# Claude — Design Reference

> A literary serif on warm ivory paper, inked in near-black

**Theme:** light · **Measured from:** claude.com (English, 1440 px)

Claude looks like a well-made book. The canvas is a warm ivory (`#faf9f5`), never white, and every gray leans warm (`#5e5d59`, `#87867f`, `#d1cfc5`). Headlines are a light serif — the hero is 56px at weight 330 — and everything else is a quiet sans. The only action color is near-black Ink `#141413`: filled buttons are Ink with ivory text, secondary buttons are ivory with a warm hairline. The clay orange (`#d97757`) is the logo spark and almost nothing else. Corners are soft but not bubbly (8–10px on buttons, 24–32px on cards), shadows are so faint they read as a glow, and photography is warm, documentary and human. The page is calm, centered and unhurried.

## Colors

| Name | Hex | Role |
|------|-----|------|
| Ink | `#141413` | Headings, primary text, primary buttons, footer band |
| Ivory | `#faf9f5` | Page canvas; text on Ink |
| Charcoal | `#30302e` | Secondary foreground; borders on the dark footer |
| Stone | `#5e5d59` | Body copy, descriptions |
| Pebble | `#87867f` | Captions, fine print, footer column labels |
| Dust | `#b0aea5` | Muted text on the dark footer |
| Oat Line | `#d1cfc5` | Borders of secondary buttons and the sign-in card |
| Parchment | `#f0eee6` | Hairline dividers, toggle track |
| Sand | `#e8e6dc` | Tonal secondary button fill |
| White | `#ffffff` | Pricing cards, selected toggle segment |
| Clay | `#d97757` | Logo spark and rare accents |
| Clay Deep | `#c6613f` | Interactive clay (footer send button) |
| Night | `#262624` | Input surface on the footer |

**Warm, not neutral:** every gray carries a little yellow. Never swap in cool or pure grays (`#666`, `#eee`), and never use `#ffffff` as the page background — white is only for cards sitting on ivory.

## Typography

Two proprietary families. **anthropicSerif** for headlines — substitute **Source Serif 4** (300/400/500). **anthropicSans** for body and UI — substitute **DM Sans** (400/500/600).

- The hero headline is the lightest thing on the page: serif **330** at 56px. Section titles step up to **500** at 52px.
- Serif also carries the hero subline ("Your thinking partner for big ambitions"), plan names ("Free", "Pro", "Max") and FAQ questions.
- Sans is **400** for reading, **500** for buttons, **600** only for prices and bold labels.
- Body runs at a roomy 1.6 line height. No negative tracking anywhere.

| Role | Size | Weight | Line height | Letter spacing |
|------|------|--------|-------------|----------------|
| Display (serif) | 56px | 330 | 1.15 | 0 |
| Heading (serif) | 52px | 500 | 1.2 | 0 |
| Heading small (serif) | 32px | 500 | 1.1 | 0 |
| Price (sans) | 24px | 600 | 1.6 | 0 |
| Subheading (serif) | 19px | 500 | 1.2 | 0 |
| Question (serif) | 18px | 400 | 1.375 | 0 |
| Body large | 17px | 400 | 1.6 | 0 |
| Body | 15px | 400 | 1.6 | 0 |
| Button | 15px | 500 | 1 | 0 |
| Caption | 12px | 400 | 1.6 | 0.12px |

## Shape and spacing

- **Buttons:** 8px radius (nav and card buttons, 36px tall); 9.6px on the large 44px buttons.
- **Cards:** 24px on pricing cards; 32px on the sign-in card.
- **Tags and footer controls:** 12px.
- **Base unit:** 8px. Scale: 4, 8, 12, 16, 24, 32, 48, 64, 128.
- **Content width:** 1312px; reading blocks (FAQ) narrow to about 660px.
- **Section gap:** about 128px.

## Components

### Primary button
Ink `#141413` fill, Ivory `#faf9f5` text, 8px radius, padding `8px 16px` (36px tall), sans 500 at 15px. No shadow. Label: "Try Claude". The large version is 44px tall, padding `8px 20px`, 9.6px radius, 17px — "Continue with email".

### Secondary button
Ivory fill, Ink text, 1px `#d1cfc5` border, 9.6px radius, 44px tall, sans 400 at 17px, often with an icon on the left (Google "G", Windows logo). Labels: "Continue with Google", "Download desktop app". In the nav, "Contact sales" uses the same outline at 8px radius and 36px.

### Navigation
Transparent over ivory, no bottom border. Logo (clay spark + serif "Claude" wordmark) on the left. Right side: sans 15px items in Charcoal with small chevrons (Product, Developers, Enterprise, Resources, Pricing), "Login" as plain text, then "Contact sales" outline and "Try Claude" filled.

### Sign-in card
Ivory card, 1px Oat Line border, 32px radius, 28px padding, soft layered shadow. Inside: the Google button, a tiny "OR", the Ink email button, and 12px Pebble legal text with underlined links.

### Pricing card
White card on ivory, 24px radius, thin warm border. A small line-drawn botanical pictogram at top, serif 32px plan name, 15px Stone tagline, 24px weight-600 price, a full-width Ink "Try Claude" button, then a checkmark list in 14–15px Stone. The recommended card (Max) gets a faint blue glow `0 4px 20px rgba(98,158,218,.16)` instead of a badge.

### Segmented toggle
Parchment track, fully rounded, with a white selected segment; 12px labels ("Individual", "Team and Enterprise"). Centered above the pricing cards.

### FAQ accordion
Centered column ~660px wide. Each row: serif question at 18px in Ink, a thin `+` on the right, separated by Parchment hairlines.

### Footer
Full-width Ink band. Large clay-spark + serif wordmark, a dark prompt input ("How can I help you today?") on Night `#262624` with a Clay Deep send button, then five link columns: 12px Pebble labels, 12px Ivory links.

## Do

- Use ivory `#faf9f5` as the canvas and keep every gray warm.
- Set headlines in a light serif; let the hero be the lightest weight.
- Make Ink the only filled-button color.
- Pair a filled Ink button with an ivory outline button.
- Keep clay orange to the logo and tiny accents.
- Use warm, documentary photography with rounded corners.

## Don't

- Don't use pure white backgrounds or cool grays.
- Don't fill buttons with clay orange.
- Don't use bold sans headlines; headlines are serif.
- Don't use heavy shadows; keep them barely visible.
- Don't make buttons pills or square — 8–10px.
- Don't add gradients or saturated color blocks.

## Layout

Two-column hero: left half centered text — the 56px serif headline, a 19px serif subline, the sign-in card, and the "Download desktop app" button below; right half a tall warm photo with 16px-ish rounded corners filling to the content edge. Then centered sections: a 52px serif title ("Explore plans"), the segmented toggle, a three-column row of pricing cards, a fine-print line, then the narrow FAQ. Ends with the dark Ink footer.

## Agent prompt guide

- Text: `#141413` · Body: `#5e5d59` · Captions: `#87867f`
- Canvas: `#faf9f5` · Cards: `#ffffff` · Borders: `#d1cfc5` · Hairlines: `#f0eee6`
- Action: `#141413` (ivory label) · Accent: `#d97757` (logo only)

Example prompts:

1. "Primary button: background #141413, text #faf9f5, 8px radius, padding 8px 16px, 36px tall, DM Sans 500 15px, no shadow. Secondary: background #faf9f5, text #141413, 1px #d1cfc5 border, 9.6px radius, 44px tall, 17px weight 400."
2. "Hero title: Source Serif 4 weight 300 at 56px, line-height 1.15, color #141413, centered, on a #faf9f5 page; below it a 19px serif weight 500 subline."
3. "Pricing card: white on #faf9f5, 24px radius, 1px #f0eee6 border; line-drawn icon, serif 32px plan name, 24px weight-600 price, full-width #141413 button, checklist in 15px #5e5d59."

## Quick start

### CSS variables

```css
:root {
  /* Colors */
  --color-ink: #141413;
  --color-ivory: #faf9f5;
  --color-charcoal: #30302e;
  --color-stone: #5e5d59;
  --color-pebble: #87867f;
  --color-dust: #b0aea5;
  --color-oat-line: #d1cfc5;
  --color-parchment: #f0eee6;
  --color-sand: #e8e6dc;
  --color-white: #ffffff;
  --color-clay: #d97757;
  --color-clay-deep: #c6613f;
  --color-night: #262624;

  /* Fonts */
  --font-serif: 'anthropicSerif', 'Source Serif', ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
  --font-sans: 'anthropicSans', 'DM Sans', ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;

  /* Type scale */
  --text-display: 56px;
  --text-display--line-height: 1.15;
  --text-display--font-weight: 330;
  --text-heading: 52px;
  --text-heading--line-height: 1.2;
  --text-heading--font-weight: 500;
  --text-heading-sm: 32px;
  --text-heading-sm--line-height: 1.1;
  --text-heading-sm--font-weight: 500;
  --text-price: 24px;
  --text-price--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-price--font-weight: 600;
  --text-subheading: 19px;
  --text-subheading--line-height: 1.2;
  --text-subheading--font-weight: 500;
  --text-question: 18px;
  --text-question--line-height: 1.375;
  --text-question--font-weight: 400;
  --text-body-lg: 17px;
  --text-body-lg--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-body-lg--font-weight: 400;
  --text-body: 15px;
  --text-body--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-body--font-weight: 400;
  --text-button: 15px;
  --text-button--line-height: 1;
  --text-button--font-weight: 500;
  --text-caption: 12px;
  --text-caption--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-caption--letter-spacing: 0.12px;
  --text-caption--font-weight: 400;

  /* Radius */
  --radius-buttons: 8px;
  --radius-inputs: 9.6px;
  --radius-cards: 24px;
  --radius-tags: 12px;

  /* Spacing */
  --spacing: 8px;

  /* Shadows */
  --shadow-soft-card: 0 4px 24px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.016), 0 4px 32px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.016), 0 2px 64px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.01);
  --shadow-highlight: 0 4px 20px rgba(98, 158, 218, 0.16);

  /* Layout */
  --container-page: 1312px;
}
```

### Tailwind v4

```css
@theme {
  /* Colors */
  --color-ink: #141413;
  --color-ivory: #faf9f5;
  --color-charcoal: #30302e;
  --color-stone: #5e5d59;
  --color-pebble: #87867f;
  --color-dust: #b0aea5;
  --color-oat-line: #d1cfc5;
  --color-parchment: #f0eee6;
  --color-sand: #e8e6dc;
  --color-white: #ffffff;
  --color-clay: #d97757;
  --color-clay-deep: #c6613f;
  --color-night: #262624;

  /* Fonts */
  --font-serif: 'anthropicSerif', 'Source Serif', ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
  --font-sans: 'anthropicSans', 'DM Sans', ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;

  /* Type scale */
  --text-display: 56px;
  --text-display--line-height: 1.15;
  --text-display--font-weight: 330;
  --text-heading: 52px;
  --text-heading--line-height: 1.2;
  --text-heading--font-weight: 500;
  --text-heading-sm: 32px;
  --text-heading-sm--line-height: 1.1;
  --text-heading-sm--font-weight: 500;
  --text-price: 24px;
  --text-price--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-price--font-weight: 600;
  --text-subheading: 19px;
  --text-subheading--line-height: 1.2;
  --text-subheading--font-weight: 500;
  --text-question: 18px;
  --text-question--line-height: 1.375;
  --text-question--font-weight: 400;
  --text-body-lg: 17px;
  --text-body-lg--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-body-lg--font-weight: 400;
  --text-body: 15px;
  --text-body--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-body--font-weight: 400;
  --text-button: 15px;
  --text-button--line-height: 1;
  --text-button--font-weight: 500;
  --text-caption: 12px;
  --text-caption--line-height: 1.6;
  --text-caption--letter-spacing: 0.12px;
  --text-caption--font-weight: 400;

  /* Radius */
  --radius-buttons: 8px;
  --radius-inputs: 9.6px;
  --radius-cards: 24px;
  --radius-tags: 12px;

  /* Spacing */
  --spacing: 8px;

  /* Shadows */
  --shadow-soft-card: 0 4px 24px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.016), 0 4px 32px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.016), 0 2px 64px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.01);
  --shadow-highlight: 0 4px 20px rgba(98, 158, 218, 0.16);

  /* Layout */
  --container-page: 1312px;
}
```

---

*Measured from https://claude.com/ on 2026-10-28 by Faundr. Inspired by Claude; not its official design system and not affiliated with Claude.*