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violet · cool

#ab2cef

a balanced, electric violet · cool · closest name: Dark Orchid

Token name suggestion: Atlas Iris

RGB
171, 44, 239
HSL
279°, 86%, 56%
CMYK
29, 82, 0, 6
Luminance
0.1669

#ab2cef is a balanced electric violet, 279° on the wheel and 62/100 on the cool side. Put white text on it (4.84:1). As text it scores 4.84:1 on white — safe at any size. Nearest name is Dark Orchid, nearest Tailwind family is purple.

hsl(279 86% 56%)rgb(171 44 239)Base step 500AA inkCool

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #ab2cef is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#ab2cef
Hue
279°
violet
Saturation
86%
electric
Lightness
56%
balanced
Brightness
94%
HSV value
Perceived
50%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.1669
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
62/100 cool
Color family
Violet
Tone
Electric
Best ink
White
4.84:1
Closest name
Dark Orchid
ΔE2000 5.4
Chroma
105.9
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.586
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
purple
500 · ΔE 6.8
Web-safe
#9933FF
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue279° of 360°
Saturation86%
Lightness56%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #ab2cef.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool62% 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
Red52%
Green11%
Blue37%

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

Every format

HEX#ab2cef
HEX (8-digit)#ab2cefff
RGBrgb(171, 44, 239)
RGBArgba(171, 44, 239, 1)
HSLhsl(279, 86%, 56%)
HSV / HSBhsv(279, 82%, 94%)
HWBhwb(279 17% 6%)
CMYKcmyk(29%, 82%, 0%, 6%)
LABlab(47.9 77.1 -72.7)
LCHlch(47.9 105.9 316.7)
OKLCHoklch(0.586 0.268 309.6)
XYZ (D65)xyz(33.27, 16.69, 83.11)
Decimal11218159
Display P3color(display-p3 0.671 0.173 0.937)
Web-safe#9933FF

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #ab2cef;
background-color: #ab2cef;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #ab2cef;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#ab2cef] bg-[#ab2cef]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #ab2cef;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.671, green: 0.173, blue: 0.937)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.671, green: 0.173, blue: 0.937, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#AB2CEF</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFAB2CEF)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFAB2CEF)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(239, 44, 171)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(171, 44, 239)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(171, 44, 239)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 171, 44, 239)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.6706f, 0.1725f, 0.9373f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{171,44,239}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #ab2cef 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #ab2cef 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#500977, #E5D3EE);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #ab2cef 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: #F9F2FD;
  --brand-100: #F3E5FA;
  --brand-200: #E5C5F7;
  --brand-300: #D697F7;
  --brand-400: #C163F3;
  --brand-500: #ab2cef;
  --brand-600: #9A11E4;
  --brand-700: #810EBE;
  --brand-800: #670C98;
  --brand-900: #4C0D6E;
  --brand-950: #2F0844;
  --brand: #ab2cef;
  --brand-ink: #ffffff;
  --brand-surface: #F8F4FA;
  --brand-border: #DDC0ED;
  --brand-hover: #9C11E6;
  --brand-pressed: #850FC5;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #1F1424;
    --brand-ink: #E5D3EE;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F9F2FD',
        100: '#F3E5FA',
        200: '#E5C5F7',
        300: '#D697F7',
        400: '#C163F3',
        500: '#ab2cef',
        600: '#9A11E4',
        700: '#810EBE',
        800: '#670C98',
        900: '#4C0D6E',
        950: '#2F0844',
        DEFAULT: '#ab2cef',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F9F2FD,
  '100': #F3E5FA,
  '200': #E5C5F7,
  '300': #D697F7,
  '400': #C163F3,
  '500': #ab2cef,
  '600': #9A11E4,
  '700': #810EBE,
  '800': #670C98,
  '900': #4C0D6E,
  '950': #2F0844,
);
$brand-base: #ab2cef;
$brand-ink: #ffffff;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F9F2FD", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#F3E5FA", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#E5C5F7", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#D697F7", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#C163F3", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#ab2cef", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#9A11E4", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#810EBE", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#670C98", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#4C0D6E", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#2F0844", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$value": "#ffffff", "$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#ffffff on #ab2cef · 4.84:1
Use #ffffffAA at every size, AAA for large text only.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 4.84:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 4.34:1
AA fail · AA large pass · AAA fail
Reading the other direction: #ab2cef as text scores 4.84:1 on white and 4.34:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #F6E7FD at 4.10:1.

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
#ab2cef · 4.84:1
AA on whitealready passes
#ab2cef
The quick fox
#890FC9 · 7.06:1
AAA on white−13% L
#890FC9
The quick fox
#AF36F0 · 4.61:1
AA on black+2% L
#AF36F0
The quick fox
#C773F4 · 7.19:1
AAA on black+15% L
#C773F4

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #AB2CEF 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
#ab2cef on white: 4.84:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#ab2cef on black: 4.34:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #ab2cef as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #ab2cef.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White4.84:1AaAa
Slate 504.63:1AaAa
Slate 1004.42:1AaAa
Slate 2003.93:1AaAa
Slate 3003.26:1AaAa
Slate 4001.89:1AaAa
Slate 5001.02:1AaAa
Slate 6001.57:1AaAa
Slate 7002.14:1AaAa
Slate 8003.02:1AaAa
Slate 9003.69:1AaAa
Black4.34:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #006DF4
deuteranopia · #0073EB
tritanopia · #A16191

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. #ab2cef is pinned to step 500; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#F9F2FD
#F3E5FA
#E5C5F7
#D697F7
#C163F3
#ab2cef
#9A11E4
#810EBE
#670C98
#4C0D6E
#2F0844
Base = 500Lightest = 50 · #F9F2FDDarkest = 950 · #2F0844Text step on white = 500
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 0.067 309.6);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.107 309.6);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.161 309.6);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.209 309.6);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.246 309.6);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.268 309.6);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.268 309.6);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.252 309.6);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.225 309.6);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.188 309.6);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.147 309.6);
}

Colors that work with #ab2cef

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

Text on it#ffffff
White wins here
Surface#F8F4FA
Tinted page background
Border#DDC0ED
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#7F4B9B
Captions on the surface
Accent#78C20A
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#500977
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#F6E7FD
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#1F1424
Dark-mode background
Hover#9C11E6
One step down in lightness
Pressed#850FC5
Two steps down
Disabled#C9B9D2
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#B635FB
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 #ab2cef

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

Works well for
  • Body text and links on white
  • Primary buttons and calls to action
  • Focus rings, active and selected states
  • Brand accents, badges and data highlights
  • Chart series and data categories
Use with care
  • Full-page backgrounds — tiring over long sessions
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Minimum size as text on white
Any size
Safe as a fill behind white type
Yes
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.

creativepremiummodernimaginative

Violet sits between the warmth of red and the calm of blue, so it reads as inventive without reading as risky. Current shorthand for software craft.

At this chroma the association is amplified — it will dominate anything placed beside it, so give it space and use it sparingly. The mid lightness keeps it versatile in both themes.

Worth knowing

Deep violets swallow detail on screens with poor gamma; check it on a cheap laptop panel.

Reads as
  • FormalityLow
  • EnergyHigh
  • Weight45/100
  • TemperatureCool
  • ApproachabilityBalanced

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#70EF2C
Analogous left#4A2CEF
Analogous right#EF2CD1
Split-complement 1#D1EF2C
Split-complement 2#2CEF4A
Triadic 1#EFAB2C
Triadic 2#2CEFAB
Tetradic#EF4A2C
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°279°

#ab2cef sits at 279°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red67.1%
Green17.3%
Blue93.7%
R · 0–255
171
0xab
G · 0–255
44
0x2c
B · 0–255
239
0xef

CMYK percentages

Cyan28.5%
Magenta81.6%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)6.3%

Total ink coverage is 116%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#ab2cef text on a black background

contrast 4.34:1

Card sample

#ab2cef text on a white background

contrast 4.84:1

Card sample

#ab2cef on grey

4.42:1

#ab2cef on its own surface

4.45:1

#ab2cef on its dark surface

3.66:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #ab2cef;
Background color
Panel with #ab2cef background
background-color: #ab2cef;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #ab2cef;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(171, 44, 239, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(171, 44, 239, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #ab2cef;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #ab2cef, #EF2CB1);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #ab2cef, #EF2C80);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #ab2cef;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #ab2cef;
caret-color: #ab2cef;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #ab2cef;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #F6E7FD;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #ab2cef;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#ab2cef 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #ab2cef 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(171, 44, 239, 0.5)
rgb(171 44 239 / 50%)
#ab2cef80
hsl(279 86% 56% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #ab2cef 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#ab2cef1a#F7EAFD
20%#ab2cef33#EED5FC
40%#ab2cef66#DDABF9
60%#ab2cef99#CD80F5
80%#ab2cefcc#BC56F2

Gradients from #ab2cef

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, #C265F3, #ab2cef 45%, #500977);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #ab2cef, #EB1294);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #ab2cef, #70EF2C);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #CD81F5 0%, #ab2cef 45%, #500977 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F8F4FA, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #665BF3 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #F148CA 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #500977 0%, transparent 65%), #ab2cef;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #ab2cef

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.

#ab2cef in the real world

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

Industries
Creative toolsFintechBeautyLuxury
Common UI roles
ButtonsLinksFocus statesCharts
Print note

Sits outside most CMYK gamuts — expect a duller press result, or specify a spot ink.

On screens

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

In dark mode

Too dim on dark surfaces at 4.34:1 — lift it to #AF36F0 for body text, or reserve it for fills.

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.

#ab2cef, answered

What color is #ab2cef?

#ab2cef is a balanced electric violet, closest to Dark Orchid (ΔE2000 5.4). It sits at 279° on the hue wheel with 86% saturation and 56% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #ab2cef?

rgb(171, 44, 239) — 171 red, 44 green and 239 blue out of 255, or 67.1% / 17.3% / 93.7% by channel.

What is #ab2cef in HSL and HSV?

hsl(279, 86%, 56%) and hsv(279, 82%, 94%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #ab2cef a light or a dark color?

It is a dark color. Relative luminance is 0.1669 and perceived brightness is 50%, so white text on it reaches 4.84:1.

Should I use black or white text on #ab2cef?

White. It scores 4.84:1 against #ab2cef, versus 4.34:1 for black — AA at any size.

Is #ab2cef accessible on a white background?

#ab2cef on white scores 4.84:1, which clears AA at every size but not AAA.

What is the complementary color of #ab2cef?

#70EF2C sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #D1EF2C and #2CEF4A, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #ab2cef?

For interface work: #F8F4FA as the surface, #DDC0ED for borders, #7F4B9B for secondary text, #78C20A as an accent and #500977 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #4A2CEF and #EF2CD1 stays calm, while #70EF2C is the loudest partner.

What is #ab2cef in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(29%, 82%, 0%, 6%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — a color this saturated sits outside most CMYK gamuts and will print duller than it looks here.

Is #ab2cef warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 62 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #EF2CEB; nudged cooler, #632AF1.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #ab2cef?

The purple family — its 500 step is #a855f7, ΔE2000 6.8 away. That is a visible difference, so define #ab2cef as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #ab2cef in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#ab2cef] or text-[#ab2cef], 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 #ab2cef with 50% opacity?

rgba(171, 44, 239, 0.5), or #ab2cef80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #D596F7; over black, #561678.

Is #ab2cef a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #9933FF, ΔE2000 3.6 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #ab2cef mean?

As a violet, it reads creative, premium, modern. Violet sits between the warmth of red and the calm of blue, so it reads as inventive without reading as risky. Current shorthand for software craft. At this chroma the effect is amplified — it will dominate whatever sits beside it.

What gradient works with #ab2cef?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #C265F3, #ab2cef 45%, #500977). For more colour, a short hue run to #EB1294 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #ab2cef in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #ab2cef at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.