NEUTRALS

Black Marlin

#383740

RGB 56, 55, 64 · HSL 247°, 8%, 23% · CMYK 13, 14, 0, 75

Black Marlin is #383740 in HEX — rgb(56, 55, 64), hsl(247°, 8%, 23%), cmyk(13%, 14%, 0%, 75%).

Black Marlin pulls into the deep end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 247°, 8%, 23%. The neutral saturation makes it near-neutral and forgiving, and the hue reads cool. In interior projects it shines on main walls, trims, ceilings — versatile across nearly any style. Reads best alongside soft whites, natural wood, matte black trim, linen.

Color Codes

HEX#383740

RGB56, 55, 64

HSL247°, 8%, 23%

HSV247°, 14%, 25%

CMYK13, 14, 0, 75

Decimal3684160

CSS RGBrgb(56, 55, 64)

CSS HSLhsl(247, 8%, 23%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Behr

Black Garnet N110-7

ΔE 1.4 · #38363D

Dulux

Imperator SG6E9

ΔE 1.5 · #36343C

Sherwin-Williams

Black Swan SW6279

ΔE 1.6 · #3A373E

Hallman-Lindsay

Octavius 522

ΔE 2.3 · #38393F

Valspar

Twilight Purple 4010-2

ΔE 2.6 · #3E3B46

Vista Paint

Octavius C-521

ΔE 2.8 · #39393E

Benjamin Moore

Deep 2069-10

ΔE 3.2 · #3D3946

IKEA

IKEA163 163

ΔE 3.9 · #423A45

RAL

Granite Grey 7026

ΔE 4 · #2F353B

PPG

Wright Midnight FLLW36

ΔE 4.4 · #404149

Dunn-Edwards

Dark Engine DE6350

ΔE 5.7 · #3E3F41

Kobra

Black 44

ΔE 6 · #383737

Colorhouse

Nourish .06 Nourish-06

ΔE 6.1 · #313536

Kilz

Night Magic RM230

ΔE 6.3 · #3C4348

Farrow & Ball

Paean Black 294

ΔE 6.3 · #494248

Dutch Boy

Dark Chocolate D-6782

ΔE 11.8 · #392A27

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

4/100

Very Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Absorbs almost all light — dramatic and cocooning. Needs strong artificial lighting and works best as an accent or in well-lit rooms.

Undertone

TemperatureCool MasstoneBlue UndertoneViolet

A near-neutral with a subtle cool violet undertone — it will pick up colour from surrounding surfaces and shift noticeably under different light.

Color Theory

Complementary

#383740

#3E3F36

Analogous

#363A3F

#383740

#3C363F

Triadic

#383740

#3F3736

#363F37

Split-Complementary

#383740

#3F3C36

#3A3F36

Tetradic

#383740

#3F363A

#3E3F36

#363F3C

Monochromatic

#0C0C0E

#131316

#383740

#5B5969

#807E91

Rectangle

#383740

#3F363E

#3E3F36

#363F37

Compound

#383740

#3C363F

#3E3F36

#3A3F36

Variations

Lighter

#5C5A6A

#838191

#B7B6BE

Darker

#2C2B33

#1E1D23

#111114

Saturation

#3A393C

#37363F

#221B5A

Interior Use

Best Rooms

living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens

Best Uses

main walls, trim, accents

Pairs With

soft whites, natural wood, brass, matte black trim

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

11.74:1

AAA

vs Black

1.79:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#383740

#363840

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#383740

#37373F

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#383740

#373938

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Black Marlin gets out of the way so the architecture and the people in the room do the work. The right neutral is never a default — it reads warm or cool, dusty or sharp depending on its undertone, and that undertone is what makes or breaks the room.

SymbolismBalance, sophistication, calm

PersonalityAdaptable, considered, timeless

versatileneutraltimelessbackdroptrimwall

How it looks under different light

#69564B

Warm Bulb 2700K

Incandescent / soft white LED — pulls colour toward yellow/amber.

#383740

Daylight 5500K

Midday natural light or daylight-spec LED — closest to the paint chip.

#575B6F

Cool Bulb 6500K

Cool white LED / overcast daylight — pulls colour toward blue.

Pairs With

#EAEAEB

Trim

Matched off-white

Same hue at 92% lightness — trim reads coordinated, not stark.

#F7F7F7

Ceiling

Whisper tint

Near-white with a hint of the hero's undertone — ceiling feels intentional.

#3B3E25

Accent

Complementary punch

Hue +180°, slightly muted for paint vs. screen — use on a door, frame, or single piece.

#574738

Floor

Walnut neutral

Warm mid-brown grounds the scheme regardless of hero hue.

Paint Info

Brand · Product Line

Benjamin Moore / Aura Interior (for richer color depth in deep tones)

Recommended Finishes

Matte (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Satin (doors)

Deep colors look best in matte — gloss exaggerates surface flaws. Reserve subtle sheen for trim, doors, and high-touch areas.

Best Surfaces

Accent walls · Doors · Cabinetry · Built-ins

Coverage & Dry Time

Typical coverage 350-400 sq ft per gallon over a primed surface.

Touch-dry in ~1 hour. Recoat after 4 hours. Full cure 7-14 days.

Primer

Tinted primer in a similar value is highly recommended — saves a coat and prevents the wall colour from washing the surface.

Application Tip

Use a 9" microfiber roller on walls and a 2.5" angled sash brush for trim cuts. Two coats minimum for even depth.

Paint Calculator

Wall area (m²)

Coats

Coverage (m² / L)

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

Code Snippets

CSS — color

color: #383740;

CSS — background

background-color: #383740;

CSS Variable

--color-black-marlin: #383740;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'black-marlin': '#383740' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#383740] text-[#383740]

SCSS

$black-marlin: #383740;

Similar Colors

Deep Mulberry

#3C3845 · ΔE 3.1

Toucan Black

#3C3B40 · ΔE 3.2

After Midnight

#33383E · ΔE 3.4

Galaxy

#413D44 · ΔE 3.5

Black Berry

#3A3B3F · ΔE 3.8

Polo Blue

#323A43 · ΔE 3.8

Tulsa Twilight

#3B3339 · ΔE 3.9

Soot

#373C41 · ΔE 4.1

Built by DSGN.HOUSE Updated 2026

Our color tools run on our own catalogue of 26,000+ real paint colors across 16 brands — Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux, RAL and more — with the color math (HSL and CIELAB matching) computed in-house, not scraped from summaries. Every color you pick maps to a real, buyable paint with its code, so what you see here you can actually take to the store. We review and update these tools and their data regularly.

Created by Denis Kataev, founder of DSGN.HOUSE — a software engineer and digital entrepreneur building professional color-design tools for everyone.

Frequently Asked Questions

What color is #383740?

#383740 is Black Marlin, a deep neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #383740 warm or cool?

Black Marlin reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Black Marlin?

Black Marlin works well in living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens. Designers typically use it for main walls, trim, accents.

What colors pair well with Black Marlin?

Black Marlin pairs naturally with soft whites, natural wood, brass, matte black trim. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Black Marlin?

You can download Black Marlin on DSGN.HOUSE in 15 designer formats including CSS gradient, Figma, Procreate swatches, Tailwind config, Adobe ASE, SVG, and 4K wallpapers — all free.

What's the hex code for Black Marlin?

The hex code is #383740. In RGB it's 56, 55, 64, and in HSL it's 247°, 8%, 23%.

← All colors