What color is #003181?

#003181 is a dark, vivid blue. In RGB it is rgb(0, 49, 129), and in HSL hsl(217, 100%, 25%).

Is #003181 accessible as text?

On white, #003181 has a contrast ratio of 11.96:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.76:1 (fails). For text placed on #003181, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #003181?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is blue-900 (#1C398E).

What colors go well with #003181?

#003181 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #804F00. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #003181 below.

Is #003181 good for buttons?

#003181 works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #003181 — black text only reaches 1.76:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #003181 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #003181 is not the CSS named color midnightblue, but midnightblue (#191970) is the closest CSS named color.

#003181 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #003181

Not just a swatch — here's how #003181 works with other colors. Named schemes with #003181 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Luxury Packaging Feature · 5 colors

Feature #003181 Anchor #141210 Accent #ADAE53 Secondary #232933 Surface #F0EEE3

Yale Blue carries the depth in this luxury scheme, offset by a brass accent and near-black and held together by a deep neutral and an off-white surface.

Moody Editorial Color · 5 colors

Color #003181 Anchor #2A2A2E Secondary #6E6E74 Surface #E9E7DA Accent #140F48

Yale Blue adds the colour to this moody editorial scheme — charcoal and a mid-grey around it, a bone highlight, and a muted jewel accent drawn from Yale Blue.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #003181 Accent #A5C4C1 Surface #DDDBBF Secondary #9AA0A1 Anchor #21344A

Yale Blue opens this coastal palette with sea-glass and warm sand alongside it, grounded by driftwood grey and a deep-navy anchor.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #003181 Secondary #7F4536 Surface #E1DDC1 Accent #375246 Anchor #57223A

Yale Blue plays the worn-leather lead, deepened by saddle brown and an oxblood anchor, softened by aged cream and cooled by a muted forest green.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #003181 Secondary #4E5F7B Support #9D8F88 Ink #16140F

Yale Blue is the single accent in this high-contrast editorial system — set on near-white paper against near-black ink, with a warm grey and a desaturated tint of Yale Blue carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #003181 actually behaves in design work — read from its OKLCH lightness, chroma and hue, not just its raw numbers. Ten signals to help you decide where this color earns its place.

Warmth 13/100

Cool

Reads cool and recessive — calming, technical, good for trust-led UI.

Softness 27/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 68/100

High

Deep and grounding — anchors a layout, strong dark-mode base.

Naturalness 0/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 30/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 69/100

High

Restrained and premium — deep, quiet, high-end packaging and fashion.

Brand distinctiveness 55/100

Moderate

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 55/100

Moderate

Workable accent with care around contrast.

Surface fit 19/100

Very low

Too saturated or mid-toned for big areas — keep it to accents.

Print safety 72/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #003181

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #003181 with

Persian Green Navy Blue Sepia Gainsboro Charcoal

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with white label. AAA

Body text Passes on white at 16px and above. Pass

Large display Fine for headings 24px+ on white. Pass

Background Pair with white text at 12.0:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #BDD2F4 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #000680 — the hue gap is too small to read as intentional. Clash

In real applications

Not a swatch to memorise — a color to build with. Here is #003181 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

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Dashboard

Revenue

$48.2k ▲ 12%

Brand

AVELINE

Studio

Poster

Nov 14 · 8PM

NIGHT
MARKET

Packaging

BLOOM

Botanical Wash

250 ml

Interior

Every model

Export

:root {
  --color-base: #003181;
  --color-base-rgb: 0 49 129;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(34.3% 0.144 260.5);
  --color-50: #F0F6FE;
  --color-100: #D8E6FD;
  --color-200: #B1CDFC;
  --color-300: #77A9F8;
  --color-400: #4686EC;
  --color-500: #2266D2;
  --color-600: #23529F;
  --color-700: #1F3E70;
  --color-800: #182B48;
  --color-900: #111B2C;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  yale-blue: {
    50: '#F0F6FE',
    100: '#D8E6FD',
    200: '#B1CDFC',
    300: '#77A9F8',
    400: '#4686EC',
    500: '#2266D2',
    600: '#23529F',
    700: '#1F3E70',
    800: '#182B48',
    900: '#111B2C',
  },
}

$base: #003181;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F0F6FE;
$base-100: #D8E6FD;
$base-200: #B1CDFC;
$base-300: #77A9F8;
$base-400: #4686EC;
$base-500: #2266D2;
$base-600: #23529F;
$base-700: #1F3E70;
$base-800: #182B48;
$base-900: #111B2C;
$base-hover: #002766;
$base-subtle: #9ABBF1;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#003181",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F0F6FE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#D8E6FD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B1CDFC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#77A9F8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#4686EC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#2266D2",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#23529F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#1F3E70",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#182B48",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#111B2C",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #003181

Color Lab

Pairs with #003181

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export