The Wall Street Journal color palette
MediaThe Wall Street Journal's color identity is defined by a restrained, monochromatic palette that emphasizes authority, clarity, and timelessness, anchored by black and neutral grays. The brand avoids bold accent colors, focusing on classic tones that reinforce its journalistic credibility.
wsj.comThe Wall Street Journal colors
Click any swatch to copy its hex. Hover for RGB and HSL.
Brand colors
The colors people recognise.- WSJ BlackPrimary0, 0, 0
- WSJ CharcoalSecondary51, 51, 51
- WSJ GoldAccent179, 163, 105
Surfaces
Page, cards and dividers.- WSJ WhiteBackground255, 255, 255
- WSJ Light GraySurface245, 245, 245
- WSJ Border GrayBorder224, 224, 224
Text
Three tiers of copy.- WSJ BlackText0, 0, 0
- WSJ Medium GraySecondary text102, 102, 102
- WSJ Muted GrayMuted text153, 153, 153
Semantic
Feedback and state colors.- WSJ GreenSuccess58, 125, 52
- WSJ OrangeWarning217, 130, 43
- WSJ RedError179, 38, 30
- WSJ BlueInfo39, 110, 241
Use The Wall Street Journal's colors in your project
Pick a format, copy or download. Everything below is generated from the exact hex values above.
the-wall-street-journal-palette-colors.css · Paste into your global stylesheet.
:root {
--info: #276EF1;
--error: #B3261E;
--accent: #B3A369;
--border: #E0E0E0;
--primary: #000000;
--success: #3A7D34;
--surface: #F5F5F5;
--warning: #D9822B;
--secondary: #333333;
--text-muted: #999999;
--background: #FFFFFF;
--text-primary: #000000;
--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
21.0:1
Pass
Text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
19.3:1
Pass
Secondary text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.7:1
Pass
Secondary text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
5.3:1
Pass
Muted text on background
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.8:1
Fail
Muted text on surface
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.6:1
Fail
The Wall Street Journal gray and neutral colors
The quiet part of the The Wall Street Journal palette: page background, card surfaces, dividers and the three text tones that sit on them. Click a value to copy it.
- WSJ WhiteBackground
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- WSJ Light GraySurface
- HEX
- RGB
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- WSJ Border GrayBorder
- HEX
- RGB
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- WSJ BlackText
- HEX
- RGB
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- WSJ Medium GraySecondary text
- HEX
- RGB
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- WSJ Muted GrayMuted text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
About The Wall Street Journal's colors
WSJ's palette is built on a foundation of black and white, with subtle grays and a muted gold accent. This minimalism supports readability and a sense of trustworthiness.
Primary black contrasts with white backgrounds for maximum legibility.
Grays provide hierarchy and separation between elements.
Gold accent is reserved for highlights and premium features.
Psychology
The black and gray tones evoke seriousness, professionalism, and reliability, aligning with the brand's journalistic mission. Gold adds a touch of prestige without overwhelming the neutral base.
Evolution
The Wall Street Journal's color palette has remained largely unchanged over the years, maintaining its classic monochrome identity. Minor adjustments to gray tones and the gold accent have modernized the interface while preserving tradition.
Where The Wall Street Journal uses each color
- Primary
WSJ Black is used for the logo, headlines, and primary navigation elements.
- Secondary
WSJ Charcoal appears in subheadings, secondary navigation, and UI controls.
- Accent
WSJ Gold is used sparingly for highlights, subscription prompts, and premium indicators.
- Backgrounds
WSJ White and WSJ Light Gray are used for page backgrounds and content surfaces.
- Text
WSJ Black, Medium Gray, and Muted Gray are used for primary, secondary, and muted text respectively.
- Semantic
WSJ Green, Orange, Red, and Blue are used for status indicators, alerts, and informational tags.
The Wall Street Journal color questions
Hex codes, RGB values, neutrals and how to use the palette.
The primary brand color for The Wall Street Journal is black, hex code #000000.
WSJ Black is #000000, which is RGB(0,0,0) and CMYK(0,0,0,100).
WSJ uses several grays: Charcoal (#333333), Medium Gray (#666666), Muted Gray (#999999), Border Gray (#E0E0E0), and Light Gray (#F5F5F5).
Use black for primary elements and text, grays for hierarchy and backgrounds, and gold only for subtle highlights or premium features. Semantic colors should be reserved for status or alert messaging.
The secondary color is WSJ Charcoal, #333333, and the accent is WSJ Gold, #B3A369. 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 Wall Street Journal's colors consistently when it generates UI.
Make something in the spirit of The Wall Street Journal
Start from this palette's mood and get an original 13-color system for your own project, contrast-checked and ready to export.