Tabloid
Open in tool →Red, black and yellow on white is the loudest three-color system in print — use it when headlines are the product.
Crimson hex code
Crimson
#dc143c
hex
#dc143crgb
rgb(220, 20, 60)hsl
hsl(348, 83%, 47%)oklch
oklch(0.571 0.222 20.1)Relative luminance 0.1604
Crimson is a mid-tone, highly saturated red — #dc143c, rgb(220, 20, 60), hue 348° at 83% saturation. The colours that go with crimson are Charcoal, Royal Blue and Sea Green — each with the reason below, and the real palettes that pair them. As text it passes WCAG AA on white at 4.99:1, so it can be a body colour, not just a fill. 6 public brands use it and 2 curated palettes are built around it.
Colors that go with Crimson
Charcoal, Royal Blue and Sea Green lead the list. Each partner is a real named colour with the reason it works — a wheel relationship, a neutral that carries it, or a pairing lifted from a palette or brand system that actually shipped — and every pair opens in the palette tool.
Charcoal #36454f
neutralshippedCharcoal is the body-text near-black for Crimson: its slight blue cast keeps type crisp beside a warm colour where pure #000 looks heavy.
Royal Blue #4169e1
triadicshippedRoyal Blue completes a triad with Crimson — three hues spaced evenly round the wheel, the classic way to get energy into a palette without a clash.
Sea Green #2e8b57
split-complementshippedSea Green is a split-complement of Crimson: nearly opposite, so it still pops against it, without the vibrating edge of a true complement.
Steel Blue #4682b4
split-complementshippedSteel Blue is a split-complement of Crimson: nearly opposite, so it still pops against it, without the vibrating edge of a true complement.
Amber #ffbf00
shippedAmber is paired with Crimson in 7 real palettes, including McDonald's's brand system and Wired's brand system, as the lead colour.
Blue #0000ff
shipped7 real palettes, including Tim Hortons's brand system and native Cybersecurity's brand system put Blue beside Crimson, as the accent.
Cobalt Blue #0047ab
shippedDesigners have shipped Cobalt Blue with Crimson: 5 real palettes, including Walgreens's brand system and Behance's brand system, as the accent.
Denim #1560bd
shippedDesigners have shipped Denim with Crimson: 16 real palettes, including Target : Expect More. Pay Less.'s brand system and Costco's brand system, as the accent.
Real palettes that use Crimson
Tints & shades
Harmonies
Contrast
| Crimson as text | Ratio | AA | AA large | AAA | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aaon white | 4.99:1 | pass | pass | fail |
|
Aaon black | 4.21:1 | fail | pass | fail |
Fixes keep hue and saturation and move lightness only, so the suggestion stays on-brand. Ratios are symmetric: the same numbers apply with Crimson as the background.
Brands using this color
Palettes built around it
Gemstone
Open in tool →Emerald, amethyst and ruby on velvet-black — the jewel-tone trio; the surface must be dark or the stones go plastic.
Fonts for this mood
Crimson reads as warm, vivid, playful. The font library is tagged with the same vocabulary:
mcpConnect your agent — build around Crimson
live endpointPoint any MCP client at the shared colors endpoint and your agent gets the same engine as this page — direct_palette, edit_direction, check_palette, check_contrast — read-only, no key. Every direction it proposes comes with a /colors/d/… link: open it, lock what you like, paste the link back, and the agent edits rather than re-rolls.
endpoint
https://mcp.brandsweets.com/colors/mcpclaude mcp add --transport http brandsweets-colors https://mcp.brandsweets.com/colors/mcp
try this prompt
›analyze #dc143c and generate a 5-color palette that keeps it as the primary; give me the /palettes/new link
tool url
/palettes/new/dc143c-c49c9f-62cb83-2d231f-f1e9ef?lock=0&style=vibrantWant the agent to remember your picks and write them into a living brand? Create a free BrandSweets workspace.
Machine-readable: color.md