What color is #165ECA?

#165ECA is a medium, vivid blue. In RGB it is rgb(22, 94, 202), and in HSL hsl(216, 80%, 44%).

Is #165ECA accessible as text?

On white, #165ECA has a contrast ratio of 6.02:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 3.49:1 (fails). For text placed on #165ECA, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #165ECA?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is sky-700 (#0069A8).

What colors go well with #165ECA?

#165ECA pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #CA8216. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #165ECA below.

Is #165ECA good for buttons?

#165ECA works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #165ECA — black text only reaches 3.49:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #165ECA the same as CSS royalblue?

No — #165ECA is not the CSS named color royalblue, but royalblue (#4169E1) is the closest CSS named color.

#165ECA Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #165ECA

Not just a swatch — here's how #165ECA works with other colors. Named schemes with #165ECA in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #165ECA Accent #A5C4C1 Surface #DDDBBF Secondary #9AA0A1 Anchor #20344A

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

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #165ECA Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #4785E9

Denim Blue is the vivid signal in this product UI — on a near-black surface with cool white, a slate grey and a lighter tint of Denim Blue.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #165ECA Secondary #7F4536 Surface #E1DDC1 Accent #375246 Anchor #57223A

Denim 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.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #165ECA Surface #F6E5D8 Anchor #5A2144 Accent #E4C2CA Secondary #322B2F

Denim Blue 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 #165ECA Secondary #778FB5 Support #9D8F89 Ink #16140F

Denim 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 Denim Blue carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #165ECA 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 6/100

Cool

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

Softness 34/100

Low

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 52/100

Moderate

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

Naturalness 0/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 29/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 52/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 49/100

Moderate

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 92/100

Very high

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

Surface fit 8/100

Very low

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

Print safety 64/100

High

Prints close, with a slight loss of vibrancy.

Pairs with #165ECA

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #165ECA with

Turquoise Medium Blue Dark Goldenrod Gainsboro Charcoal

UI roles & guardrails

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

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 6.0:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #D2DFF3 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #1622CA — 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 #165ECA 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: #165ECA;
  --color-base-rgb: 22 94 202;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(50.6% 0.182 259.4);
  --color-50: #F1F6FE;
  --color-100: #D9E7FC;
  --color-200: #B6D0F7;
  --color-300: #84ADEB;
  --color-400: #578CDB;
  --color-500: #346CC1;
  --color-600: #2F5793;
  --color-700: #274168;
  --color-800: #1D2D44;
  --color-900: #141C29;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  denim-blue: {
    50: '#F1F6FE',
    100: '#D9E7FC',
    200: '#B6D0F7',
    300: '#84ADEB',
    400: '#578CDB',
    500: '#346CC1',
    600: '#2F5793',
    700: '#274168',
    800: '#1D2D44',
    900: '#141C29',
  },
}

$base: #165ECA;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F1F6FE;
$base-100: #D9E7FC;
$base-200: #B6D0F7;
$base-300: #84ADEB;
$base-400: #578CDB;
$base-500: #346CC1;
$base-600: #2F5793;
$base-700: #274168;
$base-800: #1D2D44;
$base-900: #141C29;
$base-hover: #124BA2;
$base-subtle: #BACFEE;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#165ECA",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F1F6FE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#D9E7FC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B6D0F7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#84ADEB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#578CDB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#346CC1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#2F5793",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#274168",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#1D2D44",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#141C29",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #165ECA

Color Lab

Pairs with #165ECA

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export