Complementary
Two colors from opposite sides of the wheel. They make each other look more vivid, which is why the pairing is used for anything that needs to stand out.
Sky blue
#87CEEBSky blue is the hex color #87CEEB, with RGB values 135, 206, 235. It is a CSS color keyword, so browsers render it from the name alone, and its value is fixed by the CSS Color Module.
Quick colors, then fill the screen
Or a gradient
Or let it move
#87CEEBrgb(135, 206, 235) · hsl(197, 71%, 73%)
Sky blue color codes
Every value for #87CEEB, ready to paste. Click any code to copy it.
| Channel | Decimal | Share | Hex | Octal | Binary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 135 | 52.94% | 87 | 207 | 10000111 |
| Green | 206 | 80.78% | CE | 316 | 11001110 |
| Blue | 235 | 92.16% | EB | 353 | 11101011 |
The nearest web-safe color is #99CCFF, from the 216-color palette browsers agreed on before displays could be trusted with more.
About sky blue
Pale and slightly green, matching a clear sky away from the sun. The sky is this color because shorter wavelengths scatter more in the atmosphere.
Shades, tints and tones
Every step is generated from #87CEEB. Click a swatch to copy its hex.
Shades of sky blue
A shade is the base color with black mixed in. Shades read as deeper and more dramatic, and they are what you reach for when a color needs to recede or carry weight.
Tints of sky blue
A tint is the base color with white mixed in. Tints turn pastel as they lighten, which makes them useful for backgrounds and for anything that has to sit behind text.
Tones of sky blue
A tone is the base color with grey mixed in. Tones lose the shout without losing the hue, and they are usually what separates a considered palette from a loud one.
The sky blue scale
The same color as the 50 to 950 ladder every CSS framework uses, with #87CEEB at 500. Click a step to copy its hex, or take the whole scale as variables for a design system.
Color schemes built on sky blue
Harmonies are positions on the color wheel rather than matters of taste, which is why they keep working across very different designs.
Analogous
Three neighbours on the wheel. Nothing competes, so the result reads calm and settled, closer to how colour behaves in nature.
Split complementary
The base plus the two colors either side of its complement. It keeps most of the contrast while being much easier to balance.
Triadic
Three colors spaced evenly around the wheel. Strong and lively, and usually best with one dominant color and two accents.
Tetradic
Two complementary pairs, forming a rectangle on the wheel. The richest scheme available, and the hardest to keep from shouting.
Monochromatic
One hue at different lightness levels. Effortlessly cohesive, and the safest way to build a palette around a brand color.
Colors close to #87CEEB
Near neighbours, for when this color is almost right. Each one shifts hue, saturation or lightness by a small step.
Sky blue color palettes
Five-color palettes built around #87CEEB, each following a different scheme. Click any swatch to copy it, or open the generator to build your own.
Analogous
Complementary
Triadic
Monochromatic
Open the palette generator to lock the colors you like and regenerate the rest.
Contrast and readability
Whether sky blue works as text, and what to put on top of it when it is the background. Ratios follow WCAG 2.1, where 4.5 is the bar for body text and 3 for large text.
Sky blue text on white background
1.74:1 · PoorLarge text at 24 pixels
Body text at 16 pixels. A flat field of color removes every variable, which is what makes it useful for judging a display.
- Body AA
- Body AAA
- Large AA
- Large AAA
Sky blue text on black background
12.06:1 · ExcellentLarge text at 24 pixels
Body text at 16 pixels. A flat field of color removes every variable, which is what makes it useful for judging a display.
- Body AA
- Body AAA
- Large AA
- Large AAA
Used the other way round, #87CEEB as a background takes #000000 text. That is the higher-contrast of the two, and it is what the tool picks automatically for any chrome sitting on your color.
Sky blue reads better on a black background of the two. Contrast is a property of the pair, not of one color, so a color that fails here can still be perfectly usable against a different partner.
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The blue family
Sky blue sits in the blue family. Every named blue in the library, with sky blue first.
| Swatch | Name | Hex | RGB | HSL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| is a CSS keyword is the color on this page | #87CEEB | 135, 206, 235 | 197, 71%, 73% | |
| Blue is a CSS keyword | #0000FF | 0, 0, 255 | 240, 100%, 50% | |
| Navy is a CSS keyword | #000080 | 0, 0, 128 | 240, 100%, 25% | |
| Royal blue is a CSS keyword | #4169E1 | 65, 105, 225 | 225, 73%, 57% | |
| Baby blue | #89CFF0 | 137, 207, 240 | 199, 77%, 74% | |
| Cobalt | #0047AB | 0, 71, 171 | 215, 100%, 34% | |
| Indigo is a CSS keyword | #4B0082 | 75, 0, 130 | 275, 100%, 25% | |
| Periwinkle | #CCCCFF | 204, 204, 255 | 240, 100%, 90% | |
| Powder blue is a CSS keyword | #B0E0E6 | 176, 224, 230 | 187, 52%, 80% | |
| Steel blue is a CSS keyword | #4682B4 | 70, 130, 180 | 207, 44%, 49% | |
| Midnight blue is a CSS keyword | #191970 | 25, 25, 112 | 240, 64%, 27% | |
| Denim | #1560BD | 21, 96, 189 | 213, 80%, 41% | |
| Cerulean | #2A52BE | 42, 82, 190 | 224, 64%, 45% | |
| Dodger blue is a CSS keyword | #1E90FF | 30, 144, 255 | 210, 100%, 56% | |
| Prussian blue | #003153 | 0, 49, 83 | 205, 100%, 16% |