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magenta / pink · neutral

#b985ba

a balanced, soft magenta / pink · neutral · closest name: Plum

Token name suggestion: Signal Blossom

RGB
185, 133, 186
HSL
299°, 28%, 63%
CMYK
1, 29, 0, 27
Luminance
0.3063

#b985ba is a balanced soft magenta / pink, 299° on the wheel and 50/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (7.13:1). As text it scores 2.95:1 on white — use #A05BA1 instead. Nearest name is Plum, nearest Tailwind family is pink.

hsl(299 28% 63%)rgb(185 133 186)Base step 400AAA inkNeutral

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #b985ba is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#b985ba
Hue
299°
magenta / pink
Saturation
28%
soft
Lightness
63%
balanced
Brightness
73%
HSV value
Perceived
61%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.3063
WCAG relative
Temperature
Neutral
50/100 cool
Color family
Magenta / pink
Tone
Soft
Best ink
Black
7.13:1
Closest name
Plum
ΔE2000 9
Chroma
35.0
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.685
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
pink
500 · ΔE 15.9
Web-safe
#CC99CC
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue299° of 360°
Saturation28%
Lightness63%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #b985ba.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool50% cool

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

Luminance by channel
Red34%
Green55%
Blue12%

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

Every format

HEX#b985ba
HEX (8-digit)#b985baff
RGBrgb(185, 133, 186)
RGBArgba(185, 133, 186, 1)
HSLhsl(299, 28%, 63%)
HSV / HSBhsv(299, 28%, 73%)
HWBhwb(299 52% 27%)
CMYKcmyk(1%, 29%, 0%, 27%)
LABlab(62.2 28.9 -19.9)
LCHlch(62.2 35.0 325.4)
OKLCHoklch(0.685 0.096 325.9)
XYZ (D65)xyz(37.26, 30.64, 50.40)
Decimal12158394
Display P3color(display-p3 0.725 0.522 0.729)
Web-safe#CC99CC

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #b985ba;
background-color: #b985ba;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #b985ba;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#b985ba] bg-[#b985ba]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #b985ba;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.725, green: 0.522, blue: 0.729)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.725, green: 0.522, blue: 0.729, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#B985BA</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFB985BA)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFB985BA)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(186, 133, 185)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(185, 133, 186)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(185, 133, 186)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 185, 133, 186)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.7255f, 0.5216f, 0.7294f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{185,133,186}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #b985ba 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #b985ba 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#512E51, #E9D8E9);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #b985ba 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: #F9F6F9;
  --brand-100: #F3ECF3;
  --brand-200: #E6D6E6;
  --brand-300: #D6B7D6;
  --brand-400: #b985ba;
  --brand-500: #AD70AE;
  --brand-600: #9B589C;
  --brand-700: #814A82;
  --brand-800: #673B68;
  --brand-900: #4C2E4D;
  --brand-950: #301D30;
  --brand: #b985ba;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F9F5F9;
  --brand-border: #E1CBE2;
  --brand-hover: #AC6EAD;
  --brand-pressed: #9D599E;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #241424;
    --brand-ink: #E9D8E9;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F9F6F9',
        100: '#F3ECF3',
        200: '#E6D6E6',
        300: '#D6B7D6',
        400: '#b985ba',
        500: '#AD70AE',
        600: '#9B589C',
        700: '#814A82',
        800: '#673B68',
        900: '#4C2E4D',
        950: '#301D30',
        DEFAULT: '#b985ba',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F9F6F9,
  '100': #F3ECF3,
  '200': #E6D6E6,
  '300': #D6B7D6,
  '400': #b985ba,
  '500': #AD70AE,
  '600': #9B589C,
  '700': #814A82,
  '800': #673B68,
  '900': #4C2E4D,
  '950': #301D30,
);
$brand-base: #b985ba;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F9F6F9", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#F3ECF3", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#E6D6E6", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#D6B7D6", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#b985ba", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#AD70AE", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#9B589C", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#814A82", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#673B68", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#4C2E4D", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#301D30", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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 #b985ba · 7.13:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 2.95:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 7.13:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #b985ba as text scores 2.95:1 on white and 7.13:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #512E51 at 3.83:1.

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
#A05BA1 · 4.66:1
AA on white−13% L
#A05BA1
The quick fox
#79457A · 7.13:1
AAA on white−25% L
#79457A
The quick fox
#b985ba · 7.13:1
AA on blackalready passes
#b985ba
The quick fox
#b985ba · 7.13:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#b985ba

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #B782B8 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
#b985ba on white: 2.95:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#b985ba on black: 7.13:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #b985ba as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #b985ba.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White2.95:1AaAa
Slate 502.82:1AaAa
Slate 1002.69:1AaAa
Slate 2002.39:1AaAa
Slate 3001.98:1AaAa
Slate 4001.15:1AaAa
Slate 5001.62:1AaAa
Slate 6002.57:1AaAa
Slate 7003.51:1AaAa
Slate 8004.96:1AaAa
Slate 9006.06:1AaAa
Black7.13:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #8192BC
deuteranopia · #8D99B8
tritanopia · #BC8A98

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. #b985ba 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.

#F9F6F9
#F3ECF3
#E6D6E6
#D6B7D6
#b985ba
#AD70AE
#9B589C
#814A82
#673B68
#4C2E4D
#301D30
Base = 400Lightest = 50 · #F9F6F9Darkest = 950 · #301D30Text 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 0.024 325.9);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.038 325.9);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.058 325.9);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.075 325.9);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.088 325.9);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.096 325.9);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.096 325.9);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.090 325.9);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.081 325.9);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.067 325.9);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.053 325.9);
}

Colors that work with #b985ba

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#F9F5F9
Tinted page background
Border#E1CBE2
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#915393
Captions on the surface
Accent#568745
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#512E51
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#F6EFF6
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#241424
Dark-mode background
Hover#AC6EAD
One step down in lightness
Pressed#9D599E
Two steps down
Disabled#E0CFE0
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#C989CA
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 #b985ba

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

Works well for
  • 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
  • Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
  • Pairing with a same-lightness hue — edges vibrate
Minimum size as text on white
Not as text
Safe as a fill behind white type
No — use #512E51
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #B782B8

Meaning and mood

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

expressiveyouthfulwarmconfident

Pink is the fastest way to signal that a product is not another enterprise dashboard. It carries beauty, fashion and culture brands.

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

Strong gendered associations in some markets — test it with the audience you actually have.

Reads as
  • FormalityMedium
  • EnergyMedium
  • Weight38/100
  • TemperatureNeutral
  • 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#86BA85
Analogous left#9E85BA
Analogous right#BA85A0
Split-complement 1#A0BA85
Split-complement 2#85BA9E
Triadic 1#BAB985
Triadic 2#85BAB9
Tetradic#BA9E85
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°299°

#b985ba sits at 299°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red72.5%
Green52.2%
Blue72.9%
R · 0–255
185
0xb9
G · 0–255
133
0x85
B · 0–255
186
0xba

CMYK percentages

Cyan0.5%
Magenta28.5%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)27.1%

Total ink coverage is 56%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#b985ba text on a black background

contrast 7.13:1

Card sample

#b985ba text on a white background

contrast 2.95:1

Card sample

#b985ba on grey

2.69:1

#b985ba on its own surface

2.73:1

#b985ba on its dark surface

5.94:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #b985ba;
Background color
Panel with #b985ba background
background-color: #b985ba;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #b985ba;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(185, 133, 186, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(185, 133, 186, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #b985ba;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #b985ba, #BA8598);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #b985ba, #BA858A);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #b985ba;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #b985ba;
caret-color: #b985ba;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #b985ba;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #F6EFF6;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #b985ba;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#b985ba 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #b985ba 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(185, 133, 186, 0.5)
rgb(185 133 186 / 50%)
#b985ba80
hsl(299 28% 63% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #b985ba 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#b985ba1a#F8F3F8
20%#b985ba33#F1E7F1
40%#b985ba66#E3CEE3
60%#b985ba99#D5B6D6
80%#b985bacc#C79DC8

Gradients from #b985ba

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, #CFACD0, #b985ba 45%, #512E51);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #b985ba, #AF7182);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #b985ba, #86BA85);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #DBC0DB 0%, #b985ba 45%, #512E51 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F9F5F9, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #B5A5CC 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #C598AC 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #512E51 0%, transparent 65%), #b985ba;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #b985ba

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.

#b985ba in the real world

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

Industries
BeautyFashionLifestyleYouth brands
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 7.13:1.

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.

#b985ba, answered

What color is #b985ba?

#b985ba is a balanced soft magenta / pink, closest to Plum (ΔE2000 9). It sits at 299° on the hue wheel with 28% saturation and 63% lightness, which reads as neutral.

What is the RGB value of #b985ba?

rgb(185, 133, 186) — 185 red, 133 green and 186 blue out of 255, or 72.5% / 52.2% / 72.9% by channel.

What is #b985ba in HSL and HSV?

hsl(299, 28%, 63%) and hsv(299, 28%, 73%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #b985ba a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.3063 and perceived brightness is 61%, so black text on it reaches 7.13:1.

Should I use black or white text on #b985ba?

Black. It scores 7.13:1 against #b985ba, versus 2.95:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #b985ba accessible on a white background?

#b985ba on white scores 2.95:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #A05BA1 to reach 4.5:1, or #79457A for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #b985ba?

#86BA85 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #A0BA85 and #85BA9E, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #b985ba?

For interface work: #F9F5F9 as the surface, #E1CBE2 for borders, #915393 for secondary text, #568745 as an accent and #512E51 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #9E85BA and #BA85A0 stays calm, while #86BA85 is the loudest partner.

What is #b985ba in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(1%, 29%, 0%, 27%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #b985ba warm or cool?

Neutral — it scores 50 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #BA85A7; nudged cooler, #A683BC.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #b985ba?

The pink family — its 500 step is #ec4899, ΔE2000 15.9 away. That is a visible difference, so define #b985ba as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #b985ba in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#b985ba] or text-[#b985ba], 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 #b985ba with 50% opacity?

rgba(185, 133, 186, 0.5), or #b985ba80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #DCC2DD; over black, #5D435D.

Is #b985ba a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #CC99CC, ΔE2000 5.9 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #b985ba mean?

As a magenta / pink, it reads expressive, youthful, warm. Pink is the fastest way to signal that a product is not another enterprise dashboard. It carries beauty, fashion and culture brands. At this moderate chroma the association is present but not shouted.

What gradient works with #b985ba?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #CFACD0, #b985ba 45%, #512E51). For more colour, a short hue run to #AF7182 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #b985ba in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #b985ba at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.