FREE Web-Safe Color by Numbers: It's as Easy as RGB!

Converting hexadecimal codes to RGB values, and vice versa, is as easy as 1-2-3 with these FREE CodeOutLoud! color tools.

The hexadecimal number system (or "hex" numbers) used to define browser-safe colors is based on the number 16 (base 16). They are represented using the digits 0 to 9, with their usual meaning, plus the letters A to F (or a to f) to represent hexadecimal digits with values of (decimal) 10 to 15, as shown in the conversion table below:

The following table coverts hexadecimal values to "normal" (decimal) numbers, and vice versa. The right-hand digit of the hexadecimal number counts ones, the left-hand digit counts multiples of 16.

For more information on how to generate web-safe colour values using hexadecimal code, see our FREE Background Color (bgcolor) Selector page.

The values highlighted, in the above table, in mid-gray (hexadecimal numbers 00, 33, 66, 99, CC, and FF) are the only values used in the non-dithering web-safe colors. These are summarized in the following table with their corresponding percentage values.

Did you know…? The term "hexadecimal" was coined in the early 1960s to replace earlier "sexadecimal", which was considered just a little too naughty. (The prefix "sexa-" is Latin, and "hexa-" is Greek.)