What color is #87B5B5?

#87B5B5 is a light, muted cyan. In RGB it is rgb(135, 181, 181), and in HSL hsl(180, 24%, 62%).

Is #87B5B5 accessible as text?

On white, #87B5B5 has a contrast ratio of 2.26:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 9.31:1 (passes). For text placed on #87B5B5, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #87B5B5?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is mist-400 (#9CA8AB).

What colors go well with #87B5B5?

#87B5B5 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #B58787. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #87B5B5 below.

Is #87B5B5 good for buttons?

#87B5B5 works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #87B5B5 — white text only reaches 2.26:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is #87B5B5 the same as CSS darkgray?

No — #87B5B5 is not the CSS named color darkgray, but darkgray (#A9A9A9) 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.

#87B5B5 Color — HEX, RGB, HSL, Palette & Shades

Palettes built on #87B5B5

Not just a swatch — here's how #87B5B5 works with other colors. Named schemes with #87B5B5 in its natural role, and a note on why the supporting colors balance it.

Nordic Calm Accent · 5 colors

Accent #87B5B5 Secondary #AEB4B8 Surface #F1F2F0 Support #7A94A5 Anchor #2E3236

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

Japanese Sand Base · 5 colors

Base #87B5B5 Surface #EDEADC Highlight #F5F2E7 Secondary #B4B19F Ink #2A2723

Cadet Grey 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.

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #87B5B5 Accent #A6C4BD Surface #E0DABE Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1D3549

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

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #87B5B5 Secondary #CBDBDB Support #979286 Ink #16140F

Cadet Grey 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 Cadet Grey carrying the quiet middle.

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #87B5B5 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #596771 Accent #B1DBDB

Cadet Grey is the vivid signal in this product UI — on a near-black surface with cool white, a slate grey and a lighter tint of Cadet Grey.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How #87B5B5 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 38/100

Cool

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

Softness 69/100

High

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

Depth 25/100

Low

Airy and open — recedes, leaves the composition light.

Naturalness 9/100

Very low

Reads engineered rather than organic — synthetic, digital.

Vintage feel 36/100

Low

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 31/100

Low

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 19/100

Very low

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

UI accent fit 33/100

Low

Workable accent with care around contrast.

Surface fit 60/100

High

Calm enough for large fills — backgrounds, cards, sections.

Print safety 88/100

Very high

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with #87B5B5

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use #87B5B5 with

Ash Gray Cool Gray Rosy Brown 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 8.2:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #E8EFEF for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #87A6B5 — 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 #87B5B5 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: #87B5B5;
  --color-base-rgb: 135 181 181;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(74.0% 0.049 196.1);
  --color-50: #F5F9F9;
  --color-100: #E5F0F0;
  --color-200: #CCE0E0;
  --color-300: #A8C7C7;
  --color-400: #85ADAD;
  --color-500: #659090;
  --color-600: #527070;
  --color-700: #3E5151;
  --color-800: #2B3636;
  --color-900: #1B2222;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  cadet-grey: {
    50: '#F5F9F9',
    100: '#E5F0F0',
    200: '#CCE0E0',
    300: '#A8C7C7',
    400: '#85ADAD',
    500: '#659090',
    600: '#527070',
    700: '#3E5151',
    800: '#2B3636',
    900: '#1B2222',
  },
}

$base: #87B5B5;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F5F9F9;
$base-100: #E5F0F0;
$base-200: #CCE0E0;
$base-300: #A8C7C7;
$base-400: #85ADAD;
$base-500: #659090;
$base-600: #527070;
$base-700: #3E5151;
$base-800: #2B3636;
$base-900: #1B2222;
$base-hover: #609D9D;
$base-subtle: #DDE7E7;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#87B5B5",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F5F9F9",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#E5F0F0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#CCE0E0",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#A8C7C7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#85ADAD",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#659090",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#527070",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#3E5151",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#2B3636",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#1B2222",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}