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blue · cool

#a2abec

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

Token name suggestion: Morning Sapphire

RGB
162, 171, 236
HSL
233°, 66%, 78%
CMYK
31, 28, 0, 8
Luminance
0.4286

#a2abec is a light vivid blue, 233° on the wheel and 87/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (9.57:1). As text it scores 2.19:1 on white — use #5A6ADD instead. Nearest name is Light Steel Blue, nearest Tailwind family is blue.

hsl(233 66% 78%)rgb(162 171 236)Base step 300AAA inkCool

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #a2abec is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#a2abec
Hue
233°
blue
Saturation
66%
vivid
Lightness
78%
light
Brightness
93%
HSV value
Perceived
69%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.4286
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
87/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
9.57:1
Closest name
Light Steel Blue
ΔE2000 9.5
Chroma
35.5
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.758
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
blue
500 · ΔE 17.5
Web-safe
#9999FF
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue233° of 360°
Saturation66%
Lightness78%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #a2abec.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool87% 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%
Green68%
Blue14%

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

Every format

HEX#a2abec
HEX (8-digit)#a2abecff
RGBrgb(162, 171, 236)
RGBArgba(162, 171, 236, 1)
HSLhsl(233, 66%, 78%)
HSV / HSBhsv(233, 31%, 93%)
HWBhwb(233 64% 7%)
CMYKcmyk(31%, 28%, 0%, 8%)
LABlab(71.5 11.6 -33.5)
LCHlch(71.5 35.5 289.0)
OKLCHoklch(0.758 0.094 277.8)
XYZ (D65)xyz(44.60, 42.86, 85.26)
Decimal10660844
Display P3color(display-p3 0.635 0.671 0.925)
Web-safe#9999FF

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #a2abec;
background-color: #a2abec;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #a2abec;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#a2abec] bg-[#a2abec]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #a2abec;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.635, green: 0.671, blue: 0.925)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.635, green: 0.671, blue: 0.925, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#A2ABEC</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFA2ABEC)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFA2ABEC)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(236, 171, 162)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(162, 171, 236)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(162, 171, 236)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 162, 171, 236)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.6353f, 0.6706f, 0.9255f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{162,171,236}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #a2abec 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #a2abec 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#16206A, #D3D6EE);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #a2abec 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: #F3F4FB;
  --brand-100: #E8EAF8;
  --brand-200: #CBCFF1;
  --brand-300: #a2abec;
  --brand-400: #7381E2;
  --brand-500: #4557D9;
  --brand-600: #293DCB;
  --brand-700: #2333A9;
  --brand-800: #1C2988;
  --brand-900: #182162;
  --brand-950: #0F153E;
  --brand: #a2abec;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F4F5FA;
  --brand-border: #C0C5ED;
  --brand-hover: #8490E6;
  --brand-pressed: #6775E0;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #141624;
    --brand-ink: #D3D6EE;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F3F4FB',
        100: '#E8EAF8',
        200: '#CBCFF1',
        300: '#a2abec',
        400: '#7381E2',
        500: '#4557D9',
        600: '#293DCB',
        700: '#2333A9',
        800: '#1C2988',
        900: '#182162',
        950: '#0F153E',
        DEFAULT: '#a2abec',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F3F4FB,
  '100': #E8EAF8,
  '200': #CBCFF1,
  '300': #a2abec,
  '400': #7381E2,
  '500': #4557D9,
  '600': #293DCB,
  '700': #2333A9,
  '800': #1C2988,
  '900': #182162,
  '950': #0F153E,
);
$brand-base: #a2abec;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F3F4FB", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#E8EAF8", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#CBCFF1", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#a2abec", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#7381E2", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#4557D9", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#293DCB", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#2333A9", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#1C2988", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#182162", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#0F153E", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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 #a2abec · 9.57:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 2.19:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 9.57:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #a2abec as text scores 2.19:1 on white and 9.57:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #16206A at 6.61:1.

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
#5A6ADD · 4.63:1
AA on white−17% L
#5A6ADD
The quick fox
#2F44D5 · 7.22:1
AAA on white−27% L
#2F44D5
The quick fox
#a2abec · 9.57:1
AA on blackalready passes
#a2abec
The quick fox
#a2abec · 9.57:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#a2abec

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #808CE5 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
#a2abec on white: 2.19:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#a2abec on black: 9.57:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #a2abec as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #a2abec.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White2.19:1AaAa
Slate 502.10:1AaAa
Slate 1002.00:1AaAa
Slate 2001.78:1AaAa
Slate 3001.48:1AaAa
Slate 4001.17:1AaAa
Slate 5002.17:1AaAa
Slate 6003.45:1AaAa
Slate 7004.72:1AaAa
Slate 8006.67:1AaAa
Slate 9008.14:1AaAa
Black9.57:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #98B2EF
deuteranopia · #93ACEA
tritanopia · #8EB7C2

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. #a2abec 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.

#F3F4FB
#E8EAF8
#CBCFF1
#a2abec
#7381E2
#4557D9
#293DCB
#2333A9
#1C2988
#182162
#0F153E
Base = 300Lightest = 50 · #F3F4FBDarkest = 950 · #0F153EText 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 0.023 277.8);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.038 277.8);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.056 277.8);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.073 277.8);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.086 277.8);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.094 277.8);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.094 277.8);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.088 277.8);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.079 277.8);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.066 277.8);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.052 277.8);
}

Colors that work with #a2abec

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#F4F5FA
Tinted page background
Border#C0C5ED
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#4B549B
Captions on the surface
Accent#AD781F
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#16206A
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#EAECFB
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#141624
Dark-mode background
Hover#8490E6
One step down in lightness
Pressed#6775E0
Two steps down
Disabled#F3F3F7
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#AEB7F4
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 #a2abec

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 #16206A
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #808CE5

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 lightness keeps it airy and approachable.

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
  • Weight22/100
  • 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#ECE3A2
Analogous left#A2D0EC
Analogous right#BEA2EC
Split-complement 1#ECBEA2
Split-complement 2#D0ECA2
Triadic 1#ECA2AB
Triadic 2#ABECA2
Tetradic#ECA2D0
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°233°

#a2abec sits at 233°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red63.5%
Green67.1%
Blue92.5%
R · 0–255
162
0xa2
G · 0–255
171
0xab
B · 0–255
236
0xec

CMYK percentages

Cyan31.4%
Magenta27.5%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)7.5%

Total ink coverage is 66%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#a2abec text on a black background

contrast 9.57:1

Card sample

#a2abec text on a white background

contrast 2.19:1

Card sample

#a2abec on grey

2.00:1

#a2abec on its own surface

2.01:1

#a2abec on its dark surface

8.18:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #a2abec;
Background color
Panel with #a2abec background
background-color: #a2abec;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #a2abec;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(162, 171, 236, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(162, 171, 236, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #a2abec;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #a2abec, #CAA2EC);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #a2abec, #DDA2EC);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #a2abec;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #a2abec;
caret-color: #a2abec;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #a2abec;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #EAECFB;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #a2abec;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#a2abec 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #a2abec 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(162, 171, 236, 0.5)
rgb(162 171 236 / 50%)
#a2abec80
hsl(233 66% 78% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #a2abec 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#a2abec1a#F6F7FD
20%#a2abec33#ECEEFB
40%#a2abec66#DADDF7
60%#a2abec99#C7CDF4
80%#a2abeccc#B5BCF0

Gradients from #a2abec

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, #D5D9F6, #a2abec 45%, #16206A);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #a2abec, #C488E7);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #a2abec, #ECE3A2);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #EEF0FC 0%, #a2abec 45%, #16206A 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F4F5FA, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #CCE9F5 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #D4BBF1 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #16206A 0%, transparent 65%), #a2abec;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #a2abec

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.

#a2abec 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.

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 9.57:1.

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.

#a2abec, answered

What color is #a2abec?

#a2abec is a light vivid blue, closest to Light Steel Blue (ΔE2000 9.5). It sits at 233° on the hue wheel with 66% saturation and 78% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #a2abec?

rgb(162, 171, 236) — 162 red, 171 green and 236 blue out of 255, or 63.5% / 67.1% / 92.5% by channel.

What is #a2abec in HSL and HSV?

hsl(233, 66%, 78%) and hsv(233, 31%, 93%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #a2abec a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.4286 and perceived brightness is 69%, so black text on it reaches 9.57:1.

Should I use black or white text on #a2abec?

Black. It scores 9.57:1 against #a2abec, versus 2.19:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #a2abec accessible on a white background?

#a2abec on white scores 2.19:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #5A6ADD to reach 4.5:1, or #2F44D5 for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #a2abec?

#ECE3A2 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #ECBEA2 and #D0ECA2, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #a2abec?

For interface work: #F4F5FA as the surface, #C0C5ED for borders, #4B549B for secondary text, #AD781F as an accent and #16206A for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #A2D0EC and #BEA2EC stays calm, while #ECE3A2 is the loudest partner.

What is #a2abec in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(31%, 28%, 0%, 8%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #a2abec warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 87 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #B4A2EC; nudged cooler, #A1BDED.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #a2abec?

The blue family — its 500 step is #3b82f6, ΔE2000 17.5 away. That is a visible difference, so define #a2abec as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #a2abec in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#a2abec] or text-[#a2abec], 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 #a2abec with 50% opacity?

rgba(162, 171, 236, 0.5), or #a2abec80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #D1D5F6; over black, #515676.

Is #a2abec a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #9999FF, ΔE2000 6.4 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #a2abec 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 #a2abec?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #D5D9F6, #a2abec 45%, #16206A). For more colour, a short hue run to #C488E7 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #a2abec in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #a2abec at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.