Light blue

#9cb8b6

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

This is Light blue, a muted teal at 176 degrees. A mid teal this balanced works for spa, travel and wellness. Pair it with warm oranges for a complementary lift, or with deep navy for depth.

Light blue color values

Every conversion for #9cb8b6, ready to copy. Hex, rgb, hsl, hsv, cmyk, cie-lab, xyz, decimal, web safe and the nearest Pantone.

Hex#9cb8b6

RGB156, 184, 182

HSL176, 16%, 67%

HSV176, 15%, 72%

CMYK15%, 0%, 1%, 28%

Lab72.71, -9.9, -2.19

XYZ39.29, 44.73, 50.82

Decimal10270902

Web safe#99cccc

Pantone5493 C

Shades of light blue

#8aaba9 #789e9b #67908d #5a7e7b #4d6c6a #405a58 #344846 #273635 #1a2423 #0d1211

Tints of light blue

#a5bebd #aec5c3 #b7cbca #bfd1d0 #c8d8d7 #d1dedd #dae4e4 #e3ebea #ecf1f1 #f5f8f7

Colors that go with light blue

Complementary#b89c9e Analogous#9cb8a8 Analogous#9cacb8 Triadic#b69cb8 Triadic#b8b69c Split complementary#b89cac Split complementary#b8a89c

Light blue in print

It sits in a comfortable part of the gamut and reproduces reliably on press. The cmyk build is 15, 0, 1, 28.

The same color needs a different cmyk build depending on the paper. Here is #9cb8b6 on both.

Coated stockgloss or silk, C

15 0 1 28

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

Uncoated stocknatural or matte, U

18 4 5 34

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.

Light blue in css

Copy #9cb8b6 straight into your stylesheet.

.background { background-color: #9cb8b6; }
.text { color: #9cb8b6; }
.border { border: 2px solid #9cb8b6; }

How light blue looks on light and dark

Sample text on black

Sample text on white

Text on this color

Light blue and accessibility

Contrast ratios for #9cb8b6 against black and white text, measured to the WCAG standard.

Use black text on this color for readable body copy. To test #9cb8b6 against any other color, not just black and white, run the pair through ourcontrast checker for a live WCAG reading.

Light blue on a business card, sticker and pattern

A quick look at how #9cb8b6 sits on real print products. Start any of these in the maker.

Business card

Sticker

Repeat pattern

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

Turn light blue into a seamless pattern

Four patterns built from #9cb8b6 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 light blue, free and print ready.

Open in pattern maker

How we calculate these values

The figures for #9cb8b6 come from standard color math, shown so you can check them. 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.