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#95b5df

a light, vivid blue · cool · closest name: Light Steel Blue

RGB
149, 181, 223
HSL
214°, 54%, 73%
CMYK
33, 19, 0, 13
Luminance
0.4477

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #95b5df is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#95b5df
Hue
214°
blue
Saturation
54%
vivid
Lightness
73%
light
Brightness
87%
HSV value
Perceived
70%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.4477
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
98/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
9.95:1
Closest name
Light Steel Blue
ΔE2000 6.3
Where it sits
Hue214° of 360°
Saturation54%
Lightness73%
Temperature
Warm ← → Cool98% cool

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

Every format

HEX#95b5df
RGBrgb(149, 181, 223)
HSLhsl(214, 54%, 73%)
CMYKcmyk(33%, 19%, 0%, 13%)
LABlab(72.7 -0.9 -24.6)
LCHlch(72.7 24.6 267.8)
OKLCHoklch(0.764 0.070 255.4)
Decimal9811423
Display P3color(display-p3 0.584 0.710 0.875)

Copy-ready code

/* CSS */
color: #95b5df;
background-color: #95b5df;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#95b5df] bg-[#95b5df]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #95b5df;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.584, green: 0.710, blue: 0.875)
/* Android */
Color.parseColor("#95b5df")
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFF95B5DF)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(223, 181, 149)

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 #95b5df · 9.95:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
White text · 2.11:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 9.95:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #95b5df as text scores 2.11:1 on white and 9.95:1 on black.

Accessibility — WCAG contrast

Aa
#95b5df on white: 2.11:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#95b5df on black: 9.95:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
true color
protanopia · #A6B7E1
deuteranopia · #9EAFDE
tritanopia · #7EBEC3

Color scale — 50 to 950

A Tailwind-shaped ramp built around this exact hex. #95b5df is pinned to step 300; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#F4F7FB
#E9EFF6
#CEDCED
#95b5df
#7EA5D8
#5387CB
#3971BC
#2F5F9D
#264C7D
#1F395B
#132439
Base = 300Lightest = 50 · #F4F7FBDarkest = 950 · #132439
:root {
  --brand-50: #F4F7FB;
  --brand-100: #E9EFF6;
  --brand-200: #CEDCED;
  --brand-300: #95b5df;
  --brand-400: #7EA5D8;
  --brand-500: #5387CB;
  --brand-600: #3971BC;
  --brand-700: #2F5F9D;
  --brand-800: #264C7D;
  --brand-900: #1F395B;
  --brand-950: #132439;
  --brand: #95b5df;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
}

Colors that work with #95b5df

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#F4F7FA
Tinted page background
Border#C0D3EC
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#4B6D9B
Captions on the surface
Accent#A1502B
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#1E3B62
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#EBF1F9
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#141B24
Dark-mode background
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

How to use #95b5df

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

Works well for
  • Text and icons on dark surfaces
  • Primary buttons and calls to action
  • Focus rings, active and selected states
  • Card and section backgrounds
  • Brand accents, badges and data highlights
Use with care
  • Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
  • Full-page backgrounds — tiring over long sessions
  • White text placed on it
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate

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#DFBF95
Analogous left#95DADF
Analogous right#9A95DF
Split-complement 1#DF9A95
Split-complement 2#DADF95
Triadic 1#DF95B5
Triadic 2#B5DF95
Tetradic#DF95DA

RGB percentages

Red58.4%
Green71.0%
Blue87.5%

CMYK percentages

Cyan33.2%
Magenta18.8%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)12.5%

Color previews

#95b5df text on a black background

contrast 9.95:1

Card sample

#95b5df text on a white background

contrast 2.11:1

Card sample

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #95b5df;
Background color
Panel with #95b5df background
background-color: #95b5df;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #95b5df;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(149, 181, 223, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(149, 181, 223, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #95b5df;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #95b5df, #A695DF);

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #95b5df

Shades — darker

Tints — lighter

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.

#95b5df 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
SurfacesBadgesHighlightsEmpty states
Print note

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

#95b5df, answered

What color is #95b5df?

#95b5df is a light vivid blue, closest to Light Steel Blue (ΔE2000 6.3). It sits at 214° on the hue wheel with 54% saturation and 73% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #95b5df?

rgb(149, 181, 223) — 149 red, 181 green and 223 blue out of 255, or 58.4% / 71% / 87.5% by channel.

Is #95b5df a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.4477 and perceived brightness is 70%, so black text on it reaches 9.95:1.

Should I use black or white text on #95b5df?

Black. It scores 9.95:1 against #95b5df, versus 2.11:1 for white — AAA at any size.

What is the complementary color of #95b5df?

#DFBF95 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #DF9A95 and #DADF95, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #95b5df?

For interface work: #F4F7FA as the surface, #C0D3EC for borders, #4B6D9B for secondary text, #A1502B as an accent and #1E3B62 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #95DADF and #9A95DF stays calm, while #DFBF95 is the loudest partner.

What is #95b5df in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(33%, 19%, 0%, 13%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #95b5df warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 98 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #959ADF; nudged cooler, #80AADB.

Work with #95b5df in the Color Lab