← Shades of black

≈ Balsamico

#190A00 is closest to Balsamico in our library. Balsamico (#190A00) is a very dark, muted black with a warm-leaning neutral feel. It has a hue angle of 24° and a lightness of 16%. Its muted saturation keeps it calm and sophisticated, easy to live with in large areas.

#190A00≈ Balsamico
Conversion

What Balsamico looks like, feels like and where it works.

Description

Balsamico (#190A00) is a very dark, muted black with a warm-leaning neutral feel. It has a hue angle of 24° and a lightness of 16%. Its muted saturation keeps it calm and sophisticated, easy to live with in large areas.

Psychology

Black is bold, formal and strong. It gives the highest contrast with light colors and feels premium; an off-black with a hint of hue is easier on the eye than pure black. As a dark shade, Balsamico feels weighty and serious.

Meaning

Black stands for elegance, power and sophistication, and for mourning in the West.

Why use this color

Balsamico is an easy supporting color. It carries white text well, so it works as a button, header or badge background. Pair it with its tints and shades for a complete scale.

Applications
  • Luxury and fashion
  • Typography and dark mode
  • Strong contrast and emphasis
  • Photography and film
History

Charcoal and soot were among the first pigments in cave art. Modern materials such as Vantablack, from 2014, absorb about 99.96 percent of light.

Accessibility

White text on Balsamico has a contrast ratio of 19.35:1 (AAA); black text has 1.08:1 (fails). WCAG AA needs 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text and interface parts. Do not rely on color alone to carry meaning: pair it with text, an icon or a pattern.

ShadesMixed with black: darker and richer.
TintsMixed with white: lighter and softer.
TonesMixed with gray: quieter and less saturated.
HuesThe same lightness and strength, turned around the wheel.
TemperaturesPushed cooler on the left, warmer on the right.
50#F9F6F4100#F0EAE5200#E3D9D0300#CDBEB0400#B19E8C500#97826F600#7E6B5A700#655546800#4D4034900#392E25950#190A00
Analogous
Complementary
Split complementary
Triadic
Tetradic
Square

Want to explore these on a wheel? Open the color wheel.

#190A00
Typical visionAs most people see it
#0F0B00
ProtanopiaReduced sensitivity to red
#120F00
DeuteranopiaReduced sensitivity to green
#1D0707
TritanopiaReduced sensitivity to blue
#0E0E0E
AchromatopsiaNo color, only light and dark

These are approximations to help you check that meaning never depends on color alone. Real vision varies from person to person.

White textQuote n. 31: there is no such thing as a bad color.
19.35:1
AAAAA
Normal textAAAAA
Large textAAAAA
Black textQuote n. 31: there is no such thing as a bad color.
1.08:1
AAAAA
Normal textFailFail
Large textFailFail
Open the contrast checker
#190A00 Color — closest to Balsamico (HEX, RGB, Shades) · Tintly