What color is #048A8A?

#048A8A is a dark, vivid cyan. In RGB it is rgb(4, 138, 138), and in HSL hsl(180, 94%, 28%).

Is #048A8A accessible as text?

On white, #048A8A has a contrast ratio of 4.19:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 5.01:1 (passes). For text placed on #048A8A, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #048A8A?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is teal-600 (#009689).

What colors go well with #048A8A?

#048A8A pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #8B0404. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #048A8A below.

Is #048A8A good for buttons?

#048A8A works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #048A8A — white text only reaches 4.19:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #048A8A the same as CSS darkcyan?

No — #048A8A is not the CSS named color darkcyan, but darkcyan (#008B8B) is the closest CSS named color.

#048A8A Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #048A8A

Not just a swatch — here's how #048A8A works with other colors. Named schemes with #048A8A in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #048A8A Accent #A6C4BD Surface #E0DABE Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1D3549

Dark Cyan 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 #048A8A Secondary #725018 Surface #E4DCC0 Accent #3A5142 Anchor #552340

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

Modern Café Dominant · 5 colors

Dominant #048A8A Anchor #382B1E Surface #ECE4D0 Accent #819C72 Secondary #3A3933

Dark Cyan anchors this café scheme as the warm mid-tone, lifted by latte cream and a muted sage accent and grounded by espresso brown and a warm charcoal.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #048A8A Surface #EFE8D6 Anchor #57234B Accent #E5C4B7 Secondary #322B30

Dark Cyan sits between cream and a deep berry here, softened by a blush accent and grounded by charcoal.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #048A8A Secondary #8BAAA9 Support #979286 Ink #16140F

Dark Cyan 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 Dark Cyan carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #048A8A 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 26/100

Cool

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

Softness 49/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 42/100

Moderate

Mid depth — usable as an accent or a muted ground.

Naturalness 16/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 59/100

Moderate

Faded, nostalgic quality — editorial, heritage and retro work.

Luxury 50/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 26/100

Low

Quiet and neutral — a supporting tone, not a signature.

UI accent fit 90/100

Very high

Strong interactive accent — visible and can carry a legible label.

Surface fit 30/100

Low

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

Print safety 76/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #048A8A

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #048A8A with

Medium Sea Green Classic Blue Falu Red Platinum Dark Slate Gray

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Too mid-tone for a filled button — darken for the fill. AA Large

Body text Do not use for body copy on light surfaces. Avoid

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

Background Pair with #141310 text at 4.4:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #C1F3F3 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #045E8B — 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 #048A8A 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: #048A8A;
  --color-base-rgb: 4 138 138;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(57.4% 0.097 194.8);
  --color-50: #F0FEFE;
  --color-100: #D8FDFD;
  --color-200: #B1FCFC;
  --color-300: #7BF4F4;
  --color-400: #4BE7E7;
  --color-500: #28CDCD;
  --color-600: #269B9B;
  --color-700: #216D6D;
  --color-800: #1A4747;
  --color-900: #122B2B;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  dark-cyan: {
    50: '#F0FEFE',
    100: '#D8FDFD',
    200: '#B1FCFC',
    300: '#7BF4F4',
    400: '#4BE7E7',
    500: '#28CDCD',
    600: '#269B9B',
    700: '#216D6D',
    800: '#1A4747',
    900: '#122B2B',
  },
}

$base: #048A8A;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F0FEFE;
$base-100: #D8FDFD;
$base-200: #B1FCFC;
$base-300: #7BF4F4;
$base-400: #4BE7E7;
$base-500: #28CDCD;
$base-600: #269B9B;
$base-700: #216D6D;
$base-800: #1A4747;
$base-900: #122B2B;
$base-hover: #036F6F;
$base-subtle: #A1EFEF;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#048A8A",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F0FEFE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#D8FDFD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B1FCFC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#7BF4F4",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#4BE7E7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#28CDCD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#269B9B",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#216D6D",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#1A4747",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#122B2B",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #048A8A

Color Lab

Pairs with #048A8A

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export