Steel blue

#2a698a

Hex, rgb, cmyk and Pantone values for steel blue, with shades, tints, matching colors and free print quality patterns.

Steel blue is a deep blue that reads weighty. Deep blues like this anchor serious, established brands. It pairs with warm neutrals for balance, or with a brighter accent for contrast.

Steel blue color values

Every conversion for #2a698a, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#2a698a

RGB42, 105, 138

HSL201, 53%, 35%

HSV201, 70%, 54%

CMYK70%, 24%, 0%, 46%

Lab41.89, -8.91, -24.08

XYZ10.59, 12.43, 25.89

Decimal2779530

Web safe#336699

Pantone3015 C

Shades of steel blue

#27607f #235873 #204f68 #1c465c #193d51 #153545 #122c3a #0e232e #0b1b23 #071217

Tints of steel blue

#317ba2 #398dba #4a9dc8 #62aacf #7ab7d6 #92c4de #aad1e5 #c1deec #d9ebf4 #f1f8fb

Colors that go with steel blue

Complementary#8a4b2a Analogous#2a8a7b Analogous#2a398a Triadic#8a2a69 Triadic#698a2a Split complementary#8a2a39 Split complementary#8a7b2a

Steel blue in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 70, 24, 0, 46.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #2a698a on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

70 24 0 46

Ink sits on the surface, so colors stay bright and close to screen.

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

68 26 4 52

The stock absorbs ink and gains dot, so it needs a heavier build and reads a touch softer.

This color converts to cmyk comfortably and should hold on press.

See how it converts in the rgb to cmyk converter, or readrgb vs cmyk for print andwhat the k in cmyk means.

Steel blue in css

Copy #2a698a straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #2a698a; }
.text { color: #2a698a; }
.border { border: 2px solid #2a698a; }

How steel blue looks on light and dark

Sample text on black

Sample text on white

Text on this color

Steel blue and accessibility

Contrast ratios for #2a698a against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use white text on this color for readable body copy. To test #2a698a against any other color, not just black and white, run the pair through ourcontrast checker for a live WCAG reading.

Steel blue on a business card, sticker and pattern

A quick look at how #2a698a sits on real print products. Start any of these in the maker.

Business card

Sticker

Repeat pattern

Building a full palette around steel blue? Pull matching colors from any photo with thecolor palette generator, or check a design for print with thergb to cmyk converter.

Turn steel blue into a seamless pattern

Four patterns built from #2a698a and its shades, free at print quality. Click any one to keep editing in the pattern maker.

Arches Signature stripes Gem Shingles

Make posters, wallpaper and packaging art from steel blue, free and print ready.

Open in pattern maker

How we calculate these values

Here is how the numbers for #2a698a are worked out. We convert from sRGB to each space with the standard formulas, so the codes match what design tools show. The coated and uncoated cmyk builds differ because uncoated stock absorbs more ink and gains dot, so the same color needs a heavier, slightly duller build on press. The Pantone value is the closest reference by perceptual color distance and should be treated as a starting point, not a guaranteed match.