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Chocolate color guide

HEX

#7B3F00

RGB

123, 63, 0

HSL

31°, 100%, 24%

HSV

31°, 100%, 48%

Brown with dessert gravity — rich, mouth-watering, and a little indulgent even as a flat swatch. #7B3F00 suggests depth the way actual cocoa suggests intensity. It can feel luxurious or heavy depending on contrast.

Best for

Consulting deliverables, strategy documents, and data-driven layouts.

Accessibility

White text on chocolate passes AAA at 8.22:1, so it is safe for dark backgrounds and section headers.

Chocolate color swatch — #7B3F00

How does chocolate compare to nearby colors?

What is the difference between chocolate and mahogany?

The visible difference between Chocolate (#7B3F00) and Mahogany (#C04000) is subtle, but it still nudges the family from coffee, leather, and wood toward warm wood. Chocolate can take on dark-panel, cover, and anchor duties that Mahogany cannot handle as comfortably once real text and interface elements are added. Choose chocolate when the surrounding system aligns better with hospitality, food, and grounded heritage brands, and move to mahogany when the stronger contextual fit is outdoor, food, and lifestyle systems.

What color is chocolate?

Chocolate brown is ubiquitous in confectionery packaging, bakery branding, and premium leather goods marketing. In interiors it often appears in traditional wood stains.

What is the hex code for chocolate?

FormatValue
HEX#7B3F00
RGBrgb(123, 63, 0)
HSLhsl(31°, 100%, 24%)
HSV / HSBhsv(31°, 100%, 48%)
CMYK (approx.)cmyk(0%, 49%, 100%, 52%)

Convert Chocolate to other color formats

Open the color converter with Chocolate (#7B3F00) prefilled to copy RGB, HSL, HSV, CMYK, or OKLCH values.

Convert Chocolate in the color converter

What does chocolate mean in design?

Chocolate is often associated with comfort, reward, and sensual richness. Compared with mahogany it is usually less red; compared with chestnut it can read deeper and less "autumn leaf."

How do I use chocolate in code?

CSS (hex)color: #7B3F00;
CSS (rgb)color: rgb(123, 63, 0);
CSS (hsl)color: hsl(31, 100%, 24%);
RGB %rgb(48%, 25%, 0%)
Tailwindtext-[#7B3F00]
SwiftUIColor(red: 0.482, green: 0.247, blue: 0.000)
UIKitUIColor(red: 0.482, green: 0.247, blue: 0.000, alpha: 1.0)
AndroidColor.rgb(123, 63, 0)
ComposeColor(0xFF7B3F00)
Web Safe#663300

Is chocolate accessible?

CombinationRatioAAAA lgAAAAAA lgUI
AaWhite text on this color8.22:1
AaBlack text on this color2.55:1
AaThis color as text on white8.22:1
AaThis color as text on black2.55:1

WCAG 2.1: AA normal ≥ 4.5:1, AA large text ≥ 3:1, AAA normal ≥ 7:1, AAA large ≥ 4.5:1, UI components ≥ 3:1.

How does chocolate look with color blindness?

Normal vision#7B3F00
Protanopia (red-blind)#61600F
Deuteranopia (green-blind)#656913
Tritanopia (blue-blind)#781B1E
Achromatopsia (total color blindness)#474747

Simulated appearance for common types of color vision deficiency. Actual perception varies by individual.

What colors go with chocolate

#FFFFFF
White

White gives chocolate the clean edge contrast it needs, so dark panels, labels, and type stay readable instead of sinking into the color.

#000080
Navy Blue

Navy blue gives chocolate a cooler anchor that keeps the palette from turning too sepia or overly heritage-coded.

#FFFDD0
Cream

With a vivid chocolate, cream is gentler than white, so the palette keeps warmth and avoids looking overlit.

#36454F
Charcoal

When chocolate is already bright, charcoal absorbs some of the visual heat and keeps the combination closer to hospitality, food, and grounded heritage brands than to novelty graphics.

#BCB88A
Sage Green

Sage Green helps chocolate feel more complete in practice because the pairing combines coffee, leather, and wood qualities with sage and moss support instead of leaving the source color to do every job alone.

What colors clash with chocolate

#39FF14
Neon Green

Neon Green makes chocolate feel cheaper and less material, which is exactly the opposite of what these grounded colors usually contribute.

#FF00FF
Magenta

With chocolate, magenta introduces a second emotional story instead of reinforcing the first one, so the palette can feel internally split.

#00FFFF
Cyan

Cyan can make chocolate feel more software-default than designed, especially when the rest of the palette is trying to hold onto material nuance.

#FFD1DC
Pastel Pink

Pastel Pink can make chocolate feel softer and sweeter than intended, which weakens palettes that rely on gravity or structure.

How should I use chocolate in design?

  • Try chocolate as your primary dark value instead of black — it adds character and warmth while still providing strong contrast for readability.
  • Pair chocolate with cool accents (navy, sage, steel blue) for sharp contrast, or keep it with other warm tones (cream, gold, tan) for a cohesive, editorial feel.
  • Chocolate's depth makes it effective for premium packaging, dark-mode interfaces, and editorial layouts that need gravitas without defaulting to black.

What are good chocolate palettes?

Onyx foundation

Consulting deliverables, strategy documents, and data-driven layouts.

Simple clarity

One-pagers, brochures, and lifestyle brand packaging.

Executive highlight

SaaS dashboards, admin panels, and professional UI themes.

Design with chocolate in Moda

Create a presentation or document using chocolate as your accent color. Moda's AI applies your color palette automatically.

Create a design with chocolate

What are the shades and tints of chocolate?

Shades (darker)

Tints (lighter)

Tones (desaturated)

Hue variations

What are the color harmonies for chocolate?

Harmonies are calculated from the base swatch. When a harmony matches a named color page, it links there; otherwise it appears here as a computed reference swatch.

Complementary
Dark Blue#003B7AComputed
Analogous
Dark Yellow#787A00ComputedDark Red#7A0200Computed
Triadic
Dark Cyan#007A3FComputedDark Purple#3F007AComputed
Split-complementary
Dark Cyan#00787AComputedDark Blue#02007AComputed
Monochromatic
Dark Orange#663500ComputedOrange#CC6900ComputedOrange#FF9C33ComputedLight Orange#FFCE99Computed
Square
Dark Green#007A02ComputedDark Blue#003B7AComputedDark Purple#7A0078Computed

Frequently asked questions

What is the hex code for chocolate?

The hex code for chocolate is #7B3F00. In RGB, that's 123 red, 63 green, and 0 blue. The approximate CMYK equivalent is 0% cyan, 49% magenta, 100% yellow, and 52% key (black).

Is chocolate a warm or cool color?

Chocolate sits on the warm side of the palette, so it pairs easily with other warm tones and becomes more energetic when you place it against cooler blues or blue-grays.

Should chocolate lead the palette or stay in supporting roles?

Chocolate has enough chroma to take the lead, but it usually performs best when the surrounding system stays quieter. Treat it as the voice of emphasis, not the answer to every layout need.

Where does chocolate work best in a layout?

Chocolate has enough depth to anchor a layout while still reading as a color, which makes it useful for dark section blocks, headlines, and heavier accents.

Is chocolate accessible?

Chocolate is strong enough for white text at 8.22:1 contrast, so it can handle dark panels, tags, and section headers without much trouble. As text on white, though, it is usually better reserved for larger headings or short accents than for long paragraphs.

Last updated April 6, 2026

Color values are computed from the listed hex code using standard conversion formulas. RGB, HSL, and HSV are exact screen-ready conversions. CMYK is an approximate on-screen reference, not a press-ready print specification. Pairings, palettes, and use-case guidance are heuristic recommendations derived from color relationships, contrast behavior, and common presentation, document, and UI patterns.