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blue · cool

#cbdff2

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

Token name suggestion: Chalk Sapphire

RGB
203, 223, 242
HSL
209°, 60%, 87%
CMYK
16, 8, 0, 5
Luminance
0.7188

#cbdff2 is a pale vivid blue, 209° on the wheel and 100/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (15.38:1). As text it scores 1.37:1 on white — use #2F78BD instead. Nearest name is Light Steel Blue, nearest Tailwind family is cyan.

hsl(209 60% 87%)rgb(203 223 242)Base step 200AAA inkCool

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #cbdff2 is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#cbdff2
Hue
209°
blue
Saturation
60%
vivid
Lightness
87%
pale
Brightness
95%
HSV value
Perceived
86%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.7188
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
100/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
15.38:1
Closest name
Light Steel Blue
ΔE2000 7
Chroma
11.8
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.895
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
cyan
500 · ΔE 21.3
Web-safe
#CCCCFF
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue209° of 360°
Saturation60%
Lightness87%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #cbdff2.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool100% 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
Red18%
Green73%
Blue9%

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

Every format

HEX#cbdff2
HEX (8-digit)#cbdff2ff
RGBrgb(203, 223, 242)
RGBArgba(203, 223, 242, 1)
HSLhsl(209, 60%, 87%)
HSV / HSBhsv(209, 16%, 95%)
HWBhwb(209 80% 5%)
CMYKcmyk(16%, 8%, 0%, 5%)
LABlab(87.9 -2.8 -11.5)
LCHlch(87.9 11.8 256.2)
OKLCHoklch(0.895 0.034 246.8)
XYZ (D65)xyz(67.04, 71.88, 94.33)
Decimal13361138
Display P3color(display-p3 0.796 0.875 0.949)
Web-safe#CCCCFF

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #cbdff2;
background-color: #cbdff2;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #cbdff2;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#cbdff2] bg-[#cbdff2]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #cbdff2;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.796, green: 0.875, blue: 0.949)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.796, green: 0.875, blue: 0.949, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#CBDFF2</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFCBDFF2)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFCBDFF2)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(242, 223, 203)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(203, 223, 242)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(203, 223, 242)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 203, 223, 242)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.7961f, 0.8745f, 0.9490f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{203,223,242}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #cbdff2 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #cbdff2 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#1A4166, #D3E1EE);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #cbdff2 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: #F4F7FB;
  --brand-100: #E9F0F7;
  --brand-200: #cbdff2;
  --brand-300: #A5C8E9;
  --brand-400: #78ACDD;
  --brand-500: #4B91D2;
  --brand-600: #317CC4;
  --brand-700: #2968A3;
  --brand-800: #215383;
  --brand-900: #1B3E5F;
  --brand-950: #11273B;
  --brand: #cbdff2;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F4F7FA;
  --brand-border: #C0D7ED;
  --brand-hover: #AFCEEB;
  --brand-pressed: #92BCE4;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #141C24;
    --brand-ink: #D3E1EE;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F4F7FB',
        100: '#E9F0F7',
        200: '#cbdff2',
        300: '#A5C8E9',
        400: '#78ACDD',
        500: '#4B91D2',
        600: '#317CC4',
        700: '#2968A3',
        800: '#215383',
        900: '#1B3E5F',
        950: '#11273B',
        DEFAULT: '#cbdff2',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F4F7FB,
  '100': #E9F0F7,
  '200': #cbdff2,
  '300': #A5C8E9,
  '400': #78ACDD,
  '500': #4B91D2,
  '600': #317CC4,
  '700': #2968A3,
  '800': #215383,
  '900': #1B3E5F,
  '950': #11273B,
);
$brand-base: #cbdff2;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F4F7FB", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#E9F0F7", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#cbdff2", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#A5C8E9", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#78ACDD", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#4B91D2", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#317CC4", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#2968A3", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#215383", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#1B3E5F", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#11273B", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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 #cbdff2 · 15.38:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 1.37:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 15.38:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #cbdff2 as text scores 1.37:1 on white and 15.38:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #1A4166 at 7.72:1.

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
#2F78BD · 4.62:1
AA on white−41% L
#2F78BD
The quick fox
#245B90 · 7.06:1
AAA on white−52% L
#245B90
The quick fox
#cbdff2 · 15.38:1
AA on blackalready passes
#cbdff2
The quick fox
#cbdff2 · 15.38:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#cbdff2

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #5999D5 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
#cbdff2 on white: 1.37:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#cbdff2 on black: 15.38:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #cbdff2 as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #cbdff2.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White1.37:1AaAa
Slate 501.31:1AaAa
Slate 1001.25:1AaAa
Slate 2001.11:1AaAa
Slate 3001.09:1AaAa
Slate 4001.88:1AaAa
Slate 5003.48:1AaAa
Slate 6005.55:1AaAa
Slate 7007.58:1AaAa
Slate 80010.71:1AaAa
Slate 90013.07:1AaAa
Black15.38:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #D8DFF3
deuteranopia · #D3DBF2
tritanopia · #C1E3E5

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. #cbdff2 is pinned to step 200; the rest hold its hue and let saturation ease off at the extremes so the pale end never turns neon.

#F4F7FB
#E9F0F7
#cbdff2
#A5C8E9
#78ACDD
#4B91D2
#317CC4
#2968A3
#215383
#1B3E5F
#11273B
Base = 200Lightest = 50 · #F4F7FBDarkest = 950 · #11273BText step on white = 700
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 0.008 246.8);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.014 246.8);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.020 246.8);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.026 246.8);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.031 246.8);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.034 246.8);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.034 246.8);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.032 246.8);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.028 246.8);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.024 246.8);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.019 246.8);
}

Colors that work with #cbdff2

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#C0D7ED
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#4B749B
Captions on the surface
Accent#A64526
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#1A4166
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#EBF2FA
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#141C24
Dark-mode background
Hover#AFCEEB
One step down in lightness
Pressed#92BCE4
Two steps down
Disabled#F3F5F7
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#D9E9F8
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 #cbdff2

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
Minimum size as text on white
Not as text
Safe as a fill behind white type
No — use #1A4166
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #5999D5

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.

This is a confident chroma: strong enough to lead a brand, restrained enough to live in an interface all day. The high lightness makes it recede — a surface colour rather than a statement.

Worth knowing

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

Reads as
  • FormalityMedium
  • EnergyMedium-high
  • Weight13/100
  • 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#F2DECB
Analogous left#CBF2F2
Analogous right#CBCCF2
Split-complement 1#F2CBCC
Split-complement 2#F2F2CB
Triadic 1#F2CBDF
Triadic 2#DFF2CB
Tetradic#F2CBF2
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°209°

#cbdff2 sits at 209°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red79.6%
Green87.5%
Blue94.9%
R · 0–255
203
0xcb
G · 0–255
223
0xdf
B · 0–255
242
0xf2

CMYK percentages

Cyan16.1%
Magenta7.9%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)5.1%

Total ink coverage is 29%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#cbdff2 text on a black background

contrast 15.38:1

Card sample

#cbdff2 text on a white background

contrast 1.37:1

Card sample

#cbdff2 on grey

1.25:1

#cbdff2 on its own surface

1.27:1

#cbdff2 on its dark surface

12.59:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #cbdff2;
Background color
Panel with #cbdff2 background
background-color: #cbdff2;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #cbdff2;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(203, 223, 242, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(203, 223, 242, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #cbdff2;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #cbdff2, #D1CBF2);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #cbdff2, #DBCBF2);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #cbdff2;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #cbdff2;
caret-color: #cbdff2;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #cbdff2;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #EBF2FA;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #cbdff2;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#cbdff2 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #cbdff2 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(203, 223, 242, 0.5)
rgb(203 223 242 / 50%)
#cbdff280
hsl(209 60% 87% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #cbdff2 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#cbdff21a#FAFCFE
20%#cbdff233#F5F9FC
40%#cbdff266#EAF2FA
60%#cbdff299#E0ECF7
80%#cbdff2cc#D5E5F5

Gradients from #cbdff2

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, #EFF5FB, #cbdff2 45%, #1A4166);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #cbdff2, #C0B3EC);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #cbdff2, #F2DECB);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #F3F7FC 0%, #cbdff2 45%, #1A4166 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F4F7FA, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #F4FCFB 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #E5E4F8 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #1A4166 0%, transparent 65%), #cbdff2;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #cbdff2

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.

#cbdff2 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

Very light tints can drop out on uncoated stock; check it at 100% size before signing off.

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 15.38:1.

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.

#cbdff2, answered

What color is #cbdff2?

#cbdff2 is a pale vivid blue, closest to Light Steel Blue (ΔE2000 7). It sits at 209° on the hue wheel with 60% saturation and 87% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #cbdff2?

rgb(203, 223, 242) — 203 red, 223 green and 242 blue out of 255, or 79.6% / 87.5% / 94.9% by channel.

What is #cbdff2 in HSL and HSV?

hsl(209, 60%, 87%) and hsv(209, 16%, 95%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #cbdff2 a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.7188 and perceived brightness is 86%, so black text on it reaches 15.38:1.

Should I use black or white text on #cbdff2?

Black. It scores 15.38:1 against #cbdff2, versus 1.37:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #cbdff2 accessible on a white background?

#cbdff2 on white scores 1.37:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #2F78BD to reach 4.5:1, or #245B90 for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #cbdff2?

#F2DECB sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #F2CBCC and #F2F2CB, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #cbdff2?

For interface work: #F4F7FA as the surface, #C0D7ED for borders, #4B749B for secondary text, #A64526 as an accent and #1A4166 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #CBF2F2 and #CBCCF2 stays calm, while #F2DECB is the loudest partner.

What is #cbdff2 in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(16%, 8%, 0%, 5%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #cbdff2 warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 100 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #CBD1F2; nudged cooler, #B6D1EE.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #cbdff2?

The cyan family — its 500 step is #06b6d4, ΔE2000 21.3 away. That is a visible difference, so define #cbdff2 as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #cbdff2 in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#cbdff2] or text-[#cbdff2], 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 #cbdff2 with 50% opacity?

rgba(203, 223, 242, 0.5), or #cbdff280 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #E5EFF9; over black, #667079.

Is #cbdff2 a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #CCCCFF, ΔE2000 12.5 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #cbdff2 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 chroma the effect is amplified — it will dominate whatever sits beside it.

What gradient works with #cbdff2?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #EFF5FB, #cbdff2 45%, #1A4166). For more colour, a short hue run to #C0B3EC keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #cbdff2 in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #cbdff2 at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.