What color is #388DC6?

#388DC6 is a medium cyan-blue. In RGB it is rgb(56, 141, 198), and in HSL hsl(204, 56%, 50%).

Is #388DC6 accessible as text?

On white, #388DC6 has a contrast ratio of 3.62:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 5.79:1 (passes). For text placed on #388DC6, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #388DC6?

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

What colors go well with #388DC6?

#388DC6 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #C77138. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #388DC6 below.

Is #388DC6 good for buttons?

#388DC6 works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #388DC6 — white text only reaches 3.62:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #388DC6 the same as CSS steelblue?

No — #388DC6 is not the CSS named color steelblue, but steelblue (#4682B4) is the closest CSS named color.

#388DC6 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #388DC6

Not just a swatch — here's how #388DC6 works with other colors. Named schemes with #388DC6 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #388DC6 Accent #A5C4C0 Surface #DEDABF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1F344A

Ocean 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 #388DC6 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #69B2E7

Ocean 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 Ocean Blue.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #388DC6 Secondary #7F4439 Surface #E2DDC0 Accent #375245 Anchor #57233C

Ocean 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 #388DC6 Surface #EEE9D6 Anchor #5A2246 Accent #E4C2CB Secondary #322B30

Ocean 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 #388DC6 Secondary #9AB4C9 Support #969386 Ink #16140F

Ocean 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 Ocean Blue carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #388DC6 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 49/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 39/100

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 46/100

Moderate

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 46/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 32/100

Low

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 86/100

Very high

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

Surface fit 28/100

Low

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

Print safety 72/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #388DC6

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #388DC6 with

Medium Turquoise Cerulean 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 #DBE8F0 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #385EC7 — 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 #388DC6 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: #388DC6;
  --color-base-rgb: 56 141 198;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(61.8% 0.118 241.8);
  --color-50: #F3F8FC;
  --color-100: #DFEDF7;
  --color-200: #BFDBED;
  --color-300: #93BFDC;
  --color-400: #6BA2C7;
  --color-500: #4984AC;
  --color-600: #3E6884;
  --color-700: #314C5E;
  --color-800: #23333E;
  --color-900: #172026;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  ocean-blue: {
    50: '#F3F8FC',
    100: '#DFEDF7',
    200: '#BFDBED',
    300: '#93BFDC',
    400: '#6BA2C7',
    500: '#4984AC',
    600: '#3E6884',
    700: '#314C5E',
    800: '#23333E',
    900: '#172026',
  },
}

$base: #388DC6;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F3F8FC;
$base-100: #DFEDF7;
$base-200: #BFDBED;
$base-300: #93BFDC;
$base-400: #6BA2C7;
$base-500: #4984AC;
$base-600: #3E6884;
$base-700: #314C5E;
$base-800: #23333E;
$base-900: #172026;
$base-hover: #2D719F;
$base-subtle: #C8DCE9;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#388DC6",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F3F8FC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#DFEDF7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#BFDBED",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#93BFDC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#6BA2C7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#4984AC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#3E6884",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#314C5E",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#23333E",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#172026",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #388DC6

Color Lab

Pairs with #388DC6

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export