Steel blue

#508cbb

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

This is Steel blue, a soft blue at 206 degrees. A mid blue this balanced is a workhorse for corporate identity. It pairs with warm neutrals for balance, or with a brighter accent for contrast.

Steel blue color values

Every conversion for #508cbb, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#508cbb

RGB80, 140, 187

HSL206, 44%, 52%

HSV206, 57%, 73%

CMYK57%, 25%, 0%, 27%

Lab56.14, -5.55, -30.45

XYZ21.66, 24.05, 50.51

Decimal5278907

Web safe#6699cc

Pantone542 C

Shades of steel blue

#4480af #3d749e #37678d #305b7c #2a4e6b #23425a #1c3549 #162938 #0f1d27 #091016

Tints of steel blue

#6097c1 #70a1c8 #81acce #91b7d4 #a1c1db #b1cce1 #c2d7e7 #d2e1ed #e2ecf4 #f2f7fa

Colors that go with steel blue

Complementary#bb7f50 Analogous#50bbb4 Analogous#5057bb Triadic#bb508c Triadic#8cbb50 Split complementary#bb5057 Split complementary#bbb450

Steel blue in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 57, 25, 0, 27.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #508cbb on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

57 25 0 27

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

56 27 4 33

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 #508cbb straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #508cbb; }
.text { color: #508cbb; }
.border { border: 2px solid #508cbb; }

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 #508cbb against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #508cbb 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 #508cbb 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 #508cbb 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 #508cbb is computed, not guessed. The rgb, hsl, hsv, cie-lab and xyz values follow the standard conversions from the sRGB color space. The uncoated cmyk build carries more ink than the coated one, which is what a printer would compensate for when the same color runs on a rougher stock. The Pantone figure is the nearest match in our reference set by perceptual distance and it is an approximation, not an exact spot color.