The Economist color palette
MediaThe Economist uses a bold, instantly recognizable red as its primary brand color, complemented by a restrained palette of black, white, and neutral grays for clarity and authority. The color system reflects the publication's reputation for seriousness and global influence.
economist.comThe Economist colors
Click any swatch to copy its hex. Hover for RGB and HSL.
Brand colors
The colors people recognise.- Economist RedPrimary227, 18, 11
- Economist BlackSecondary0, 0, 0
- Economist WhiteAccent255, 255, 255
Surfaces
Page, cards and dividers.- Economist Light GrayBackground245, 245, 245
- Economist Surface WhiteSurface255, 255, 255
- Economist Border GrayBorder217, 217, 214
Text
Three tiers of copy.- Economist CharcoalText34, 34, 34
- Economist Medium GraySecondary text102, 102, 102
- Economist Muted GrayMuted text153, 153, 153
Semantic
Feedback and state colors.- Economist Success GreenSuccess0, 128, 96
- Economist Warning YellowWarning229, 161, 0
- Economist Error RedError184, 0, 0
- Economist Info BlueInfo0, 87, 184
Use The Economist's colors in your project
Pick a format, copy or download. Everything below is generated from the exact hex values above.
the-economist-palette-colors.css · Paste into your global stylesheet.
:root {
--info: #0057B8;
--error: #B80000;
--accent: #FFFFFF;
--border: #D9D9D6;
--primary: #E3120B;
--success: #008060;
--surface: #FFFFFF;
--warning: #E5A100;
--secondary: #000000;
--text-muted: #999999;
--background: #F5F5F5;
--text-primary: #222222;
--text-secondary: #666666;
}Contrast and accessibility
Every text tone tested against every surface, per WCAG 2.1.
Text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
14.6:1
Pass
Text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
15.9:1
Pass
Secondary text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.3:1
Pass
Secondary text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.7:1
Pass
Muted text on background
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.6:1
Fail
Muted text on surface
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.8:1
Fail
The Economist gray and neutral colors
The quiet part of the The Economist palette: page background, card surfaces, dividers and the three text tones that sit on them. Click a value to copy it.
- Economist Light GrayBackground
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- Economist Surface WhiteSurface
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- Economist Border GrayBorder
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- Economist CharcoalText
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- Economist Medium GraySecondary text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- Economist Muted GrayMuted text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
About The Economist's colors
The Economist's palette is dominated by a signature red, supported by a neutral spectrum of black, white, and grays to ensure readability and authority. The use of color is minimal and purposeful, reinforcing the brand's serious tone.
Red contrasts sharply with white and black for high visibility.
Grays provide hierarchy and structure in UI elements.
Accent colors are reserved for semantic cues and highlights.
Psychology
Red conveys urgency, importance, and draws immediate attention, fitting for a global news publication. The neutral tones communicate trust, professionalism, and clarity.
Evolution
The Economist's red has been consistent for decades, maintaining strong brand recognition. The supporting palette of neutrals has evolved slightly for digital clarity but remains stable.
Where The Economist uses each color
- Primary
Economist Red is used in the logo, primary buttons, and key highlights across print and digital platforms.
- Secondary
Economist Black is used for navigation bars, headlines, and key UI elements.
- Accent
Economist White is used for backgrounds, negative space, and text contrast.
- Backgrounds
Economist Light Gray is used for page backgrounds and content sections.
- Text
Economist Charcoal and Medium Gray are used for body text and secondary information.
- Semantic
Success Green, Warning Yellow, Error Red, and Info Blue are used for alerts, notifications, and status indicators.
The Economist color questions
Hex codes, RGB values, neutrals and how to use the palette.
The official Economist brand red is #E3120B. This color is used in the logo and for primary highlights.
Economist Red (#E3120B) is RGB(227, 18, 11) and CMYK(0, 92, 95, 11). These values ensure color consistency in print and digital.
The Economist uses #222222 (Economist Charcoal), #666666 (Medium Gray), #999999 (Muted Gray), and #F5F5F5 (Light Gray) for UI and text. These grays provide structure and readability.
Use Economist Red (#E3120B) for primary actions and branding, with neutrals for backgrounds and text. Semantic colors are reserved for alerts and notifications.
The secondary color is Economist Black, #000000, and the accent is Economist White, #FFFFFF. Together with the primary they make up the three brand colors at the top of this page.
4 of 6 text and background pairings meet WCAG 2.1 AA contrast. The contrast section above shows every pairing with its exact ratio.
Use the export block on this page. It gives you CSS custom properties, a Tailwind config, W3C design tokens or a shadcn/ui theme built from these exact hex values, with copy and download buttons.
Yes. Export the Claude Code skill, Cursor rules or Codex prompt from the same block. The agent then applies The Economist's colors consistently when it generates UI.
Make something in the spirit of The Economist
Start from this palette's mood and get an original 13-color system for your own project, contrast-checked and ready to export.