What color is #281F85?

#281F85 is a dark blue-violet. In RGB it is rgb(40, 31, 133), and in HSL hsl(245, 62%, 32%).

Is #281F85 accessible as text?

On white, #281F85 has a contrast ratio of 12.92:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 1.62:1 (fails). For text placed on #281F85, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #281F85?

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

What colors go well with #281F85?

#281F85 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #7C841F. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #281F85 below.

Is #281F85 good for buttons?

#281F85 works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #281F85 — black text only reaches 1.62:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #281F85 the same as CSS midnightblue?

No — #281F85 is not the CSS named color midnightblue, but midnightblue (#191970) is the closest CSS named color.

#281F85 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #281F85

Not just a swatch — here's how #281F85 works with other colors. Named schemes with #281F85 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Luxury Packaging Feature · 5 colors

Feature #281F85 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 #281F85 Anchor #2A2A2E Secondary #6E6E74 Surface #EEE5DB Accent #1F0145

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 #281F85 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 #281F85 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 #281F85 Secondary #53587B 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.

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Color Lab

How #281F85 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 17/100

Cool

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

Softness 25/100

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 27/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 68/100

High

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

Brand distinctiveness 62/100

High

Bold and ownable — memorable as a primary brand color.

UI accent fit 50/100

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 75/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #281F85

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #281F85 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 12.9:1. Use

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

Avoid beside #491F84 — 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 #281F85 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: #281F85;
  --color-base-rgb: 40 31 133;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(33.1% 0.161 276.9);
  --color-50: #F3F2FD;
  --color-100: #DFDDF8;
  --color-200: #C1BDEF;
  --color-300: #9690E0;
  --color-400: #6E66CC;
  --color-500: #4D44B1;
  --color-600: #413A87;
  --color-700: #332E60;
  --color-800: #24223F;
  --color-900: #181627;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  midnight-blue: {
    50: '#F3F2FD',
    100: '#DFDDF8',
    200: '#C1BDEF',
    300: '#9690E0',
    400: '#6E66CC',
    500: '#4D44B1',
    600: '#413A87',
    700: '#332E60',
    800: '#24223F',
    900: '#181627',
  },
}

$base: #281F85;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F3F2FD;
$base-100: #DFDDF8;
$base-200: #C1BDEF;
$base-300: #9690E0;
$base-400: #6E66CC;
$base-500: #4D44B1;
$base-600: #413A87;
$base-700: #332E60;
$base-800: #24223F;
$base-900: #181627;
$base-hover: #20196A;
$base-subtle: #B7B2E3;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#281F85",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F3F2FD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#DFDDF8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#C1BDEF",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#9690E0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#6E66CC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#4D44B1",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#413A87",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#332E60",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#24223F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#181627",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #281F85

Color Lab

Pairs with #281F85

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export