Steel blue

#3c99bc

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

Steel blue is a mid blue that reads grounded. A mid blue this balanced is a workhorse for corporate identity. Warm oranges and ambers opposite it add energy and grey keeps it professional.

Steel blue color values

Every conversion for #3c99bc, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#3c99bc

RGB60, 153, 188

HSL196, 52%, 49%

HSV196, 68%, 74%

CMYK68%, 19%, 0%, 26%

Lab59.32, -16.12, -26.15

XYZ22.33, 27.37, 51.68

Decimal3971516

Web safe#3399cc

Pantone639 C

Shades of steel blue

#378cac #317e9b #2c718b #27637a #22566a #1c4959 #173b49 #122e38 #0d2028 #071317

Tints of steel blue

#4ba4c6 #5dadcb #70b7d1 #82c0d7 #95c9dd #a7d3e3 #badce9 #cce5ef #dfeff5 #f1f8fb

Colors that go with steel blue

Complementary#bc5f3c Analogous#3cbc9f Analogous#3c59bc Triadic#bc3c99 Triadic#99bc3c Split complementary#bc3c59 Split complementary#bc9f3c

Steel blue in print

The cmyk build is well inside gamut, so what you see on screen is close to what prints. The cmyk build is 68, 19, 0, 26.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #3c99bc on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

68 19 0 26

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

67 21 4 32

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 #3c99bc straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #3c99bc; }
.text { color: #3c99bc; }
.border { border: 2px solid #3c99bc; }

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 #3c99bc against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #3c99bc 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 #3c99bc 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 #3c99bc 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

Every value on this page for #3c99bc is computed, not guessed. The rgb, hsl, hsv, cie-lab and xyz values follow the standard conversions from the sRGB color space. 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.