Information about #515151 color

#515151 color image

Basic facts about this digital color

In the Register's classification, #515151 belongs to the Greyscale Color Family, featuring Desaturated and Neutral brightness. The mix behind it: rgb(81, 81, 81) — 31.8% red, 31.8% green, 31.8% blue; the print equivalent is CMYK 0 / 0 / 0 / 68. Curious how these numbers work? Read our RGB color codes guide.

#515151 is a softly muted balanced grey tone that occupies the middle of the lightness scale. It is a natural fit for versatile mid-ground roles, from cards to secondary buttons. In The Official Register of Color Names it is a hair away from Basalt (#524E50). Slightly further away sit Half Grey Friars (#4F5255) and Wireless (#555350).

Under the hood all three RGB channels are equal (81 each), placing #515151 exactly on the neutral axis of the color space. Accessibility-wise, white text works best on #515151: 7.9:1 contrast (passing WCAG AAA) versus 2.6:1 for black. For print, note the heavy black component (K:68) — ink coverage matters with tones this deep. This shade is reserved in the Register and is not available for naming.

#515151 color variations

View this color variations of tints, shades, tones and hues.

#515151 color tints

Tints look brighter, pastel, and less intense.
Reserved

Color has no name
#747474

Color has no name
#969696

Color has no name
#B9B9B9

Color has no name
Gainsboro

#DCDCDC
White

#FFFFFF

#515151 color shades

Shades look darker, richer, and more solid.
Reserved

#515151
#414141

Color has no name
#303030

Color has no name
#202020

Color has no name
#101010

Color has no name
Black

#000000

#515151 color tones

Tones looks more sophisticated and complex than base colors.
Reserved

#515151
#5A5A5A

Color has no name
#636363

Color has no name
#6D6D6D

Color has no name
#767676

Color has no name
Grey

#808080

Why this page shows fewer blocks

#515151 belongs to the Greyscale Color Family, and greyscale colors have no hue. Hue is an angle on the color wheel, and that angle only exists when a color leans toward one primary more than the others. Here all three channels are equal (R = G = B), so there is nothing to lean and no angle to measure.

Everything built on rotating that angle therefore has nothing to rotate. A complementary color is the hue 180° away — for a grey, that is the same grey. The same goes for analogous, triadic, tetradic and square harmonies. Rather than show seven identical swatches, the register leaves the Hues variation strip and the whole Harmonies section out.

What remains is everything that depends on lightness rather than hue. Tints, shades and tones still work, because they move the color up and down the scale instead of around the wheel. So do the nearest named colors, the conversions and the adjacent color codes.

How the register classifies colors · All greyscale colors in the register

Nearest named colors to #515151

The closest officially registered color names in the Register, ordered by similarity.

Basalt color link
Basalt

#524E50

Half Grey Friars color link
Half Grey Friars

#4F5255

Wireless color link
Wireless

#555350

be Supernormal. Charcoal color link
be Supernormal. Charcoal

#4E4E4F

Blast Grey color link
Blast Grey

#54514D

Cape Cod color link
Cape Cod

#4E5552

Vampire Gray color link
Vampire Gray

#565051

Dim Grey color link
Dim Grey

#545454

Knave color link
Knave

#50534C

Sidewinder color link
Sidewinder

#554D4F

Calm Green color link
Calm Green

#51574F

Dark Liver color link
Dark Liver

#534B4F

#515151 color backgrounds & wallpapers

Download color wallpaper / background for your Desktop PC, Tablet or Mobile phone.

#515151 color image #515151 color ORCN HD wallpaper 3840x2160 (Desktop)
#515151 color image #515151 color ORCN HD wallpaper 1170x2532 (Mobile)
#515151 color image #515151 color solid HD wallpaper 3840x2160 (Desktop)
#515151 color image #515151 color solid HD wallpaper 1170x2532 (Mobile)

Conversions between color systems and etc.

  • HEX#515151
  • RGB81, 81, 81
  • CMYK0, 0, 0, 68
  • CSSrgb(81, 81, 81)
  • HSL0°, 0%, 32%
  • HSL Precise0°, 0%, 31.765%
  • HSV0°, 0%, 32%
  • HSB0°, 0%, 32%
  • Normalized R (0.0–1.0)0.318
  • Normalized G (0.0–1.0)0.318
  • Normalized B (0.0–1.0)0.318
  • GLSLvec3(0.318, 0.318, 0.318)
  • GLSL with alphavec4(0.318, 0.318, 0.318, 1.000)
  • HLSL / Metalfloat3(0.318, 0.318, 0.318)
  • Percentage of Red in RGB31.8%
  • Percentage of Green in RGB31.8%
  • Percentage of Blue in RGB31.8%
  • Color FamilyGreyscale
  • Saturation FamilyDesaturated
  • Lightness FamilyNeutral
  • HEX ID515151
  • DECIMAL ID5329233
  • Name LengthThis color has no name
  • Seen by search & AI crawlers53 times
  • Counting from2025-01-01

Copyright © 2021-2026 The Official Register of Color Names. All Rights Reserved.

ORCN is an independent private organisation that maintains a public register — not a governmental institution or an international standards organisation — in which a name is linked to a specific digital colour code. Registration gives the registrant the exclusive right, within the ORCN register, to have that name recorded against that colour code.

Important: a digital colour itself belongs to no one in law. That right exists only within the ORCN register: registration creates no ownership, trademark, copyright or design rights anywhere. Legal exclusivity outside the register, where it is available at all, arises separately under applicable trademark law and is generally limited to particular goods, services and jurisdictions.