What color is #178BD8?

#178BD8 is a medium, vivid cyan-blue. In RGB it is rgb(23, 139, 216), and in HSL hsl(204, 81%, 47%).

Is #178BD8 accessible as text?

On white, #178BD8 has a contrast ratio of 3.67:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 5.72:1 (passes). For text placed on #178BD8, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #178BD8?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is sky-600 (#0084D1).

What colors go well with #178BD8?

#178BD8 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #D96417. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #178BD8 below.

Is #178BD8 good for buttons?

#178BD8 works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #178BD8 — white text only reaches 3.67:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #178BD8 the same as CSS steelblue?

No — #178BD8 is not the CSS named color steelblue, but steelblue (#4682B4) is the closest CSS named color.

#178BD8 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #178BD8

Not just a swatch — here's how #178BD8 works with other colors. Named schemes with #178BD8 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #178BD8 Accent #A5C4C0 Surface #DEDBBF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #20344A

Steel 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 #178BD8 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #58B1F8

Steel 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 Steel Blue.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #178BD8 Secondary #7F4438 Surface #E1DDC0 Accent #375245 Anchor #57233C

Steel 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 #178BD8 Surface #EDE9D6 Anchor #5A2246 Accent #E4C2CB Secondary #322B30

Steel 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 #178BD8 Secondary #95B4CF Support #969386 Ink #16140F

Steel 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 Steel Blue carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #178BD8 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 7/100

Cool

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

Softness 45/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 40/100

Low

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

Naturalness 0/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 37/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 44/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 40/100

Moderate

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 88/100

Very high

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

Surface fit 19/100

Very low

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

Print safety 66/100

High

Prints close, with a slight loss of vibrancy.

Pairs with #178BD8

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #178BD8 with

Turquoise Medium Blue Chocolate Platinum Charcoal

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 5.1:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #D4E7F4 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #174BD9 — 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 #178BD8 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: #178BD8;
  --color-base-rgb: 23 139 216;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(61.6% 0.149 245.4);
  --color-50: #F1F9FE;
  --color-100: #D9EEFC;
  --color-200: #B5DDF7;
  --color-300: #83C2EC;
  --color-400: #56A6DC;
  --color-500: #3389C2;
  --color-600: #2E6B93;
  --color-700: #274E68;
  --color-800: #1D3444;
  --color-900: #14212A;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  steel-blue: {
    50: '#F1F9FE',
    100: '#D9EEFC',
    200: '#B5DDF7',
    300: '#83C2EC',
    400: '#56A6DC',
    500: '#3389C2',
    600: '#2E6B93',
    700: '#274E68',
    800: '#1D3444',
    900: '#14212A',
  },
}

$base: #178BD8;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F1F9FE;
$base-100: #D9EEFC;
$base-200: #B5DDF7;
$base-300: #83C2EC;
$base-400: #56A6DC;
$base-500: #3389C2;
$base-600: #2E6B93;
$base-700: #274E68;
$base-800: #1D3444;
$base-900: #14212A;
$base-hover: #126FAE;
$base-subtle: #BDDBEF;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#178BD8",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F1F9FE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#D9EEFC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B5DDF7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#83C2EC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#56A6DC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#3389C2",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#2E6B93",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#274E68",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#1D3444",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#14212A",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #178BD8

Color Lab

Pairs with #178BD8

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export