The 216 web safe colors
Every color in the palette, with its hex code and RGB values. Click a swatch to copy it.
- Black
- Navy
- Navy
- Blue
- Blue
- Petrol
- Prussian blue
- Cobalt
- Blue
- Blue
- Green
- Hunter green
- Teal
- Steel blue
- Cobalt
- Royal blue
- Forest green
- Forest green
- Forest green
- Teal
- Cerulean
- Transparent blue
- Lime green
- Lime green
- Emerald
- Emerald
- Sky blue
- Mint
- Mint
- Turquoise
- Aqua
- Indigo
- Indigo
- Blue
- Blue
- Gunmetal
- Cobalt
- Blue
- Blue
- Moss
- Green
- Teal
- Denim
- Royal blue
- Royal blue
- Forest green
- Forest green
- Forest green
- Teal
- Dusty blue
- Transparent blue
- Lime green
- Lime green
- Emerald
- Emerald
- Sky blue
- Mint
- Mint
- Seafoam
- Aqua
- Maroon
- Wine
- Indigo
- Violet
- Violet
- Umber
- Burgundy
- Eggplant
- Violet
- Violet
- Olive
- Olive
- Slate
- Royal blue
- Royal blue
- Forest green
- Dusty blue
- Cornflower
- Lime green
- Lime green
- Lime green
- Emerald
- Sky blue
- Mint
- Mint
- Seafoam
- Aqua
- Maroon
- Burgundy
- Raspberry
- Purple
- Violet
- Rust
- Brown
- Raspberry
- Purple
- Purple
- Purple
- Bronze
- Bronze
- Mauve
- Purple
- Olive
- Olive
- Pewter
- Wisteria
- Wisteria
- Lime green
- Lime green
- Emerald
- Turquoise
- Powder blue
- Mint
- Mint
- Mint
- Mint
- Seafoam
- Aqua
- Brown
- Crimson
- Rust
- Crimson
- Blush
- Magenta
- Chocolate
- Tuscan
- Terracotta
- Dusty rose
- Camel
- Camel
- Camel
- Lilac
- Lilac
- Sage
- Silver
- Periwinkle
- Yellow
- Yellow
- Yellow
- Mint
- Mint
- Red
- Red
- Rose
- Rose
- Magenta
- Magenta
- Red
- Red
- Blush
- Rose
- Magenta
- Magenta
- Coral
- Coral
- Salmon
- Rose
- Hot pink
- Magenta
- Orange
- Orange
- Coral
- Salmon
- Hot pink
- Plum
- Mustard
- Amber
- Amber
- Peach
- Pink
- Yellow
- Yellow
- Yellow
- Yellow
- Cream
- White
What the palette was for
A display running 256 colors could not show an arbitrary image without inventing the missing colors on the spot, and every operating system reserved part of that range for itself. What was left was a cube of six evenly spaced levels per channel: 00, 33,66, 99, CC and FF. Six by six by six is 216, and a color built only from those levels looked the same on every machine.
Whether to use it now
No. Any screen sold this century shows millions of colors, so restricting a design to 216 gives up precision and gains nothing. The palette survives as a reference: old brand guidelines still cite it, and people still ask what the nearest web safe version of a color is.
Every color page on this site answers that question for its own color, by snapping each channel to the nearest of the six levels. That is how the palette was defined, and it is what every other tool reports. Choosing the perceptually closest of the 216 instead would be a defensible and different answer, and it would make this site disagree with all of them for no visible reason.
Where these lead
176 of the 216 sit close enough to a named color in the color index to link there. The rest have no link, because sending you to a page about a different color would be worse than sending you nowhere.
If you want colors chosen for how they look rather than for a hardware limit that no longer exists, the palette generator works in OKLCH, and the palette catalog has ready-made sets.
