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blue · cool

#a4a2dc

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

Token name suggestion: Morning Denim

RGB
164, 162, 220
HSL
242°, 45%, 75%
CMYK
26, 26, 0, 14
Luminance
0.3890

#a4a2dc is a light vivid blue, 242° on the wheel and 82/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (8.78:1). As text it scores 2.39:1 on white — use #6E6AC7 instead. Nearest name is Light Steel Blue, nearest Tailwind family is blue.

hsl(242 45% 75%)rgb(164 162 220)Base step 300AAA inkCool

At a glance

Every number on this page in one read: what #a4a2dc is made of, how bright it looks, and which way it leans.

Hex
#a4a2dc
Hue
242°
blue
Saturation
45%
vivid
Lightness
75%
light
Brightness
86%
HSV value
Perceived
67%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.3890
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
82/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Vivid
Best ink
Black
8.78:1
Closest name
Light Steel Blue
ΔE2000 12.1
Chroma
31.9
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.735
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
blue
500 · ΔE 19
Web-safe
#9999CC
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue242° of 360°
Saturation45%
Lightness75%
Saturation × lightness field

Left edge is grey, right edge is full chroma; top is white, bottom is black. The dot is #a4a2dc.

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool82% 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
Red20%
Green66%
Blue13%

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

Every format

HEX#a4a2dc
HEX (8-digit)#a4a2dcff
RGBrgb(164, 162, 220)
RGBArgba(164, 162, 220, 1)
HSLhsl(242, 45%, 75%)
HSV / HSBhsv(242, 26%, 86%)
HWBhwb(242 64% 14%)
CMYKcmyk(26%, 26%, 0%, 14%)
LABlab(68.7 13.2 -29.1)
LCHlch(68.7 31.9 294.5)
OKLCHoklch(0.735 0.083 285.7)
XYZ (D65)xyz(41.15, 38.90, 73.04)
Decimal10789596
Display P3color(display-p3 0.643 0.635 0.863)
Web-safe#9999CC

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #a4a2dc;
background-color: #a4a2dc;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #a4a2dc;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#a4a2dc] bg-[#a4a2dc]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #a4a2dc;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.643, green: 0.635, blue: 0.863)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.643, green: 0.635, blue: 0.863, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#A4A2DC</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFA4A2DC)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFA4A2DC)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(220, 162, 164)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(164, 162, 220)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(164, 162, 220)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 164, 162, 220)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.6431f, 0.6353f, 0.8627f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{164,162,220}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #a4a2dc 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #a4a2dc 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#25235D, #D4D3EE);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #a4a2dc 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: #F5F5FA;
  --brand-100: #EBEAF5;
  --brand-200: #D2D1EB;
  --brand-300: #a4a2dc;
  --brand-400: #8785D1;
  --brand-500: #605CC2;
  --brand-600: #4743B2;
  --brand-700: #3B3894;
  --brand-800: #2F2D77;
  --brand-900: #252457;
  --brand-950: #171636;
  --brand: #a4a2dc;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F5F4FA;
  --brand-border: #C5C4E9;
  --brand-hover: #8B88D2;
  --brand-pressed: #716EC8;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #141424;
    --brand-ink: #D4D3EE;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F5F5FA',
        100: '#EBEAF5',
        200: '#D2D1EB',
        300: '#a4a2dc',
        400: '#8785D1',
        500: '#605CC2',
        600: '#4743B2',
        700: '#3B3894',
        800: '#2F2D77',
        900: '#252457',
        950: '#171636',
        DEFAULT: '#a4a2dc',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F5F5FA,
  '100': #EBEAF5,
  '200': #D2D1EB,
  '300': #a4a2dc,
  '400': #8785D1,
  '500': #605CC2,
  '600': #4743B2,
  '700': #3B3894,
  '800': #2F2D77,
  '900': #252457,
  '950': #171636,
);
$brand-base: #a4a2dc;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F5F5FA", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#EBEAF5", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#D2D1EB", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#a4a2dc", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#8785D1", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#605CC2", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#4743B2", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#3B3894", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#2F2D77", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#252457", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#171636", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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 #a4a2dc · 8.78:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 2.39:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 8.78:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #a4a2dc as text scores 2.39:1 on white and 8.78:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #25235D at 5.94:1.

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
#6E6AC7 · 4.62:1
AA on white−15% L
#6E6AC7
The quick fox
#4D49BB · 7.03:1
AAA on white−24% L
#4D49BB
The quick fox
#a4a2dc · 8.78:1
AA on blackalready passes
#a4a2dc
The quick fox
#a4a2dc · 8.78:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#a4a2dc

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #8E8CD4 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
#a4a2dc on white: 2.39:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#a4a2dc on black: 8.78:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

Contrast is symmetric, so each row covers both directions: #a4a2dc as text on that neutral, and that neutral as text on #a4a2dc.

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White2.39:1AaAa
Slate 502.29:1AaAa
Slate 1002.18:1AaAa
Slate 2001.94:1AaAa
Slate 3001.61:1AaAa
Slate 4001.07:1AaAa
Slate 5001.99:1AaAa
Slate 6003.17:1AaAa
Slate 7004.33:1AaAa
Slate 8006.12:1AaAa
Slate 9007.46:1AaAa
Black8.78:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #93A9DE
deuteranopia · #91A6DA
tritanopia · #97ACB6

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. #a4a2dc 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.

#F5F5FA
#EBEAF5
#D2D1EB
#a4a2dc
#8785D1
#605CC2
#4743B2
#3B3894
#2F2D77
#252457
#171636
Base = 300Lightest = 50 · #F5F5FADarkest = 950 · #171636Text 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 0.021 285.7);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.033 285.7);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.050 285.7);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.065 285.7);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.077 285.7);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.083 285.7);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.083 285.7);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.078 285.7);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.070 285.7);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.058 285.7);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.046 285.7);
}

Colors that work with #a4a2dc

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#F5F4FA
Tinted page background
Border#C5C4E9
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#4D4B9B
Captions on the surface
Accent#998333
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#25235D
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#EDECF8
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#141424
Dark-mode background
Hover#8B88D2
One step down in lightness
Pressed#716EC8
Two steps down
Disabled#F3F3F7
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#AEABE7
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 #a4a2dc

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 #25235D
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #8E8CD4

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
  • Weight25/100
  • 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#DADCA2
Analogous left#A2BDDC
Analogous right#C1A2DC
Split-complement 1#DCC1A2
Split-complement 2#BDDCA2
Triadic 1#DCA4A2
Triadic 2#A2DCA4
Tetradic#DCA2BD
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°242°

#a4a2dc sits at 242°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red64.3%
Green63.5%
Blue86.3%
R · 0–255
164
0xa4
G · 0–255
162
0xa2
B · 0–255
220
0xdc

CMYK percentages

Cyan25.5%
Magenta26.4%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)13.7%

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

Color previews

#a4a2dc text on a black background

contrast 8.78:1

Card sample

#a4a2dc text on a white background

contrast 2.39:1

Card sample

#a4a2dc on grey

2.18:1

#a4a2dc on its own surface

2.19:1

#a4a2dc on its dark surface

7.60:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

color: #a4a2dc;
Background color
Panel with #a4a2dc background
background-color: #a4a2dc;
Text shadow — hex

Glowing headline

text-shadow: 2px 2px 8px #a4a2dc;
Text shadow — RGB

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(164, 162, 220, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(164, 162, 220, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #a4a2dc;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #a4a2dc, #CBA2DC);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #a4a2dc, #D9A2DC);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #a4a2dc;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #a4a2dc;
caret-color: #a4a2dc;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #a4a2dc;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #EDECF8;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #a4a2dc;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#a4a2dc 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #a4a2dc 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(164, 162, 220, 0.5)
rgb(164 162 220 / 50%)
#a4a2dc80
hsl(242 45% 75% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #a4a2dc 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#a4a2dc1a#F6F6FC
20%#a4a2dc33#EDECF8
40%#a4a2dc66#DBDAF1
60%#a4a2dc99#C8C7EA
80%#a4a2dccc#B6B5E3

Gradients from #a4a2dc

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, #D0CEED, #a4a2dc 45%, #25235D);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #a4a2dc, #C48CD4);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #a4a2dc, #DADCA2);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #E5E5F5 0%, #a4a2dc 45%, #25235D 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F5F4FA, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #C7DAEA 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #D4B8E4 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #25235D 0%, transparent 65%), #a4a2dc;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #a4a2dc

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.

#a4a2dc 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 8.78:1.

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.

#a4a2dc, answered

What color is #a4a2dc?

#a4a2dc is a light vivid blue, closest to Light Steel Blue (ΔE2000 12.1). It sits at 242° on the hue wheel with 45% saturation and 75% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #a4a2dc?

rgb(164, 162, 220) — 164 red, 162 green and 220 blue out of 255, or 64.3% / 63.5% / 86.3% by channel.

What is #a4a2dc in HSL and HSV?

hsl(242, 45%, 75%) and hsv(242, 26%, 86%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #a4a2dc a light or a dark color?

It is a mid-tone. Relative luminance is 0.3890 and perceived brightness is 67%, so black text on it reaches 8.78:1.

Should I use black or white text on #a4a2dc?

Black. It scores 8.78:1 against #a4a2dc, versus 2.39:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #a4a2dc accessible on a white background?

#a4a2dc on white scores 2.39:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #6E6AC7 to reach 4.5:1, or #4D49BB for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #a4a2dc?

#DADCA2 sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #DCC1A2 and #BDDCA2, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #a4a2dc?

For interface work: #F5F4FA as the surface, #C5C4E9 for borders, #4D4B9B for secondary text, #998333 as an accent and #25235D for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #A2BDDC and #C1A2DC stays calm, while #DADCA2 is the loudest partner.

What is #a4a2dc in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(26%, 26%, 0%, 14%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #a4a2dc warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 82 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #B9A2DC; nudged cooler, #A1B5DD.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #a4a2dc?

The blue family — its 500 step is #3b82f6, ΔE2000 19 away. That is a visible difference, so define #a4a2dc as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #a4a2dc in Tailwind CSS?

Inline it as an arbitrary value with bg-[#a4a2dc] or text-[#a4a2dc], 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 #a4a2dc with 50% opacity?

rgba(164, 162, 220, 0.5), or #a4a2dc80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #D2D1EE; over black, #52516E.

Is #a4a2dc a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #9999CC, ΔE2000 3.3 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #a4a2dc 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 #a4a2dc?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #D0CEED, #a4a2dc 45%, #25235D). For more colour, a short hue run to #C48CD4 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #a4a2dc in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

Every value on this page is computed from #a4a2dc at request time — conversions, contrast ratios and ΔE distances are calculated, never looked up.