What color is #856490?

#856490 is a medium, muted purple. In RGB it is rgb(133, 100, 144), and in HSL hsl(285, 18%, 48%).

Is #856490 accessible as text?

On white, #856490 has a contrast ratio of 4.97:1 (passes WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 4.22:1 (fails). For text placed on #856490, use white for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #856490?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is mauve-500 (#79697B).

What colors go well with #856490?

#856490 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #6F9064. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #856490 below.

Is #856490 good for buttons?

#856490 works well for buttons and highlights, but use white text on #856490 — black text only reaches 4.22:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #856490 the same as CSS slategray?

No — #856490 is not the CSS named color slategray, but slategray (#708090) is the closest CSS named color by perceptual color distance — it sits in a different color family, so treat it as a rough reference, not a match.

#856490 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #856490

Not just a swatch — here's how #856490 works with other colors. Named schemes with #856490 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Berry & Cream Lead · 5 colors

Lead #856490 Surface #F5E6D7 Anchor #5D203E Accent #E5C2C6 Secondary #332B2F

Mauve Taupe sits between cream and a deep berry here, softened by a blush accent and grounded by charcoal.

Vintage Leather Lead · 5 colors

Lead #856490 Secondary #7E462F Surface #ECD8C1 Accent #345249 Anchor #592235

Mauve Taupe plays the worn-leather lead, deepened by saddle brown and an oxblood anchor, softened by aged cream and cooled by a muted forest green.

Modern Café Dominant · 5 colors

Dominant #856490 Anchor #3B2922 Surface #F2E2D1 Accent #9E9362 Secondary #3C3733

Mauve Taupe anchors this café scheme as the warm mid-tone, lifted by latte cream and a muted sage accent and grounded by espresso brown and a warm charcoal.

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #856490 Surface #F1E8DC Highlight #F7F0E7 Secondary #BDADA1 Ink #2C2723

Mauve Taupe sets a calm, sun-bleached base here, wrapped in bone and paper off-whites and a soft greige, with a single ink accent for wabi-sabi restraint.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F8F4EF Accent #856490 Secondary #A397A7 Support #9C9087 Ink #18140F

Mauve Taupe 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 Mauve Taupe carrying the quiet middle.

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Color Lab

How #856490 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 49/100

Neutral

Balanced temperature — flexible, sits between warm and cool schemes.

Softness 49/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 44/100

Moderate

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

Naturalness 1/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 74/100

High

Faded, nostalgic quality — editorial, heritage and retro work.

Luxury 50/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 21/100

Low

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

UI accent fit 84/100

Very high

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

Surface fit 34/100

Low

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 91/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #856490

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #856490 with

Slate Gray Mauve Taupe Russian Green Gainsboro Charcoal

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with white label. AA

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 5.0:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #E6E1E8 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #90648D — 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 #856490 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: #856490;
  --color-base-rgb: 133 100 144;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(55.3% 0.077 317.5);
  --color-50: #F8F6F9;
  --color-100: #EDE7EE;
  --color-200: #DACFDE;
  --color-300: #BDACC3;
  --color-400: #A08AA8;
  --color-500: #826B8A;
  --color-600: #67566C;
  --color-700: #4B404F;
  --color-800: #332C35;
  --color-900: #201C21;
  --color-on-base: #FFFFFF;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  mauve-taupe: {
    50: '#F8F6F9',
    100: '#EDE7EE',
    200: '#DACFDE',
    300: '#BDACC3',
    400: '#A08AA8',
    500: '#826B8A',
    600: '#67566C',
    700: '#4B404F',
    800: '#332C35',
    900: '#201C21',
  },
}

$base: #856490;
$base-ink: #FFFFFF;
$base-50: #F8F6F9;
$base-100: #EDE7EE;
$base-200: #DACFDE;
$base-300: #BDACC3;
$base-400: #A08AA8;
$base-500: #826B8A;
$base-600: #67566C;
$base-700: #4B404F;
$base-800: #332C35;
$base-900: #201C21;
$base-hover: #6B5074;
$base-subtle: #DAD2DD;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#856490",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#FFFFFF",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F8F6F9",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#EDE7EE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#DACFDE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#BDACC3",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#A08AA8",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#826B8A",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#67566C",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#4B404F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#332C35",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#201C21",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #856490

Color Lab

Pairs with #856490

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export