TIME color palette
MediaTIME's brand identity centers around its iconic red, paired with a clean white and strong black for contrast. The palette is minimal, reflecting the publication's legacy and authority.
time.comTIME colors
Click any swatch to copy its hex. Hover for RGB and HSL.
Brand colors
The colors people recognise.- TIME RedPrimary233, 6, 6
- TIME WhiteSecondary255, 255, 255
- TIME BlackAccent0, 0, 0
Surfaces
Page, cards and dividers.- TIME Light GrayBackground248, 248, 248
- TIME Surface GraySurface242, 242, 242
- TIME Border GrayBorder224, 224, 224
Text
Three tiers of copy.- TIME CharcoalText34, 34, 34
- TIME Medium GraySecondary text102, 102, 102
- TIME Muted GrayMuted text153, 153, 153
Semantic
Feedback and state colors.- TIME Success GreenSuccess26, 127, 55
- TIME Warning OrangeWarning233, 131, 5
- TIME Error RedError215, 38, 61
- TIME Info BlueInfo25, 118, 210
Use TIME's colors in your project
Pick a format, copy or download. Everything below is generated from the exact hex values above.
time-palette-colors.css · Paste into your global stylesheet.
:root {
--info: #1976D2;
--error: #D7263D;
--accent: #000000;
--border: #E0E0E0;
--primary: #E90606;
--success: #1A7F37;
--surface: #F2F2F2;
--warning: #E98305;
--secondary: #FFFFFF;
--text-muted: #999999;
--background: #F8F8F8;
--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
15.0:1
Pass
Text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
14.2:1
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
2.7:1
Fail
Muted text on surface
Needs 3:1 for large text
2.5:1
Fail
TIME gray and neutral colors
The quiet part of the TIME palette: page background, card surfaces, dividers and the three text tones that sit on them. Click a value to copy it.
- TIME Light GrayBackground
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- TIME Surface GraySurface
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- TIME Border GrayBorder
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- TIME CharcoalText
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- TIME Medium GraySecondary text
- HEX
- RGB
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- TIME Muted GrayMuted text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
About TIME's colors
TIME uses a bold red as its signature color, complemented by neutral whites and grays for clarity and readability. The palette is direct and authoritative, supporting the brand's journalistic mission.
Primary red is contrasted with white for maximum impact.
Black and charcoal provide strong typographic hierarchy.
Grays are used for subtle UI elements and backgrounds.
Psychology
Red conveys urgency, importance, and draws immediate attention, fitting for a news magazine. The neutral tones reinforce trust and seriousness.
Evolution
TIME's red has remained consistent for decades, reinforcing its iconic status. Minor adjustments to gray tones have modernized the UI, but the core palette is stable.
Where TIME uses each color
- Primary
TIME Red is used for the logo, headlines, and key calls-to-action.
- Secondary
TIME White serves as the main background and negative space throughout the site and print.
- Accent
TIME Black is used for navigation, text, and visual anchors.
- Backgrounds
Light and surface grays are used for article backgrounds, cards, and UI panels.
- Text
Charcoal and medium gray are used for primary and secondary text, with muted gray for metadata or less prominent information.
- Semantic
Green, orange, red, and blue are used for status indicators, alerts, and informational highlights in digital products.
TIME color questions
Hex codes, RGB values, neutrals and how to use the palette.
The official TIME brand color is TIME Red, hex code #E90606.
TIME Red is RGB(233, 6, 6) and CMYK(0, 97, 97, 9).
TIME uses a range of grays including TIME Light Gray (#F8F8F8), Surface Gray (#F2F2F2), Border Gray (#E0E0E0), and Charcoal (#222222) for UI and text.
TIME Red should be reserved for the logo, headlines, and key actions, while neutrals and black support readability and structure. Semantic colors are used sparingly for alerts and status.
The secondary color is TIME White, #FFFFFF, and the accent is TIME Black, #000000. 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 TIME's colors consistently when it generates UI.
Make something in the spirit of TIME
Start from this palette's mood and get an original 13-color system for your own project, contrast-checked and ready to export.