We're live on Product Hunt!Support us
ColorArchive

A curated color library with 5,000+ algorithmically generated colors. Browse, search, save favorites, and export palette tokens — no account required.

CollectionsFamiliesBrandsRegionsJournalNotesGuidesFree ResourcesConvertColorblindAboutSupportUpdates
Ready for static export
Privacy·Terms·Refunds·Cookies·Commerce Disclosure
colorarchive.org · © 2026 ColorArchive
Skip to content
ColorArchive
ProLog in
ArchiveAll ColorsCollections
Orchid Tone Muted
Color detail

Orchid Tone Muted

Purple · Hue 260
Hex
#9387AB
RGB
rgb(147, 135, 171)
HSL
hsl(260, 18%, 60%)
CMYK
cmyk(14%, 21%, 0%, 33%)
Metrics
S 18% · L 60%
Contrast (WCAG)
on white
3.3:1AA Large
on black
6.3:1AA
Save to journalSign in to saveStart palette from thisRecent trail

About this color

Orchid Tone Muted (#9387AB) belongs to the purple family — hue 260°, 18% saturation, 60% lightness. Copy the hex, RGB, or HSL value above, or paste the CSS custom property below into your stylesheet to reference this color directly.

CSS
:root {
  --colorarchive-orchid-tone-muted: #9387AB;
  --colorarchive-orchid-tone-muted-hsl: hsl(260, 18%, 60%);
  --colorarchive-orchid-tone-muted-rgb: rgb(147, 135, 171);
}

AI Color Names

Let AI suggest alternative poetic names for this color in English and Chinese.

Design Context

RoyalInnovativeImaginative
Common in

Streaming Services · Crypto & Web3 · Creative Tools

Pairs well with

Electric green for futuristic energy, white for clarity, dark gray for sophistication

Design tip

A bold primary choice for brands wanting to stand out. Purple differentiates — few major brands use it, making it memorable.

Cultural context ▶

Purple historically represents royalty and rarity (Tyrian purple was more expensive than gold). Today it signals innovation and imagination.

Color Origins

Purple family

The color of empire, twilight, and tech-luxury.

Heritage

Tyrian purple, extracted from the murex snail in Phoenicia, took 12,000 snails to dye one toga and was the literal definition of expense — Roman law restricted who could wear it. Mauve, the world's first synthetic dye, was discovered by accident in 1856 by an 18-year-old chemistry student trying to make quinine — the discovery launched the chemical-dye industry that funded the modern pharmaceutical industry. Quinacridone violet is the modern fade-resistant standard.

Across cultures

In Catholic liturgy purple marks Lent and Advent — penance and preparation. In Japan murasaki (a deep violet) was the highest court color in the Heian period; The Tale of Genji's Lady Murasaki takes her name from it. In Thailand purple is the mourning color for widows. Across Western culture purple is associated with royalty (because of Tyrian's cost), creativity (because of its rarity), and from the 1960s onward with rock and psychedelia.

In the wild

Cadbury's purple has been trademarked since 2008 (and hard-fought in court). Yahoo, Twitch, Discord, and Linear all use saturated purples as primary brand colors — the choice signals creative-tech where blue would signal corporate-tech. Prince's purple was so associated with him that his estate has trademark issues with the broader color. Stripe's signature indigo (#635BFF) helped redefine fintech away from trust-blue. The Lakers, the Vikings, and most NBA teams' second jerseys use purple to claim a color lane that no other major team owns.

How it reads

Purple sits at the boundary of warm and cool — biologically, our eyes process it as a blend rather than a single hue, which is why it can feel slightly unstable or magical. It reads as premium, creative, slightly counterculture. Light purples (lavender, lilac) read as gentle and feminine in Western convention. Saturated purples read as luxurious, electronic, or theatrical. Deep purples read as nocturnal, regal, or somber. It is one of the colors most commonly avoided by traditional finance and most embraced by creative tools.

This particular tone

A grounded mid-tone — sober, considered, well-suited to body text accents, editorial layouts, or any context where restraint reads as quality.

Lightness band: At mid-lightness the hue carries its full character. This is the band where most identity colors live: bright enough to be distinctive at small sizes, deep enough to sit cleanly on a white canvas.

Saturation band: The low saturation pulls this color toward earthen, vintage, or editorial palettes. It reads as confident and grown-up rather than playful, and it tolerates being used in large blocks without becoming visually noisy.

Brands using a similar color

Within the public brand-guidelines reference catalog, these are the closest matches to #9387AB.

  • Notionneutral
    Notion Gray · #787774
    →
  • Microsoftneutral
    Slate Gray · #737373
    →
  • PlayStationaccent
    Square Purple · #A363D9
    →

Cultures using a similar color

From the cultural-palette catalog, these regions feature a color close to #9387AB.

  • France (Paris)Seine Steel
    #7E8A93 · River reflectivity in winter
    →
  • Greece (Aegean)Olive Silver
    #9CA38F · Olea europaea leaf undersides
    →
  • AustraliaEucalyptus Blue-Green
    #7EA08C · Eucalyptus regnans / globulus foliage
    →

Tonal strip

All lightness levels at this hue and saturation. Click any to navigate.

Palette moves

Instead of stopping at one swatch, use nearby, opposite, and tonal neighbors to branch into a broader palette.

Lighter companion
Orchid Silk Muted
#A99FBC · hsl(260, 18%, 68%)
Darker companion
Orchid Radiant Muted
#83759F · hsl(260, 18%, 54%)
Complementary counterpoint
Olive Tone Muted
#9FAB87 · hsl(80, 18%, 60%)
Analogous lead
Mulberry Tone Muted
#9F87AB · hsl(280, 18%, 60%)
Analogous echo
Iris Tone Muted
#8787AB · hsl(240, 18%, 60%)
Triadic +120°
Ember Tone Muted
#AB9387 · hsl(20, 18%, 60%)
Triadic +240°
Seafoam Tone Muted
#87AB93 · hsl(140, 18%, 60%)
Split-comp +150°
Amber Tone Muted
#ABA587 · hsl(50, 18%, 60%)
Split-comp +210°
Leaf Tone Muted
#8DAB87 · hsl(110, 18%, 60%)
Export preview
Base: Orchid Tone Muted #9387AB
Lighter companion: Orchid Silk Muted #A99FBC
Darker companion: Orchid Radiant Muted #83759F
Complementary counterpoint: Olive Tone Muted #9FAB87
Analogous lead: Mulberry Tone Muted #9F87AB
Analogous echo: Iris Tone Muted #8787AB
Triadic +120°: Ember Tone Muted #AB9387
Triadic +240°: Seafoam Tone Muted #87AB93
Split-comp +150°: Amber Tone Muted #ABA587
Split-comp +210°: Leaf Tone Muted #8DAB87

Compare

See how Orchid Tone Muted compares side by side with related colors.

vsOrchid Silk MutedvsOrchid Radiant MutedvsOlive Tone MutedvsMulberry Tone MutedvsIris Tone MutedvsEmber Tone Muted

Nearest neighbors

The closest archive matches by hue, saturation, and lightness.

Search by hex
Nearby match
Orchid Tone Faint
#968FA3 · hsl(260, 10%, 60%)
Nearby match
Orchid Tone Dust
#907EB4 · hsl(260, 26%, 60%)
Nearby match
Orchid Radiant Muted
#83759F · hsl(260, 18%, 54%)
Nearby match
Orchid Silk Muted
#A99FBC · hsl(260, 18%, 68%)
Nearby match
Orchid Tone Soft
#8D76BC · hsl(260, 34%, 60%)
Nearby match
Orchid Radiant Faint
#867E95 · hsl(260, 10%, 54%)

Accessible pairings

Archive colors that meet WCAG contrast standards when paired with this color. Use as text-on-background or background-on-text.

Contrast checker
AA4.5:1
Olive Ink Faint
#252720
AA4.5:1
Chartreuse Ink Faint
#252720
AA4.5:1
Honey Ink Faint
#262720
AA4.5:1
Lime Ink Faint
#242720
AA4.5:1
Citrine Ink Faint
#272720
AA4.6:1
Moss Ink Faint
#232720

Color Vision Simulation

How this color appears with different color vision deficiencies.

Full simulator
Deuteranopia
#8F90A1
Protanopia
#8E8EA3
Tritanopia
#929D9B
Ready to build

Turn these colors into design tokens

ColorArchive Pro includes CSS variables, Figma tokens, Tailwind config, and Procreate swatches — ready to drop into any project.

Upgrade to ProFree downloadView collections

Related colors

More from Purple

Search
Violet Ink Faint#212027 · hsl(250, 10%, 14%)Violet Nocturne Faint#302E38 · hsl(250, 10%, 20%)Violet Shadow Faint#43404F · hsl(250, 10%, 28%)Violet Dusk Faint#514E5F · hsl(250, 10%, 34%)Violet Velvet Faint#646076 · hsl(250, 10%, 42%)Violet Core Faint#726E87 · hsl(250, 10%, 48%)Violet Radiant Faint#827E95 · hsl(250, 10%, 54%)Violet Tone Faint#928FA3 · hsl(250, 10%, 60%)