What color is #85DBED?

#85DBED is a light, vivid cyan. In RGB it is rgb(133, 219, 237), and in HSL hsl(190, 74%, 73%).

Is #85DBED accessible as text?

On white, #85DBED has a contrast ratio of 1.57:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 13.35:1 (passes). For text placed on #85DBED, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #85DBED?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is sky-300 (#74D4FF).

What colors go well with #85DBED?

#85DBED pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #ED9887. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #85DBED below.

Is #85DBED good for buttons?

#85DBED works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #85DBED — white text only reaches 1.57:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #85DBED the same as CSS skyblue?

No — #85DBED is not the CSS named color skyblue, but skyblue (#87CEEB) is the closest CSS named color.

#85DBED Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #85DBED

Not just a swatch — here's how #85DBED works with other colors. Named schemes with #85DBED in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Nordic Calm Accent · 5 colors

Accent #85DBED Secondary #AEB4B8 Surface #F1F2F0 Support #7A94A5 Anchor #2E3236

Baby Blue keeps this Nordic scheme quiet — cool greys and a soft white around it, a muted-blue support and a charcoal anchor.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #85DBED Accent #A6C4BE Surface #DFDABE Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1E3549

Baby Blue opens this coastal palette with sea-glass and warm sand alongside it, grounded by driftwood grey and a deep-navy anchor.

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #85DBED Surface #ECEADC Highlight #F4F2E7 Secondary #B4B19F Ink #2A2723

Baby Blue 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.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #85DBED Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #596672 Accent #B5FFFF

Baby 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 Baby Blue.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #85DBED Secondary #E3FFFF Support #979286 Ink #16140F

Baby 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 Baby Blue carrying the quiet middle.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #85DBED 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 25/100

Cool

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

Softness 71/100

High

Soft and easy on the eye — gentle backdrops, calm surfaces.

Depth 15/100

Very low

Airy and open — recedes, leaves the composition light.

Naturalness 4/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 34/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 22/100

Low

Playful and accessible rather than exclusive.

Brand distinctiveness 34/100

Low

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 16/100

Very low

Weak as an action color — too pale, too dark or too muted to signal.

Surface fit 59/100

Moderate

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 77/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #85DBED

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #85DBED with

Seafoam Iceberg Dark Salmon Platinum Dark Slate Gray

UI roles & guardrails

Primary action Safe as a filled button with near-black label. AAA

Body text Do not use for body copy on light surfaces. Avoid

Large display Only on dark surfaces. Avoid

Background Pair with #141310 text at 11.8:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #EAF6F9 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #87BAED — 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 #85DBED 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: #85DBED;
  --color-base-rgb: 133 219 237;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(84.3% 0.087 212.5);
  --color-50: #F1FBFE;
  --color-100: #DBF5FB;
  --color-200: #B8EAF4;
  --color-300: #88D7E7;
  --color-400: #5CC2D6;
  --color-500: #39A6BC;
  --color-600: #33808F;
  --color-700: #2A5B65;
  --color-800: #1F3C42;
  --color-900: #152529;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  baby-blue: {
    50: '#F1FBFE',
    100: '#DBF5FB',
    200: '#B8EAF4',
    300: '#88D7E7',
    400: '#5CC2D6',
    500: '#39A6BC',
    600: '#33808F',
    700: '#2A5B65',
    800: '#1F3C42',
    900: '#152529',
  },
}

$base: #85DBED;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F1FBFE;
$base-100: #DBF5FB;
$base-200: #B8EAF4;
$base-300: #88D7E7;
$base-400: #5CC2D6;
$base-500: #39A6BC;
$base-600: #33808F;
$base-700: #2A5B65;
$base-800: #1F3C42;
$base-900: #152529;
$base-hover: #46C9E3;
$base-subtle: #DFF2F6;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#85DBED",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F1FBFE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#DBF5FB",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#B8EAF4",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#88D7E7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#5CC2D6",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#39A6BC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#33808F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#2A5B65",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#1F3C42",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#152529",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on #85DBED

Color Lab

Pairs with #85DBED

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export