shout without losing the hue, and they are usually what separates a considered palette from a loud one.

The plum scale

The same color as the 50 to 950 ladder every CSS framework uses, with #DDA0DD at 500. Click a step to copy its hex, or take the whole scale as variables for a design system.

Color schemes built on plum

Harmonies are positions on the color wheel rather than matters of taste, which is why they keep working across very different designs.

Complementary

Two colors from opposite sides of the wheel. They make each other look more vivid, which is why the pairing is used for anything that needs to stand out.

Analogous

Three neighbours on the wheel. Nothing competes, so the result reads calm and settled, closer to how colour behaves in nature.

Split complementary

The base plus the two colors either side of its complement. It keeps most of the contrast while being much easier to balance.

Triadic

Three colors spaced evenly around the wheel. Strong and lively, and usually best with one dominant color and two accents.

Tetradic

Two complementary pairs, forming a rectangle on the wheel. The richest scheme available, and the hardest to keep from shouting.

Monochromatic

One hue at different lightness levels. Effortlessly cohesive, and the safest way to build a palette around a brand color.

Colors close to #DDA0DD

Near neighbours, for when this color is almost right. Each one shifts hue, saturation or lightness by a small step.

Plum color palettes

Five-color palettes built around #DDA0DD, each following a different scheme. Click any swatch to copy it, or open the generator to build your own.

Analogous

Complementary

Triadic

Monochromatic

Open the palette generator to lock the colors you like and regenerate the rest.

Contrast and readability

Whether plum works as text, and what to put on top of it when it is the background. Ratios follow WCAG 2.1, where 4.5 is the bar for body text and 3 for large text.

Plum text on white background

2.07:1 · Poor

Large text at 24 pixels

Body text at 16 pixels. A flat field of color removes every variable, which is what makes it useful for judging a display.

Body AA
Body AAA
Large AA
Large AAA

Plum text on black background

10.15:1 · Excellent

Large text at 24 pixels

Body text at 16 pixels. A flat field of color removes every variable, which is what makes it useful for judging a display.

Body AA
Body AAA
Large AA
Large AAA

Used the other way round, #DDA0DD as a background takes #000000 text. That is the higher-contrast of the two, and it is what the tool picks automatically for any chrome sitting on your color.

Plum reads better on a black background of the two. Contrast is a property of the pair, not of one color, so a color that fails here can still be perfectly usable against a different partner.

The purple family

Plum sits in the purple family. Every named purple in the library, with plum first.

Name	Hex	RGB	HSL
Plum is a CSS keyword is the color on this page	#DDA0DD	221, 160, 221	300, 47%, 75%
Purple is a CSS keyword	#800080	128, 0, 128	300, 100%, 25%
Lavender is a CSS keyword	#E6E6FA	230, 230, 250	240, 67%, 94%
Mauve	#E0B0FF	224, 176, 255	276, 100%, 85%
Violet is a CSS keyword	#EE82EE	238, 130, 238	300, 76%, 72%
Orchid is a CSS keyword	#DA70D6	218, 112, 214	302, 59%, 65%
Lilac	#C8A2C8	200, 162, 200	300, 26%, 71%
Amethyst	#9966CC	153, 102, 204	270, 50%, 60%
Eggplant	#614051	97, 64, 81	329, 20%, 32%
Dark orchid is a CSS keyword	#9932CC	153, 50, 204	280, 61%, 50%
Thistle is a CSS keyword	#D8BFD8	216, 191, 216	300, 24%, 80%