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blue · cool

#8a87b5

a balanced, soft blue · cool · closest name: Medium Purple

Token name suggestion: Studio Sapphire

RGB
138, 135, 181
HSL
244°, 24%, 62%
CMYK
24, 25, 0, 29
Luminance
0.2607

#8a87b5 is a balanced soft blue, 244° on the wheel and 71/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (6.21:1). As text it scores 3.38:1 on white — large text only. Nearest name is Medium Purple, nearest Tailwind family is slate.

hsl(244 24% 62%)rgb(138 135 181)Base step 400AA inkCool

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #8a87b5 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#8a87b5
Hue
244°
blue
Saturation
24%
soft
Lightness
62%
balanced
Brightness
71%
HSV value
Perceived
56%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.2607
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
71/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Soft
Best ink
Black
6.21:1
Closest name
Medium Purple
ΔE2000 11.8
Chroma
26.2
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.643
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
slate
500 · ΔE 13.7
Web-safe
#9999CC
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue244° of 360°
Saturation24%
Lightness62%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #8a87b5.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool71% cool

Reads cool. Warm and cool siblings keep the same lightness, so you can swap one in without redoing your contrast maths.

Luminance by channel
Red21%
Green66%
Blue13%

Green carries most of what the eye calls brightness — that is why WCAG weights it 0.7152.

Every format

HEX#8a87b5
HEX (8-digit)#8a87b5ff
RGBrgb(138, 135, 181)
RGBArgba(138, 135, 181, 1)
HSLhsl(244, 24%, 62%)
HSV / HSBhsv(244, 25%, 71%)
HWBhwb(244 53% 29%)
CMYKcmyk(24%, 25%, 0%, 29%)
LABlab(58.1 11.2 -23.7)
LCHlch(58.1 26.2 295.4)
OKLCHoklch(0.643 0.068 287.3)
XYZ (D65)xyz(27.48, 26.07, 47.29)
Decimal9078709
Display P3color(display-p3 0.541 0.529 0.710)
Web-safe#9999CC

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #8a87b5;
background-color: #8a87b5;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #8a87b5;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#8a87b5] bg-[#8a87b5]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #8a87b5;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.541, green: 0.529, blue: 0.710)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.541, green: 0.529, blue: 0.710, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#8A87B5</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFF8A87B5)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFF8A87B5)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(181, 135, 138)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(138, 135, 181)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(138, 135, 181)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 138, 135, 181)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.5412f, 0.5294f, 0.7098f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{138,135,181}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #8a87b5 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #8a87b5 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#33314F, #DAD9E8);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #8a87b5 h s calc(l - 7));

Design tokens

The same ramp in the four formats a team actually needs. Paste one and the whole palette lands with it.

css custom propertiesclick to select
:root {
  --brand-50: #F6F6F9;
  --brand-100: #EDEDF3;
  --brand-200: #D8D7E5;
  --brand-300: #BBBAD4;
  --brand-400: #8a87b5;
  --brand-500: #7874A9;
  --brand-600: #615D97;
  --brand-700: #514E7E;
  --brand-800: #413E65;
  --brand-900: #32304B;
  --brand-950: #1F1E2F;
  --brand: #8a87b5;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F6F6F9;
  --brand-border: #CECDE0;
  --brand-hover: #7571A7;
  --brand-pressed: #615D97;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #161523;
    --brand-ink: #DAD9E8;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F6F6F9',
        100: '#EDEDF3',
        200: '#D8D7E5',
        300: '#BBBAD4',
        400: '#8a87b5',
        500: '#7874A9',
        600: '#615D97',
        700: '#514E7E',
        800: '#413E65',
        900: '#32304B',
        950: '#1F1E2F',
        DEFAULT: '#8a87b5',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F6F6F9,
  '100': #EDEDF3,
  '200': #D8D7E5,
  '300': #BBBAD4,
  '400': #8a87b5,
  '500': #7874A9,
  '600': #615D97,
  '700': #514E7E,
  '800': #413E65,
  '900': #32304B,
  '950': #1F1E2F,
);
$brand-base: #8a87b5;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F6F6F9", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#EDEDF3", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#D8D7E5", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#BBBAD4", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#8a87b5", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#7874A9", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#615D97", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#514E7E", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#413E65", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#32304B", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#1F1E2F", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$value": "#000000", "$type": "color" }
  }
}

Best text color

Only one of black and white can be right. This is the one, with the number that proves it.

Readable at a glance#000000 on #8a87b5 · 6.21:1
Use #000000AA at every size, AAA for large text only.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 3.38:1
AA fail · AA large pass · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 6.21:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA fail
Reading the other direction: #8a87b5 as text scores 3.38:1 on white and 6.21:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #33314F at 3.67:1.

Make it accessible

A contrast checker tells you that you failed. This tells you what to ship instead — same hue, same saturation, lightness moved only as far as WCAG demands.

The quick fox
#726EA6 · 4.67:1
AA on white−8% L
#726EA6
The quick fox
#555284 · 7.18:1
AAA on white−20% L
#555284
The quick fox
#8a87b5 · 6.21:1
AA on blackalready passes
#8a87b5
The quick fox
#9391BB · 7.01:1
AAA on black+3% L
#9391BB

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #8A87B5 is enough for headings on white. Non-text elements such as icons, chart strokes and focus rings also sit at 3:1 under WCAG 2.2 (1.4.11).

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#8a87b5 on white: 3.38:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#8a87b5 on black: 6.21:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #8a87b5 as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #8a87b5.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White3.38:1AaAa
Slate 503.23:1AaAa
Slate 1003.09:1AaAa
Slate 2002.74:1AaAa
Slate 3002.28:1AaAa
Slate 4001.32:1AaAa
Slate 5001.41:1AaAa
Slate 6002.24:1AaAa
Slate 7003.06:1AaAa
Slate 8004.33:1AaAa
Slate 9005.28:1AaAa
Black6.21:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #7B8DB7
deuteranopia · #7B8AB4
tritanopia · #818F97

Roughly one man in twelve has some form of colour vision deficiency. If any of the three panels above is hard to tell apart from a neighbouring colour in your palette, add a shape, an icon or a label so the meaning does not rest on hue alone.

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #8a87b5 is pinned to step 400; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#F6F6F9
#EDEDF3
#D8D7E5
#BBBAD4
#8a87b5
#7874A9
#615D97
#514E7E
#413E65
#32304B
#1F1E2F
Base = 400Lightest = 50 · #F6F6F9Darkest = 950 · #1F1E2FText step on white = 600
Perceptual ramp — OKLCH

The same eleven steps expressed in OKLCH, where equal lightness numbers actually look equally spaced. HSL ramps go muddy in the yellows and washed out in the blues; this one does not. Modern browsers render it natively — the hex ramp above is the fallback.

50100200300400500600700800900950
oklch tokensclick to select
:root {
  --brand-50: oklch(0.97 0.017 287.3);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.027 287.3);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.041 287.3);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.053 287.3);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.063 287.3);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.068 287.3);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.068 287.3);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.064 287.3);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.057 287.3);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.048 287.3);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.038 287.3);
}

Colors that work with #8a87b5

Not a palette — a role sheet. Each swatch answers one question you will hit while building the component.

Text on it#000000
Black wins here
Surface#F6F6F9
Tinted page background
Border#CECDE0
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#5B588E
Captions on the surface
Accent#82784A
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#33314F
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#F0EFF5
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#161523
Dark-mode background
Hover#7571A7
One step down in lightness
Pressed#615D97
Two steps down
Disabled#CECDDF
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#8F8BC6
Offset from the fill so it reads
Light mode
Everything in its place

Surface, border, heading and body all derive from this one hue, so the screen stays coherent without a second palette.

Primary actionSecondaryBadge
Dark mode
Same hue, inverted

Lightness flips, hue holds. The accent stays the anchor in both themes.

Primary actionSecondaryAccent

In real components

The same eight roles, wired into the interface patterns you will actually build with them. Every state below is a computed value, not a mock-up.

Buttons and states
Save changesHoverPressedDisabled
OutlineSubtleLinkFocused
Form field
you@company.com

Focus ring uses the light variant so the field still reads as one shape.

Send me product updates
Notice
Your export is ready

The file stays available for seven days. Download it before it expires.

NewBetaDraft
Data
Storage used68%
Acme LtdActive
NorthwindTrial
GlobexActive

How to use #8a87b5

Derived from its contrast, chroma and lightness — not from taste.

Works well for
  • Headings from 24px up on white
  • Text and icons on dark surfaces
  • Charts, tags and secondary surfaces
  • Brand accents, badges and data highlights
  • Chart series and data categories
Use with care
  • Small text on white — under 4.5:1
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Minimum size as text on white
24px / 18.66px bold
Safe as a fill behind white type
No — use #33314F
Safe as a 1px border on white
Yes

Meaning and mood

What a colour in this family tends to signal, and how this particular chroma and lightness change the reading.

trustedcalmcompetentcorporate

The default of institutions for a reason: blue is read as stable and safe across nearly every culture that has been surveyed.

The muted chroma softens the association — it reads considered rather than loud, which suits long-form and data-heavy screens. The mid lightness keeps it versatile in both themes.

Worth knowing

It is also the most crowded hue on the web. Distinctiveness has to come from your other choices.

Reads as
  • FormalityMedium
  • EnergyMedium
  • Weight38/100
  • TemperatureCool
  • ApproachabilityReserved

Colour associations are cultural and vary by market. Treat these as a starting point for a conversation with your audience, not a finding about them.

Similar colors

One move away from this hex in each direction. Every swatch is its own page.

Color relationships

The wheel positions with their names attached, so you can grab the one you actually need.

Complementary#B2B587
Analogous left#879BB5
Analogous right#A187B5
Split-complement 1#B5A187
Split-complement 2#9BB587
Triadic 1#B58A87
Triadic 2#87B58A
Tetradic#B5879B
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°244°

#8a87b5 sits at 244°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red54.1%
Green52.9%
Blue71.0%
R · 0–255
138
0x8a
G · 0–255
135
0x87
B · 0–255
181
0xb5

CMYK percentages

Cyan23.8%
Magenta25.4%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)29.0%

Total ink coverage is 78%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#8a87b5 text on a black background

contrast 6.21:1

Card sample

#8a87b5 text on a white background

contrast 3.38:1

Card sample

#8a87b5 on grey

3.09:1

#8a87b5 on its own surface

3.13:1

#8a87b5 on its dark surface

5.33:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #8a87b5;
Background color
Panel with #8a87b5 background
background-color: #8a87b5;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #8a87b5;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(138, 135, 181, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(138, 135, 181, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #8a87b5;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #8a87b5, #A987B5);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #8a87b5, #B487B5);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #8a87b5;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #8a87b5;
caret-color: #8a87b5;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #8a87b5;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #F0EFF5;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #8a87b5;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#8a87b5 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #8a87b5 over white; the bottom row is the same alpha over a checkerboard, so you can see what survives on a photo or a video.

Bottom row of hexes is the flattened result over white — use those when a design tool refuses transparency, or when you need a solid fallback.

alpha in every syntaxclick to select
rgba(138, 135, 181, 0.5)
rgb(138 135 181 / 50%)
#8a87b580
hsl(244 24% 62% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #8a87b5 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#8a87b51a#F3F3F8
20%#8a87b533#E8E7F0
40%#8a87b566#D0CFE1
60%#8a87b599#B9B7D3
80%#8a87b5cc#A19FC4

Gradients from #8a87b5

Six recipes, each built from this hex and shown with the exact CSS that produced it.

Elevation
Same hue, three lightnesses — safe anywhere
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #AFADCC, #8a87b5 45%, #33314F);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #8a87b5, #A074A9);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #8a87b5, #B2B587);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #C1C0D8 0%, #8a87b5 45%, #33314F 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F6F6F9, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #A7B8C9 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #B39AC1 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #33314F 0%, transparent 65%), #8a87b5;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #8a87b5

Shades — darker

Tints — lighter

Tones — desaturated

Color harmonies

Nearest named colors

Ranked with CIEDE2000 across all 139 CSS keywords. Under ΔE 2 the eye stops telling them apart; over ΔE 10 they are plainly different colors.

#8a87b5 in the real world

Where a color in this family tends to land, and the interface roles it is usually asked to play.

Industries
TechnologyFinanceHealthcareEnterprise SaaS
Common UI roles
ButtonsLinksFocus statesCharts
Print note

Converts to four-color process without much drama. Proof it anyway.

On screens

Holds up across typical panel gamma. Still worth checking on an uncalibrated laptop, where mid-tones shift most.

In dark mode

Usable as-is on a dark surface at 6.21:1.

Explore nearby colors

Small, deliberate steps away from this hex — useful when you are hunting for the version of a colour that finally feels right.

#8a87b5, answered

What color is #8a87b5?

#8a87b5 is a balanced soft blue, closest to Medium Purple (ΔE2000 11.8). It sits at 244° on the hue wheel with 24% saturation and 62% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #8a87b5?

rgb(138, 135, 181) — 138 red, 135 green and 181 blue out of 255, or 54.1% / 52.9% / 71% by channel.

What is #8a87b5 in HSL and HSV?

hsl(244, 24%, 62%) and hsv(244, 25%, 71%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #8a87b5 a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.2607 and perceived brightness is 56%, so black text on it reaches 6.21:1.

Should I use black or white text on #8a87b5?

Black. It scores 6.21:1 against #8a87b5, versus 3.38:1 for white — AA at any size.

Is #8a87b5 accessible on a white background?

#8a87b5 on white scores 3.38:1, which only clears AA for large text — 18.66px bold or 24px regular and up. Darken it to #726EA6 to reach 4.5:1, or #555284 for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #8a87b5?

#B2B587 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #B5A187 and #9BB587, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #8a87b5?

For interface work: #F6F6F9 as the surface, #CECDE0 for borders, #5B588E for secondary text, #82784A as an accent and #33314F for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #879BB5 and #A187B5 stays calm, while #B2B587 is the loudest partner.

What is #8a87b5 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(24%, 25%, 0%, 29%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #8a87b5 warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 71 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #9B87B5; nudged cooler, #8594B7.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #8a87b5?

The slate family — its 500 step is #64748b, ΔE2000 13.7 away. That is a visible difference, so define #8a87b5 as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #8a87b5 in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#8a87b5] or text-[#8a87b5], or register the whole ramp under theme.extend.colors.brand so you get bg-brand-500 and friends. The generated 50–950 scale on this page is ready to paste into your config.

What is #8a87b5 with 50% opacity?

rgba(138, 135, 181, 0.5), or #8a87b580 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #C5C3DA; over black, #45445B.

Is #8a87b5 a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #9999CC, ΔE2000 6.1 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #8a87b5 mean?

As a blue, it reads trusted, calm, competent. The default of institutions for a reason: blue is read as stable and safe across nearly every culture that has been surveyed. At this moderate chroma the association is present but not shouted.

What gradient works with #8a87b5?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #AFADCC, #8a87b5 45%, #33314F). For more colour, a short hue run to #A074A9 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #8a87b5 in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #8a87b5 at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.