Question 1

What is a HEX color code?

Accepted Answer

A HEX (hexadecimal) color code is a 6-digit code used to represent colors in web design and CSS. It starts with # followed by three pairs of hex digits representing red, green, and blue values (00–FF, equivalent to 0–255). For example, #FF0000 is pure red, #0000FF is pure blue, and #FFFFFF is white.

Question 2

How are colors organized in the HEX Color Explorer?

Accepted Answer

Colors are organized into 25 hue families (Red, Rose, Pink, Fuchsia, Purple, Violet, Indigo, Blue, Azure, Sky, Cyan, Teal, Mint, Emerald, Green, Lime, Chartreuse, Yellow, Gold, Amber, Orange, Coral, Slate, Zinc, Stone) and 20 shade levels (25–900). Click any swatch to open its full detail page with HEX, RGB, HSL, HSB, OKLCH, CMYK, WCAG accessibility, harmonies, and tint scale.

Question 3

What is the difference between hue, saturation, and lightness?

Accepted Answer

Hue is the base color on the color wheel (0°=red, 120°=green, 240°=blue). Saturation measures how vivid a color is (0%=grey, 100%=fully saturated). Lightness measures how bright or dark a color is (0%=black, 50%=pure color, 100%=white). Together, HSL provides an intuitive way to describe and manipulate colors for design.

Question 4

What do the shade numbers (25–900) mean?

Accepted Answer

Shade numbers indicate brightness: 25 is the lightest (nearly white tint of the hue), 100–300 are light pastel shades, 400–600 are mid-range saturated shades, 650–900 are dark shades. The 500 shade is typically the most "pure" or vivid version of a color. This numeric scale makes it easy to build consistent design tokens and color systems.

Question 5

How do I convert a HEX code to RGB or HSL?

Accepted Answer

HEX to RGB: split the 6-digit code into three pairs and convert each from hex to decimal (e.g. #FF6B6B → R=255, G=107, B=107). HEX to HSL requires further math: normalize RGB values, find min/max, then compute hue, saturation, and lightness. Use our HEX → RGB converter tool for instant conversions with one click.

Question 6

How can I use these HEX colors in CSS?

Accepted Answer

Use HEX codes directly in any CSS color property: color: #3B82F6; background-color: #ECFDF5; border: 1px solid #E2E8F0. You can also use HSL notation: color: hsl(220, 90%, 52%) or CSS custom properties: --color-primary: #3B82F6. For design systems, define a color scale in :root and reference variables throughout your stylesheets.

Question 7

How many colors are in the HEX Color Explorer?

Accepted Answer

The explorer contains 500 curated colors: 25 hue families × 20 shade levels (25–900). Each color is generated from carefully tuned HSL values to create a harmonious, consistent palette. Click any color to explore all its formats, accessibility ratings, harmonies, and more on its detail page.

HEX Color Explorer

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