What color is #178AA1?

#178AA1 is a dark, vivid cyan. In RGB it is rgb(23, 138, 161), and in HSL hsl(190, 75%, 36%).

Is #178AA1 accessible as text?

On white, #178AA1 has a contrast ratio of 4.05:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 5.19:1 (passes). For text placed on #178AA1, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #178AA1?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is cyan-600 (#0092B8).

What colors go well with #178AA1?

#178AA1 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #A12E17. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #178AA1 below.

Is #178AA1 good for buttons?

#178AA1 works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #178AA1 — white text only reaches 4.05:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #178AA1 the same as CSS darkcyan?

No — #178AA1 is not the CSS named color darkcyan, but darkcyan (#008B8B) is the closest CSS named color.

#178AA1 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #178AA1

Not just a swatch — here's how #178AA1 works with other colors. Named schemes with #178AA1 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #178AA1 Accent #A6C4BE Surface #DFDABF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1E3549

Dark Cyan 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 #178AA1 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #596672 Accent #57AEC3

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

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #178AA1 Secondary #705116 Surface #E3DCC0 Accent #395243 Anchor #56233E

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.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #178AA1 Surface #EEE9D6 Anchor #582249 Accent #E3C2CD 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 #178AA1 Secondary #8EACB4 Support #969386 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.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #178AA1 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 21/100

Cool

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

Softness 49/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 41/100

Moderate

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

Naturalness 3/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 54/100

Moderate

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 49/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 27/100

Low

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

UI accent fit 88/100

Very high

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

Surface fit 30/100

Low

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 73/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #178AA1

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #178AA1 with

Emerald Green Egyptian Blue Burnt Umber Platinum Dark Slate Gray

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with near-black label. AA

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 4.6:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #CDEAF0 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #175CA1 — 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 #178AA1 at work across the surfaces designers actually ship.

Website / UI

Northwind Sign up

Build faster.

A working theme, generated in seconds.

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: #178AA1;
  --color-base-rgb: 23 138 161;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(58.5% 0.099 215.8);
  --color-50: #F1FCFE;
  --color-100: #DAF5FB;
  --color-200: #B8EBF5;
  --color-300: #87D8E8;
  --color-400: #5BC2D7;
  --color-500: #38A6BC;
  --color-600: #328090;
  --color-700: #295C66;
  --color-800: #1E3C42;
  --color-900: #142529;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  dark-cyan: {
    50: '#F1FCFE',
    100: '#DAF5FB',
    200: '#B8EBF5',
    300: '#87D8E8',
    400: '#5BC2D7',
    500: '#38A6BC',
    600: '#328090',
    700: '#295C66',
    800: '#1E3C42',
    900: '#142529',
  },
}

$base: #178AA1;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F1FCFE;
$base-100: #DAF5FB;
$base-200: #B8EBF5;
$base-300: #87D8E8;
$base-400: #5BC2D7;
$base-500: #38A6BC;
$base-600: #328090;
$base-700: #295C66;
$base-800: #1E3C42;
$base-900: #142529;
$base-hover: #126E81;
$base-subtle: #B2E1EA;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#178AA1",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F1FCFE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#DAF5FB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B8EBF5",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#87D8E8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#5BC2D7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#38A6BC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#328090",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#295C66",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#1E3C42",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#142529",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #178AA1

Color Lab

Pairs with #178AA1

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export