Steel Blue Hex Code

Steel Blue Is #4682B4

Steel blue is a muted mid-blue with grey mixed in. It carries the trust associations of blue without the saturation of a primary, which suits data visualisation and long-form interfaces.

Every Format

Format	Value
HEX	#4682B4
RGB	rgb(70, 130, 180)
HSL	hsl(207, 44%, 49%)
CMYK	61%, 28%, 0%, 29%
Nearest Tailwind	slate-500 (#64748b)

The HSL reading is the useful one for design work: hue 207°, saturation 44%, lightness 49%. Adjusting lightness while holding hue and saturation is how you build a consistent ramp; adjusting the hex directly is guesswork.

Contrast and Accessibility

Combination	Ratio	WCAG
Steel Blue text on white	4.11:1	AA large text only
Steel Blue text on black	5.11:1	AA
White text on steel blue	4.11:1	AA large text only

WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large text (18pt, or 14pt bold). AAA requires 7:1. Steel Blue clears AA only for large text on white — headings and buttons, not paragraphs.

A Ramp Built From It

Step	Hex
100	#23415a
200	#2f5778
300	#3a6c96
400	#4682B4
500	#6597c1
600	#84accd
700	#a3c1da

The dark end comes from mixing toward black and the light end from mixing toward white. Note that a perceptually even ramp is not an arithmetically even one — equal steps in lightness look uneven, which is why the middle of a hand-built ramp usually needs adjusting by eye.

Harmonies

Relationship	Hex
Base	#4682B4
Complementary	#b47746
Triadic	#b44682 and #82b446

A complementary pair is the highest-contrast combination on the colour wheel, which makes it excellent for a single accent and exhausting for a whole interface. The usual approach is one dominant colour, one complement used sparingly, and neutrals for everything else.

Print Reproduction

The CMYK values above are a mathematical conversion, not a press-ready specification. Screen colours are emitted light and print colours are reflected ink, and the screen gamut is larger — highly saturated values simply do not exist in CMYK.

For brand-critical work, specify a Pantone reference and let the printer match it rather than trusting a CMYK conversion.

A Full Ramp From This Colour

Design systems settle on a 50–900 scale because it covers backgrounds, borders, text and states without anyone reaching outside the palette. Mixing toward white and black rather than adjusting HSL lightness keeps more of the hue's character:

Step	Colour	Contrast on white	Safe for
50	#F5F9FF	1.06:1	backgrounds and fills
100	#EBF3FE	1.12:1	backgrounds and fills
200	#CEE0FD	1.34:1	backgrounds and fills
300	#B1CDFB	1.62:1	backgrounds and fills
400	#76A8F9	2.40:1	backgrounds and fills
500	#3B82F6	3.68:1	large text, borders
600	#326FD1	4.85:1	body text on white
700	#295BAC	6.59:1	body text on white
800	#204887	8.98:1	body text on white
900	#183462	12.31:1	body text on white

The contrast column is the one that decides usage. Steps below 3:1 cannot carry text at any size and belong in fills and dividers; steps at 4.5:1 and above are safe for body copy.

Adjusting It

Base colour in HSL is hsl(217, 91%, 60%). Two useful moves:

``css /* +10% lightness, same hue */ --lighter: #6da2f8; /* −10% lightness */ --darker: #0b64f4; ``

Raising lightness also drops perceived saturation, so a lightened colour reads greyer than its numbers suggest. Adding 5–10% saturation alongside every 20% of lightness keeps the ramp looking like one hue rather than a fade to grey.