Steel blue

#608abc

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. It pairs with warm neutrals for balance, or with a brighter accent for contrast.

Steel blue color values

Every conversion for #608abc, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#608abc

RGB96, 138, 188

HSL213, 41%, 56%

HSV213, 49%, 74%

CMYK49%, 27%, 0%, 26%

Lab56.38, -0.46, -30.58

XYZ22.99, 24.29, 51.05

Decimal6326972

Web safe#6699cc

Pantone279 C

Shades of steel blue

#4e7db4 #4571a4 #3e6492 #365880 #2f4c6f #27405d #20334b #182739 #111b27 #090f16

Tints of steel blue

#6f95c2 #7da0c8 #8caacf #9bb5d5 #a9c0db #b8cbe1 #c7d5e7 #d5e0ed #e4ebf4 #f2f6fa

Colors that go with steel blue

Complementary#bc9260 Analogous#60b8bc Analogous#6460bc Triadic#bc608a Triadic#8abc60 Split complementary#bc6460 Split complementary#b8bc60

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 49, 27, 0, 26.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #608abc on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

49 27 0 26

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

49 29 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 read rgb vs cmyk for print and what the k in cmyk means.

Steel blue in css

Copy #608abc straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #608abc; }
.text { color: #608abc; }
.border { border: 2px solid #608abc; }

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 #608abc against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #608abc 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 #608abc 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 #608abc 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 #608abc is computed, not guessed. 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.