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blue · cool

#bfcadf

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

Token name suggestion: Meadow Denim

RGB
191, 202, 223
HSL
219°, 33%, 81%
CMYK
14, 9, 0, 13
Luminance
0.5865

#bfcadf is a light soft blue, 219° on the wheel and 93/100 on the cool side. Put black text on it (12.73:1). As text it scores 1.65:1 on white — use #5976AC instead. Nearest name is Light Steel Blue, nearest Tailwind family is cyan.

hsl(219 33% 81%)rgb(191 202 223)Base step 300AAA inkCool

At a glance

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

Hex
#bfcadf
Hue
219°
blue
Saturation
33%
soft
Lightness
81%
light
Brightness
87%
HSV value
Perceived
79%
weighted brightness
Luminance
0.5865
WCAG relative
Temperature
Cool
93/100 cool
Color family
Blue
Tone
Soft
Best ink
Black
12.73:1
Closest name
Light Steel Blue
ΔE2000 3.7
Chroma
11.7
LCH, 0–130ish
OKLCH L
0.837
perceptual lightness
Tailwind
cyan
500 · ΔE 22.2
Web-safe
#CCCCCC
nearest of 216
Where it sits
Hue219° of 360°
Saturation33%
Lightness81%
Saturation × lightness field

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

Temperature
Warm ← → Cool93% 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
Red19%
Green72%
Blue9%

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

Every format

HEX#bfcadf
HEX (8-digit)#bfcadfff
RGBrgb(191, 202, 223)
RGBArgba(191, 202, 223, 1)
HSLhsl(219, 33%, 81%)
HSV / HSBhsv(219, 14%, 87%)
HWBhwb(219 75% 13%)
CMYKcmyk(14%, 9%, 0%, 13%)
LABlab(81.1 0.5 -11.7)
LCHlch(81.1 11.7 272.3)
OKLCHoklch(0.837 0.032 263.5)
XYZ (D65)xyz(55.92, 58.64, 78.17)
Decimal12569311
Display P3color(display-p3 0.749 0.792 0.875)
Web-safe#CCCCCC

Copy-ready code

every platformclick to select
/* CSS */
color: #bfcadf;
background-color: #bfcadf;
/* CSS custom property */
--brand: #bfcadf;
/* Tailwind (arbitrary) */
class="text-[#bfcadf] bg-[#bfcadf]"
/* SCSS */
$brand: #bfcadf;
/* SwiftUI */
Color(red: 0.749, green: 0.792, blue: 0.875)
/* UIKit */
UIColor(red: 0.749, green: 0.792, blue: 0.875, alpha: 1)
/* Android XML */
<color name="brand">#BFCADF</color>
/* Android Compose */
Color(0xFFBFCADF)
/* Flutter */
Color(0xFFBFCADF)
/* Python / OpenCV (BGR) */
(223, 202, 191)
/* Python / PIL (RGB) */
(191, 202, 223)
/* Java AWT */
new Color(191, 202, 223)
/* .NET */
Color.FromArgb(255, 191, 202, 223)
/* OpenGL / Unity (0–1) */
(0.7490f, 0.7922f, 0.8745f, 1f)
/* LaTeX */
\definecolor{brand}{RGB}{191,202,223}
modern cssclick to select
/* mix without leaving CSS */
background: color-mix(in oklab, #bfcadf 85%, white);
border-color: color-mix(in oklab, #bfcadf 40%, transparent);
/* theme-aware in one line */
color: light-dark(#2B3955, #D6DDEB);
/* relative colour syntax */
--hover: hsl(from #bfcadf 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: #F5F7F9;
  --brand-100: #ECEEF4;
  --brand-200: #D4DBE8;
  --brand-300: #bfcadf;
  --brand-400: #8FA2C7;
  --brand-500: #6983B4;
  --brand-600: #526EA3;
  --brand-700: #445B88;
  --brand-800: #36496D;
  --brand-900: #2A3750;
  --brand-950: #1B2332;
  --brand: #bfcadf;
  --brand-ink: #000000;
  --brand-surface: #F5F7FA;
  --brand-border: #C9D2E4;
  --brand-hover: #A7B6D3;
  --brand-pressed: #90A3C7;
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
  :root {
    --brand-surface: #141924;
    --brand-ink: #D6DDEB;
  }
}
tailwind.config.jsclick to select
theme: {
  extend: {
    colors: {
      brand: {
        50: '#F5F7F9',
        100: '#ECEEF4',
        200: '#D4DBE8',
        300: '#bfcadf',
        400: '#8FA2C7',
        500: '#6983B4',
        600: '#526EA3',
        700: '#445B88',
        800: '#36496D',
        900: '#2A3750',
        950: '#1B2332',
        DEFAULT: '#bfcadf',
      },
    },
  },
}
scss mapclick to select
$brand: (
  '50': #F5F7F9,
  '100': #ECEEF4,
  '200': #D4DBE8,
  '300': #bfcadf,
  '400': #8FA2C7,
  '500': #6983B4,
  '600': #526EA3,
  '700': #445B88,
  '800': #36496D,
  '900': #2A3750,
  '950': #1B2332,
);
$brand-base: #bfcadf;
$brand-ink: #000000;

@function brand($step) { @return map-get($brand, $step); }
w3c design tokens (json)click to select
{
  "color": {
    "brand": {
      "50": { "$value": "#F5F7F9", "$type": "color" },
      "100": { "$value": "#ECEEF4", "$type": "color" },
      "200": { "$value": "#D4DBE8", "$type": "color" },
      "300": { "$value": "#bfcadf", "$type": "color" },
      "400": { "$value": "#8FA2C7", "$type": "color" },
      "500": { "$value": "#6983B4", "$type": "color" },
      "600": { "$value": "#526EA3", "$type": "color" },
      "700": { "$value": "#445B88", "$type": "color" },
      "800": { "$value": "#36496D", "$type": "color" },
      "900": { "$value": "#2A3750", "$type": "color" },
      "950": { "$value": "#1B2332", "$type": "color" }
    },
    "brandInk": { "$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 #bfcadf · 12.73:1
Use #000000AAA at every size.
Aa
12px
Aa
16px
Aa
24px
Aa
White text · 1.65:1
AA fail · AA large fail · AAA fail
Aa
Black text · 12.73:1 · recommended
AA pass · AA large pass · AAA pass
Reading the other direction: #bfcadf as text scores 1.65:1 on white and 12.73:1 on black.
Best tinted ink on it, if plain black or white feels flat: #2B3955 at 7.00:1.

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
#5976AC · 4.55:1
AA on white−30% L
#5976AC
The quick fox
#415782 · 7.22:1
AAA on white−43% L
#415782
The quick fox
#bfcadf · 12.73:1
AA on blackalready passes
#bfcadf
The quick fox
#bfcadf · 12.73:1
AAA on blackalready passes
#bfcadf

Large text — 24px regular or 18.66px bold and above — only needs 3:1, so #7F95BF 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
#bfcadf on white: 1.65:1
AA ✗ fail · AA-large · AAA
Aa
#bfcadf on black: 12.73:1
AA ✓ pass · AA-large · AAA
Against the neutral ladder

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

NeutralRatioBoth directions
White1.65:1AaAa
Slate 501.58:1AaAa
Slate 1001.51:1AaAa
Slate 2001.34:1AaAa
Slate 3001.11:1AaAa
Slate 4001.55:1AaAa
Slate 5002.88:1AaAa
Slate 6004.59:1AaAa
Slate 7006.28:1AaAa
Slate 8008.87:1AaAa
Slate 90010.82:1AaAa
Black12.73:1AaAa
Colour vision deficiency
true color
protanopia · #C4CBE0
deuteranopia · #C1C8DE
tritanopia · #B8CED1

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. #bfcadf 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.

#F5F7F9
#ECEEF4
#D4DBE8
#bfcadf
#8FA2C7
#6983B4
#526EA3
#445B88
#36496D
#2A3750
#1B2332
Base = 300Lightest = 50 · #F5F7F9Darkest = 950 · #1B2332Text 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 0.008 263.5);
  --brand-100: oklch(0.94 0.013 263.5);
  --brand-200: oklch(0.88 0.019 263.5);
  --brand-300: oklch(0.80 0.025 263.5);
  --brand-400: oklch(0.72 0.029 263.5);
  --brand-500: oklch(0.64 0.032 263.5);
  --brand-600: oklch(0.56 0.032 263.5);
  --brand-700: oklch(0.48 0.030 263.5);
  --brand-800: oklch(0.40 0.027 263.5);
  --brand-900: oklch(0.32 0.022 263.5);
  --brand-950: oklch(0.24 0.017 263.5);
}

Colors that work with #bfcadf

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#F5F7FA
Tinted page background
Border#C9D2E4
Hairlines and dividers
Muted text#4D6799
Captions on the surface
Accent#8C6040
Second voice, not a rival
Dark variant#2B3955
Hover, pressed, headers
Light variant#EEF1F6
Selected rows, tints
Dark surface#141924
Dark-mode background
Hover#A7B6D3
One step down in lightness
Pressed#90A3C7
Two steps down
Disabled#F3F4F7
Chroma pulled out
Focus ring#C9D4EA
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 #bfcadf

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

Works well for
  • Text and icons on dark surfaces
  • Charts, tags and secondary surfaces
  • Card and section backgrounds
  • Brand accents, badges and data highlights
Use with care
  • Text of any size on white — fails WCAG AA
  • 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 #2B3955
Safe as a 1px border on white
No — use #7F95BF

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.

The muted chroma softens the association — it reads considered rather than loud, which suits long-form and data-heavy screens. 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
  • Weight19/100
  • 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#DFD4BF
Analogous left#BFDADF
Analogous right#C4BFDF
Split-complement 1#DFC4BF
Split-complement 2#DADFBF
Triadic 1#DFBFCA
Triadic 2#CADFBF
Tetradic#DFBFDA
On the wheel
Base+30°−30°+120°+240°+180°219°

#bfcadf sits at 219°. Every dot is a harmony position and links to its own page in the table alongside.

RGB percentages

Red74.9%
Green79.2%
Blue87.5%
R · 0–255
191
0xbf
G · 0–255
202
0xca
B · 0–255
223
0xdf

CMYK percentages

Cyan14.3%
Magenta9.4%
Yellow0.0%
Key (black)12.5%

Total ink coverage is 36%. Most commercial presses cap around 300% — above that, sheets stop drying properly.

Color previews

#bfcadf text on a black background

contrast 12.73:1

Card sample

#bfcadf text on a white background

contrast 1.65:1

Card sample

#bfcadf on grey

1.51:1

#bfcadf on its own surface

1.54:1

#bfcadf on its dark surface

10.66:1

CSS3 live lab

Text font color

The quick brown fox

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

Glowing headline

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

Soft neon halo

text-shadow: 0 0 14px rgba(191, 202, 223, 0.45);
Div box shadow
Elevated card
box-shadow: 0 12px 32px -8px rgba(191, 202, 223, 0.45);
Border & gradient
Gradient panel
border: 3px solid #bfcadf;
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #bfcadf, #C9BFDF);
Gradient text

Gradient headline

background: linear-gradient(90deg, #bfcadf, #D1BFDF);
-webkit-background-clip: text;
color: transparent;
Focus ring
Focused control
outline: 2px solid #bfcadf;
outline-offset: 3px;
Underline & caret

Marked up text

text-decoration-color: #bfcadf;
caret-color: #bfcadf;
Left rule
Pull quote or callout
border-left: 4px solid #bfcadf;
Ring + tint
Selected chip
background: #EEF1F6;
box-shadow: inset 0 0 0 2px #bfcadf;
Conic badge
68%
background: conic-gradient(#bfcadf 68%, #e2e8f0 0);

Transparency

What each alpha value actually composites to. The top row is #bfcadf 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(191, 202, 223, 0.5)
rgb(191 202 223 / 50%)
#bfcadf80
hsl(219 33% 81% / 50%)
color-mix(in srgb, #bfcadf 50%, transparent)
Alpha8-digit hexFlat on white
10%#bfcadf1a#F9FAFC
20%#bfcadf33#F2F4F9
40%#bfcadf66#E5EAF2
60%#bfcadf99#D9DFEC
80%#bfcadfcc#CCD5E5

Gradients from #bfcadf

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, #E8ECF3, #bfcadf 45%, #2B3955);
Duotone
A short hue run reads richer than a flat fill
background: linear-gradient(120deg, #bfcadf, #BCABD5);
Complement sweep
Loud — keep it behind large type only
background: linear-gradient(90deg, #bfcadf, #DFD4BF);
Spotlight
Hero panels and app headers
background: radial-gradient(120% 120% at 20% 0%, #F5F7FA 0%, #bfcadf 45%, #2B3955 100%);
Soft wash
Section backgrounds that stay readable
background: linear-gradient(180deg, #F5F7FA, #ffffff);
Mesh
Ambient background, no image weight
background: radial-gradient(60% 60% at 15% 20%, #E1EFF0 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(55% 55% at 85% 15%, #D9D3E9 0%, transparent 60%), radial-gradient(70% 70% at 50% 95%, #2B3955 0%, transparent 65%), #bfcadf;

Monochromatic scale

Palettes built from #bfcadf

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.

#bfcadf 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 12.73:1.

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.

#bfcadf, answered

What color is #bfcadf?

#bfcadf is a light soft blue, closest to Light Steel Blue (ΔE2000 3.7). It sits at 219° on the hue wheel with 33% saturation and 81% lightness, which reads as cool.

What is the RGB value of #bfcadf?

rgb(191, 202, 223) — 191 red, 202 green and 223 blue out of 255, or 74.9% / 79.2% / 87.5% by channel.

What is #bfcadf in HSL and HSV?

hsl(219, 33%, 81%) and hsv(219, 14%, 87%). HSL is what CSS takes; HSV is what your design tool's picker shows, which is why the saturation numbers rarely match.

Is #bfcadf a light or a dark color?

It is a light color. Relative luminance is 0.5865 and perceived brightness is 79%, so black text on it reaches 12.73:1.

Should I use black or white text on #bfcadf?

Black. It scores 12.73:1 against #bfcadf, versus 1.65:1 for white — AAA at any size.

Is #bfcadf accessible on a white background?

#bfcadf on white scores 1.65:1, which fails WCAG AA at every size. Darken it to #5976AC to reach 4.5:1, or #415782 for 7:1.

What is the complementary color of #bfcadf?

#DFD4BF sits directly opposite on the wheel. Softer options are the split-complements #DFC4BF and #DADFBF, which give the same contrast with far less vibration.

What colors go well with #bfcadf?

For interface work: #F5F7FA as the surface, #C9D2E4 for borders, #4D6799 for secondary text, #8C6040 as an accent and #2B3955 for hover and pressed states. For a palette, the analogous pair #BFDADF and #C4BFDF stays calm, while #DFD4BF is the loudest partner.

What is #bfcadf in CMYK for printing?

cmyk(14%, 9%, 0%, 13%). This is a screen-to-ink approximation — ask your printer for a proof before committing to a run.

Is #bfcadf warm or cool?

Cool — it scores 93 on a scale where 0 is the warmest orange and 100 the coolest azure. Nudged warmer it becomes #C0BFDF; nudged cooler, #BECDE0.

Which Tailwind color is closest to #bfcadf?

The cyan family — its 500 step is #06b6d4, ΔE2000 22.2 away. That is a visible difference, so define #bfcadf as a custom token rather than reaching for the built-in.

How do I use #bfcadf in Tailwind CSS?

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

rgba(191, 202, 223, 0.5), or #bfcadf80 in eight-digit hex. Over white that composites to #DFE5EF; over black, #606570.

Is #bfcadf a web-safe color?

No. The nearest web-safe colour is #CCCCCC, ΔE2000 9.3 away. The palette only matters for legacy displays and some email clients now.

What does the color #bfcadf 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 moderate chroma the association is present but not shouted.

What gradient works with #bfcadf?

The safest is same-hue elevation: linear-gradient(135deg, #E8ECF3, #bfcadf 45%, #2B3955). For more colour, a short hue run to #BCABD5 keeps it rich without turning muddy.

Work with #bfcadf in the Color Lab

Every tool opens with this colour already loaded.

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