Steel blue

#599cbb

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

Steel blue sits in the blue band, mid and soft. 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 #599cbb, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#599cbb

RGB89, 156, 187

HSL199, 42%, 54%

HSV199, 52%, 73%

CMYK52%, 17%, 0%, 27%

Lab61.21, -12.54, -22.59

XYZ24.98, 29.49, 51.39

Decimal5872827

Web safe#6699cc

Pantone549 C

Shades of steel blue

#4991b2 #4283a1 #3b7590 #34677e #2d586d #254a5b #1e3c4a #172e39 #102027 #091216

Tints of steel blue

#68a5c1 #78aec8 #87b7ce #96c1d4 #a6cada #b5d3e1 #c4dce7 #d4e5ed #e3eef4 #f2f7fa

Colors that go with steel blue

Complementary#bb7859 Analogous#59bba9 Analogous#596bbb Triadic#bb599c Triadic#9cbb59 Split complementary#bb596b Split complementary#bba959

Steel blue in print

It converts to cmyk cleanly and holds its character from screen to paper. The cmyk build is 52, 17, 0, 27.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #599cbb on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

52 17 0 27

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

52 20 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 read rgb vs cmyk for print and what the k in cmyk means.

Steel blue in css

Copy #599cbb straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #599cbb; }
.text { color: #599cbb; }
.border { border: 2px solid #599cbb; }

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 #599cbb against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #599cbb against any other color, not just black and white, run the pair through our contrast checker for a live WCAG reading.

Steel blue on a business card, sticker and pattern

A quick look at how #599cbb 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 the color palette generator, or check a design for print with the rgb to cmyk converter.

Turn steel blue into a seamless pattern

Four patterns built from #599cbb 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 #599cbb is computed, not guessed. We convert from sRGB to each space with the standard formulas, so the codes match what design tools show. 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 value is the closest reference by perceptual color distance and should be treated as a starting point, not a guaranteed match.