What color is #281B8A?

#281B8A is a dark indigo. In RGB it is rgb(40, 27, 138), and in HSL hsl(247, 67%, 32%).

Is #281B8A accessible as text?

On white, #281B8A has a contrast ratio of 13.01:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.61:1 (fails). For text placed on #281B8A, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #281B8A?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is indigo-900 (#312C85).

What colors go well with #281B8A?

#281B8A pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #7C881B. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #281B8A below.

Is #281B8A good for buttons?

#281B8A works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #281B8A — black text only reaches 1.61:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #281B8A the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #281B8A is not the CSS named color midnightblue, but midnightblue (#191970) is the closest CSS named color.

#281B8A Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #281B8A

Not just a swatch — here's how #281B8A works with other colors. Named schemes with #281B8A in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Luxury Packaging Feature · 5 colors

Feature #281B8A Anchor #141210 Accent #DC9758 Secondary #262833 Surface #F3ECE3

Midnight 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 #281B8A Anchor #2A2A2E Secondary #6E6E74 Surface #EEE5DB Accent #200048

Midnight 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 Midnight Blue.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #281B8A Accent #A5C4C2 Surface #EAD5BF Secondary #9AA0A1 Anchor #22344A

Midnight 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 #281B8A Secondary #7F4534 Surface #EED7C2 Accent #365247 Anchor #582239

Midnight 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 #F8F4EF Accent #281B8A Secondary #52587D Support #9D9088 Ink #18140F

Midnight 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 Midnight Blue carrying the quiet middle.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #281B8A 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 16/100

Cool

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

Softness 24/100

Low

Firm and assertive — carries weight and contrast.

Depth 70/100

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 25/100

Low

Clean and current — no dusty, aged cast.

Luxury 67/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 66/100

High

Bold and ownable — memorable as a primary brand color.

UI accent fit 49/100

Moderate

Workable accent with care around contrast.

Surface fit 18/100

Very low

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

Print safety 73/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #281B8A

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #281B8A with

Lapis Lazuli Eminence Olive Gainsboro Prussian Blue

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 13.0:1. Use

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

Avoid beside #4C1B88 — 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 #281B8A 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: #281B8A;
  --color-base-rgb: 40 27 138;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(33.1% 0.171 276.8);
  --color-50: #F3F2FD;
  --color-100: #E0DCF9;
  --color-200: #C1BBF1;
  --color-300: #968CE3;
  --color-400: #6E62D0;
  --color-500: #4D3FB5;
  --color-600: #41378B;
  --color-700: #332C62;
  --color-800: #242041;
  --color-900: #181628;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  midnight-blue: {
    50: '#F3F2FD',
    100: '#E0DCF9',
    200: '#C1BBF1',
    300: '#968CE3',
    400: '#6E62D0',
    500: '#4D3FB5',
    600: '#41378B',
    700: '#332C62',
    800: '#242041',
    900: '#181628',
  },
}

$base: #281B8A;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F3F2FD;
$base-100: #E0DCF9;
$base-200: #C1BBF1;
$base-300: #968CE3;
$base-400: #6E62D0;
$base-500: #4D3FB5;
$base-600: #41378B;
$base-700: #332C62;
$base-800: #242041;
$base-900: #181628;
$base-hover: #20166D;
$base-subtle: #B7B0E5;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#281B8A",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F3F2FD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E0DCF9",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#C1BBF1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#968CE3",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#6E62D0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#4D3FB5",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#41378B",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#332C62",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#242041",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#181628",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #281B8A

Color Lab

Pairs with #281B8A

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export