NEUTRALS

Professor Plum

#393540

RGB 57, 53, 64 · HSL 262°, 9%, 23% · CMYK 11, 17, 0, 75

Professor Plum is #393540 in HEX — rgb(57, 53, 64), hsl(262°, 9%, 23%), cmyk(11%, 17%, 0%, 75%).

Professor Plum pulls into the deep end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 262°, 9%, 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#393540
RGB57, 53, 64
HSL262°, 9%, 23%
HSV262°, 17%, 25%
CMYK11, 17, 0, 75
Decimal3749184
CSS RGBrgb(57, 53, 64)
CSS HSLhsl(262, 9%, 23%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Dulux

Persian Prince S44A9

ΔE 0.8 · #38343E

Benjamin Moore

Deep 2069-10

ΔE 2.2 · #3D3946

Valspar

Twilight Purple 4010-2

ΔE 2.6 · #3E3B46

Sherwin-Williams

Black Swan SW6279

ΔE 2.8 · #3A373E

Behr

Rich Bordeaux BXC-87

ΔE 2.8 · #3C323D

IKEA

IKEA163 163

ΔE 3.2 · #423A45

Hallman-Lindsay

Eleanor Ann 1229

ΔE 3.7 · #40373E

Vista Paint

Eleanor Ann C-1228

ΔE 3.8 · #3E343B

RAL

Granite Grey 7026

ΔE 5.7 · #2F353B

PPG

Napoleon 1013-7

ΔE 5.7 · #404149

Farrow & Ball

Paean Black 294

ΔE 6.9 · #494248

Dunn-Edwards

Old Mill DEA185

ΔE 6.9 · #343B4E

Kobra

Black 44

ΔE 7.5 · #383737

Colorhouse

Nourish .06 Nourish-06

ΔE 7.8 · #313536

Kilz

True Black RM260A

ΔE 8.1 · #3D3D3D

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

TemperatureNeutral MasstoneViolet UndertoneBlue

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

Color Theory

Complementary

#393540
#3C4035

Analogous

#353740
#393540
#3F3540

Triadic

#393540
#403935
#354039

Split-Complementary

#393540
#403F35
#374035

Tetradic

#393540
#403537
#3C4035
#35403F

Monochromatic

#0C0C0E
#141316
#393540
#5F586A
#847C92

Rectangle

#393540
#40353C
#3C4035
#354039

Compound

#393540
#3F3540
#3C4035
#374035

Variations

Lighter

#60596B
#878092
#B9B6BF

Darker

#2E2A33
#1F1D23
#121115

Saturation

#3A393C
#393540
#321B5B

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)

Aa

vs White

11.95:1

AAA

Aa

vs Black

1.76:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#393540
#353740

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#393540
#36363F

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#393540
#383736

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Professor Plum 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

#6A544B

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#393540

Daylight 5500K

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

#57596F

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#EBEAEB

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.

#353E25

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

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: #393540;
CSS — background 
background-color: #393540;
CSS Variable 
--color-professor-plum: #393540;
Tailwind v3 — config 
colors: { 'professor-plum': '#393540' }
Tailwind — arbitrary 
bg-[#393540] text-[#393540]
SCSS 
$professor-plum: #393540;

Similar Colors

Deep Mulberry

#3C3845 · ΔE 1.9

Tulsa Twilight

#3B3339 · ΔE 3.8

Galaxy

#413D44 · ΔE 4.4

Dark Basalt

#40363C · ΔE 4.4

Toucan Black

#3C3B40 · ΔE 4.8

After Midnight

#33383E · ΔE 5.3

Polo Blue

#323A43 · ΔE 5.4

Black Berry

#3A3B3F · ΔE 5.6
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 #393540?

#393540 is Professor Plum, a deep neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #393540 warm or cool?

Professor Plum reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Professor Plum?

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

What colors pair well with Professor Plum?

Professor Plum 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 Professor Plum?

You can download Professor Plum 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 Professor Plum?

The hex code is #393540. In RGB it's 57, 53, 64, and in HSL it's 262°, 9%, 23%.

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