Shades of Magenta
Every useful magenta, generated rather than hand-listed.
There are 10 named CSS colors in the magenta family, ranging from Thistle (#d8bfd8) at the light end to Purple (#800080) at the dark end. The shades generated on this page all sit at hue 328° in OKLCH, so their lightness steps look evenly spaced instead of bunching up in the shadows the way an HSL ramp does.
Every shade of magenta on this page is generated, not copied from a list. Each swatch sits at hue 328° in OKLCH with an even perceptual lightness step, so the ramp reads smoothly instead of bunching up at the dark end the way an HSL ramp does — and nothing is clipped outside what an sRGB display can actually show.
Click any swatch to copy its hex code. The sliders let you change how many shades you get, how intense they are, and how much the hue drifts across the ramp.
Three magenta shades worth starting from
If you just need a magenta that works, these three are safe picks at the light, mid and dark ends of the range.
| Role | Hex | RGB | Contrast on white |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light magenta — backgrounds, tints | #eecaec | rgb(238 202 236) | 1.47:1 |
| Mid magenta — accents, buttons | #b158b0 | rgb(177 88 176) | 4.29:1 |
| Dark magenta — text, borders | #511351 | rgb(81 19 81) | 13.45:1 |
Named shades of magenta
10 named colors that fall in the magenta range, sorted from darkest to lightest, with the contrast ratio each one achieves against a white background. Anything below 4.5:1 is not safe for body text on white.
| Name | Hex | RGB | HSL | On white |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purple | #800080 | rgb(128 0 128) | hsl(300 100% 25.1%) | 9.42:1 |
| Darkmagenta | #8b008b | rgb(139 0 139) | hsl(300 100% 27.3%) | 8.5:1 |
| Medium Orchid | #ba55d3 | rgb(186 85 211) | hsl(288.1 58.9% 58%) | 3.94:1 |
| Fuchsia | #ff00ff | rgb(255 0 255) | hsl(300 100% 50%) | 3.14:1 |
| Orchid | #da70d6 | rgb(218 112 214) | hsl(302.3 58.9% 64.7%) | 2.89:1 |
| Lilac | #c8a2c8 | rgb(200 162 200) | hsl(300 25.7% 71%) | 2.22:1 |
| Violet | #ee82ee | rgb(238 130 238) | hsl(300 76.1% 72.2%) | 2.32:1 |
| Fuchsia Pink | #ff77ff | rgb(255 119 255) | hsl(300 100% 73.3%) | 2.25:1 |
| Plum | #dda0dd | rgb(221 160 221) | hsl(300 47.3% 74.7%) | 2.07:1 |
| Thistle | #d8bfd8 | rgb(216 191 216) | hsl(300 24.3% 79.8%) | 1.7:1 |
Using magenta in an interface
The two badges next to each generated shade are its contrast ratio against white and against black. The first step where one of them turns green is the lightest magenta you can safely set body text in on that background — everything lighter is decoration, not copy.
For large areas, pick from the light end and let a darker shade of the same hue carry the text. That keeps the whole surface in one hue family, which is what makes an interface feel deliberate rather than assembled.
Frequently asked questions
What are the hex codes for shades of magenta?
The ramp at the top of this page generates them — click any swatch to copy it. Three reliable picks are #eecaec for light, #b158b0 for mid and #511351 for dark magenta.
What is the hex code for magenta?
The closest single answer is Lilac at #c8a2c8, but magenta is a range rather than one value. This page lists 10 named magenta shades and generates as many more as you want.
How many shades of magenta are there?
Effectively unlimited — an 8-bit display can show over 16 million colors, and a large share of them read as this family. The useful question is how many distinguishable steps you need, which is usually somewhere between 9 and 12 for a design system.
What colors go well with magenta?
Its perceptual complement sits at hue 148°, and the two neighbors either side of that make a softer split-complementary set. The palette generator builds all of them from any starting magenta.
Which shade of magenta is accessible for text?
On a white background you need 4.5:1 for body text. In the table above that is every row at or above 4.5:1 — generally the darker half of the family. The contrast checker will confirm any specific pair and suggest the nearest passing color if it fails.