Brand gradient

PayPal gradient

The gradient PayPal's published colour tokens imply, derived by a pure function of the palette: primary → secondary in OKLab (OKLCH shorter hue when the hues are more than 140° apart; a tonal ramp when they are within ΔE 0.15), then a hero background with an ink that passes AA at the worst point along the line, a button surface with hover and active states, and the variant contact sheet. Same inputs, same gradients, forever — which is what makes them citable; the same values are served as --brand-gradient in the brand's brand.css.

#042c94 #65ccfc #ff9100

Open in the maker PayPal colors →Full brand page →

Source: paypal.com
Extracted: 2 September 2026
Version: 5

PayPal

white text · worst 1.81:1 · fails

white 1.81 failsblack 1.79 failsbanding medium

Hero and button

Hero background

Open in maker →

Chroma ×0.35 so it can carry text; ink white (inkFor at the midpoint). L shifted −0.25 until the ink passes AA at the worst point (4.63:1).

white 4.63 AAblack 1.03 failsbanding medium

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #010316 0%, #5a7989 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#010316] to-[#5a7989]

Button / CTA

Open in maker →

ΔL 0.08 top→bottom in the primary's hue (a lit surface, not a rainbow); hover L +0.03, active L −0.03. White ink passes AA on the surface and both states (worst 8.74:1).

white 9.91 AAblack 1.54 failsbanding high

Get started

hover

active

label ink passes AA on all three

css

linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #0e39a1 0%, #001e87 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-b/oklch from-[#0e39a1] to-[#001e87]

Variants

Tonal ramp

Open in maker →

white 5.35 AAblack 1.11 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #3565d0 0%, #042c94 50%, #01004c 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#3565d0] via-[#042c94] to-[#01004c]

Analogous

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Partner hue from the analogous rule at the source colour's lightness.

white 10.93 AAblack 1.79 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #042c94 0%, #094159 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#042c94] to-[#094159]

Complementary

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the complementary rule at the source colour's lightness. ΔH 179° > 140° — interpolating in oklch (shorter hue) keeps the midpoint saturated.

white 10.27 AAblack 1.79 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklch shorter hue, #042c94 0%, #4c3808 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklch from-[#042c94] to-[#4c3808]

Triadic

Open in maker →

Partner hue from the triadic rule at the source colour's lightness.

white 11.46 AAblack 1.76 failsbanding high

css

linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #042c94 0%, #710c16 100%)

tailwind v4

bg-linear-to-br/oklab from-[#042c94] to-[#710c16]

Report — brand gradient

white ink: worst 1.81:1 at 100% (fails AA); black ink: worst 1.79:1 at 0% (fails AA) → use white text.
Neither ink passes AA at the worst point — treat as decorative or add a scrim (rgba(0,0,0,.35) typically lifts white ink past 4:1).
Banding medium: ~9px bands at 1440px — add grain 18 (≈2% soft-light noise) or shorten the ramp.

Export

The custom properties below are byte-identical to the gradient block in brand.css; the DTCG token is what tokens.json carries.

css custom properties · brand.css

:root {
  /* Brand gradient (derived) */
  /* worst-case contrast: white 1.81:1, black 1.79:1 */
  --brand-gradient: linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #042c94 0%, #65ccfc 100%);
  /* hero — worst-case contrast: white 4.63:1 AA, black 1.03:1; ink passes AA at the worst point */
  --brand-gradient-hero: linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #010316 0%, #5a7989 100%);
  --brand-gradient-hero-ink: #ffffff;
  /* button — worst-case contrast: white 9.91:1 AA, black 1.54:1 */
  --brand-gradient-button: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #0e39a1 0%, #001e87 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-hover: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #1742ab 0%, #022991 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-active: linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #062f97 0%, #00127d 100%);
  --brand-gradient-button-ink: #ffffff;
}

svg · brand gradient

<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="1440" height="600" viewBox="0 0 1440 600"><defs><linearGradient id="bs-gradient" gradientUnits="userSpaceOnUse" x1="210" y1="-210" x2="1230" y2="810"><stop offset="0%" stop-color="#042c94"/><stop offset="7.14%" stop-color="#05399c"/><stop offset="14.29%" stop-color="#0844a3"/><stop offset="21.43%" stop-color="#0e50ab"/><stop offset="28.57%" stop-color="#155bb2"/><stop offset="35.71%" stop-color="#1c66ba"/><stop offset="42.86%" stop-color="#2472c1"/><stop offset="50%" stop-color="#2b7dc9"/><stop offset="57.14%" stop-color="#3388d0"/><stop offset="64.29%" stop-color="#3b93d7"/><stop offset="71.43%" stop-color="#439edf"/><stop offset="78.57%" stop-color="#4caae6"/><stop offset="85.71%" stop-color="#54b5ed"/><stop offset="92.86%" stop-color="#5cc0f5"/><stop offset="100%" stop-color="#65ccfc"/></linearGradient></defs><rect width="1440" height="600" fill="url(#bs-gradient)"/></svg>

dtcg · tokens.json

{
  "gradient": {
    "brand": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.016,
              0.173,
              0.58
            ],
            "hex": "#042c94"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.396,
              0.8,
              0.988
            ],
            "hex": "#65ccfc"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #042c94 0%, #65ccfc 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklab",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "brand",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 1.811,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.793,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "The canonical brand gradient (--brand-gradient)."
    },
    "hero": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.004,
              0.012,
              0.086
            ],
            "hex": "#010316"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.353,
              0.475,
              0.537
            ],
            "hex": "#5a7989"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(135deg in oklab, #010316 0%, #5a7989 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklab",
          "angle": 135,
          "name": "hero",
          "ink": "#ffffff",
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 4.635,
              "at": 1,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.026,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Low-chroma hero background with a text-safe ink (--brand-gradient-hero)."
    },
    "button": {
      "$type": "gradient",
      "$value": [
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0.055,
              0.224,
              0.631
            ],
            "hex": "#0e39a1"
          },
          "position": 0
        },
        {
          "color": {
            "colorSpace": "srgb",
            "components": [
              0,
              0.118,
              0.529
            ],
            "hex": "#001e87"
          },
          "position": 1
        }
      ],
      "$extensions": {
        "com.brandsweets": {
          "kind": "linear",
          "css": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #0e39a1 0%, #001e87 100%)",
          "interpolation": "oklch",
          "hue": "shorter",
          "angle": 180,
          "name": "button",
          "ink": "#ffffff",
          "states": {
            "hover": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #1742ab 0%, #022991 100%)",
            "active": "linear-gradient(180deg in oklch shorter hue, #062f97 0%, #00127d 100%)"
          },
          "contrast": {
            "white": {
              "ratio": 9.912,
              "at": 0,
              "passesAA": true,
              "passesAALarge": true
            },
            "black": {
              "ratio": 1.536,
              "at": 0.9841,
              "passesAA": false,
              "passesAALarge": false
            },
            "suggestedInk": "#ffffff"
          }
        }
      },
      "$description": "Button / CTA surface with hover and active states (--brand-gradient-button)."
    }
  }
}

Colours

#042c94 #65ccfc #ff9100

mcpConnect your agent — PayPal's gradients on demand

live endpoint

Point any MCP client at the shared gradients endpoint and your agent gets the same engine as this page — make_gradient returns CSS with the interpolation space, Tailwind v4, SVG, a PNG URL, a DTCG token and the contrast report in one call; brand_gradients derives the whole contact sheet from a brand or a palette. Read-only, no key. Every gradient is a /gradients/new/… link: open it, refine, paste it back.

endpointhttps://mcp.brandsweets.com/gradients/mcp

claude mcp add --transport http brandsweets-gradients https://mcp.brandsweets.com/gradients/mcp

try this prompt

›brand_gradients for paypal-com — give me the hero CSS and the ink that passes AA, then a version in oklch

Want the agent to remember your picks and write them into a living brand? Create a free BrandSweets workspace.

PayPal and its marks belong to their owner. This page uses the name nominatively to describe gradients derived from the brand's published colour values; it does not reproduce logos or other brand assets, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by PayPal. Owner of this brand? Request a correction or removal → Machine-readable: gradients.md