Charcoal vs Onyx

Charcoal and Onyx are both grays, but they are not the same color: the measured difference between their classic values is ΔE 5.6, noticeably different side by side.

Charcoal

RGB: 52, 56, 55
HSL: 165, 4%, 21%
OKLCH: 33.6% 0.006 179.4

Temperature: neutral, leaning cool (subtle cyan undertone in this near-neutral)

Closest encyclopedia entry: Charcoal

Onyx

RGB: 70, 69, 68
HSL: 30, 1%, 27%
OKLCH: 39.1% 0.002 67.8

Temperature: neutral, leaning warm

Closest encyclopedia entry: Onyx

Measured difference: ΔE 5.6 · noticeably different side by side. ΔE is a measure of perceived color difference; below 2.3 most people can't tell colors apart.

Guide

How to tell Charcoal and Onyx apart

1 Onyx is measurably lighter (5 points of OKLCH lightness). Squint: the one that survives is Charcoal.
2 Temperature splits them: Charcoal reads neutral, leaning cool while Onyx reads neutral, leaning warm.
3 Their hues sit 112 degrees apart on the wheel. Put them on white side by side and the hue gap is the first thing you see.

Guide

When to use which

Charcoal passes AA for text on white (11.89:1), so it can work in type and trim, not just surfaces.

Onyx passes AA for text on white (9.57:1), so it can work in type and trim, not just surfaces.

Palettes

Their palettes, side by side

Charcoal complementary palette

Onyx complementary palette

Charcoal analogous palette

Onyx analogous palette

FAQ

FAQs

Are Charcoal and Onyx the same color?

No. Using their classic reference values, they differ by ΔE 5.6 (a measure of perceived color difference; below 2.3 most people can't tell colors apart). That makes them noticeably different side by side.

Which is darker, Charcoal or Onyx?

Charcoal is darker: 5 points lower in OKLCH lightness than Onyx.