The New York Times color palette
MediaThe New York Times brand color system is defined by a classic, monochromatic palette centered on black and grayscale tones, reflecting its heritage and authority in journalism. The restrained use of color emphasizes clarity, legibility, and timelessness.
nytimes.comThe New York Times colors
Click any swatch to copy its hex. Hover for RGB and HSL.
Brand colors
The colors people recognise.- NYT BlackPrimary0, 0, 0
- NYT WhiteSecondary255, 255, 255
- NYT BlueAccent50, 104, 145
Surfaces
Page, cards and dividers.- NYT Light GrayBackground248, 248, 245
- NYT Surface GraySurface242, 242, 239
- NYT Border GrayBorder226, 226, 223
Text
Three tiers of copy.- NYT Text BlackText18, 18, 18
- NYT Text GraySecondary text102, 102, 102
- NYT Muted GrayMuted text160, 160, 160
Semantic
Feedback and state colors.- NYT GreenSuccess75, 166, 79
- NYT YellowWarning226, 181, 52
- NYT RedError192, 57, 43
- NYT BlueInfo50, 104, 145
Use The New York Times's colors in your project
Pick a format, copy or download. Everything below is generated from the exact hex values above.
the-new-york-times-palette-colors.css · Paste into your global stylesheet.
:root {
--info: #326891;
--error: #C0392B;
--accent: #326891;
--border: #E2E2DF;
--primary: #000000;
--success: #4BA64F;
--surface: #F2F2EF;
--warning: #E2B534;
--secondary: #FFFFFF;
--text-muted: #A0A0A0;
--background: #F8F8F5;
--text-primary: #121212;
--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
17.6:1
Pass
Text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
16.7:1
Pass
Secondary text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.4:1
Pass
Secondary text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.1:1
Pass
Muted text on background
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.5:1
Fail
Muted text on surface
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.3:1
Fail
The New York Times background, border and text colors
The quiet part of the The New York Times palette: page background, card surfaces, dividers and the three text tones that sit on them. Click a value to copy it.
- NYT Light GrayBackground
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- NYT Surface GraySurface
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- NYT Border GrayBorder
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- NYT Text BlackText
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- NYT Text GraySecondary text
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- NYT Muted GrayMuted text
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About The New York Times's colors
The New York Times uses a monochromatic palette with subtle blue and accent colors to maintain a sense of seriousness and trust. The restrained color use supports readability and a timeless editorial feel.
Primary black contrasts with white and light grays for clarity.
Accent blue is used sparingly for links and highlights.
Neutral grays define structure and hierarchy.
Psychology
Black and white convey authority, tradition, and reliability, reinforcing the brand's journalistic integrity. Blue accents add a touch of trust and modernity without distracting from content.
Evolution
The palette has remained largely stable for decades, with only minor adjustments to gray values and the introduction of blue for digital contexts. The focus has always been on legibility and minimalism.
Where The New York Times uses each color
- Primary
NYT Black is used for the logo, headlines, and primary navigation elements.
- Secondary
NYT White serves as the main background for articles and pages.
- Accent
NYT Blue highlights links, buttons, and interactive elements.
- Backgrounds
NYT Light Gray and Surface Gray provide subtle differentiation for content sections and cards.
- Text
Text Black and Text Gray are used for body copy, bylines, and metadata.
- Semantic
NYT Green, Yellow, and Red are used for status indicators, alerts, and notifications.
The New York Times color questions
Hex codes, RGB values, neutrals and how to use the palette.
The primary brand color for The New York Times is NYT Black, hex code #000000.
NYT Black is #000000, which is RGB(0, 0, 0) and CMYK(0, 0, 0, 100).
The New York Times uses NYT Light Gray (#F8F8F5), NYT Surface Gray (#F2F2EF), NYT Border Gray (#E2E2DF), NYT Text Gray (#666666), and NYT Muted Gray (#A0A0A0) throughout its UI.
Use NYT Black and White for core structure, blue for links and calls to action, and grays for backgrounds and secondary elements. Accent and semantic colors should be used sparingly to maintain the brand's classic, minimal aesthetic.
The secondary color is NYT White, #FFFFFF, and the accent is NYT Blue, #326891. 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 New York Times's colors consistently when it generates UI.
Make something in the spirit of The New York Times
Start from this palette's mood and get an original 13-color system for your own project, contrast-checked and ready to export.