What color is #56A0D3?

Carolina Blue (#56A0D3) is a medium cyan-blue. In RGB it is rgb(86, 160, 211), and in HSL hsl(204, 59%, 58%).

Is #56A0D3 accessible as text?

On white, #56A0D3 has a contrast ratio of 2.85:1 (fails WCAG AA for body text); on black it is 7.36:1 (passes). For text placed on #56A0D3, use black for the best readability.

What is the closest Tailwind color to #56A0D3?

The nearest Tailwind CSS token is sky-500 (#00A6F4).

What colors go well with #56A0D3?

#56A0D3 pairs cleanly with neutrals — cream, taupe, charcoal and cool grays — and with its complementary #D38755. In UI, a softer accent is often easier to use than the exact complement. Explore the harmonies, shades, tints and ready-made palettes for #56A0D3 below.

Is Carolina Blue good for buttons?

Carolina Blue works well for buttons and highlights, but use black text on #56A0D3 — white text only reaches 2.85:1, below the 4.5:1 needed for normal-size labels.

Is Carolina Blue a CSS named color?

No — Carolina Blue is not a standard CSS named color; use the hex value #56A0D3 in CSS. The closest CSS named color is cornflowerblue.

Carolina Blue (#56A0D3) Color Palette, HEX, RGB & Design Ideas

Palettes built on Carolina Blue

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

Coastal Morning Lead · 5 colors

Lead #56A0D3 Accent #A5C4C0 Surface #DEDABF Secondary #9AA0A0 Anchor #1F344A

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

Nordic Calm Accent · 5 colors

Accent #56A0D3 Secondary #AEB4B8 Surface #F1F2F0 Support #7C93A6 Anchor #2E3236

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

Tech Product Signal · 5 colors

Signal #56A0D3 Surface #14161A Highlight #F4F6F8 Secondary #5A6672 Accent #84C6F5

Carolina 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 Carolina Blue.

Minimal Editorial Surface · 5 colors

Surface #F6F4EF Accent #56A0D3 Secondary #AFC7DA Support #969386 Ink #16140F

Carolina 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 Carolina Blue carrying the quiet middle.

Modern Café Dominant · 5 colors

Dominant #56A0D3 Anchor #3C2925 Surface #EAE5D0 Accent #7B9E77 Secondary #393933

Carolina Blue 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.

Build a working theme in the generator →

Color Lab

How Carolina Blue 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 19/100

Cool

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

Softness 55/100

Moderate

Middle-weight — neither delicate nor heavy.

Depth 32/100

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 44/100

Moderate

A faint retro warmth without tipping into sepia.

Luxury 40/100

Moderate

Understated — leans refined without going austere.

Brand distinctiveness 41/100

Moderate

Recognisable but shares space with nearby hues.

UI accent fit 65/100

High

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

Surface fit 37/100

Low

Usable as a tinted surface in measured doses.

Print safety 75/100

High

Reproduces faithfully in CMYK — safe for packaging and print.

Pairs with Carolina Blue

For UI

For branding

For interior

For fashion

People also use Carolina Blue with

Turquoise Iris Peru 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 Only on dark surfaces. Avoid

Background Pair with #141310 text at 6.5:1. Use

Subtle surface Use #E0EBF3 for cards and hover fills. Tint 80

Avoid beside #5576D3 — 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 Carolina Blue 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: #56A0D3;
  --color-base-rgb: 86 160 211;
  --color-base-oklch: oklch(67.9% 0.106 240.8);
  --color-50: #F2F8FC;
  --color-100: #DEEDF7;
  --color-200: #BEDBEE;
  --color-300: #92BFDE;
  --color-400: #68A3CA;
  --color-500: #4685AE;
  --color-600: #3C6886;
  --color-700: #304C5F;
  --color-800: #22333F;
  --color-900: #172027;
  --color-on-base: #141310;
}

// tailwind.config.js
colors: {
  carolina-blue: {
    50: '#F2F8FC',
    100: '#DEEDF7',
    200: '#BEDBEE',
    300: '#92BFDE',
    400: '#68A3CA',
    500: '#4685AE',
    600: '#3C6886',
    700: '#304C5F',
    800: '#22333F',
    900: '#172027',
  },
}

$base: #56A0D3;
$base-ink: #141310;
$base-50: #F2F8FC;
$base-100: #DEEDF7;
$base-200: #BEDBEE;
$base-300: #92BFDE;
$base-400: #68A3CA;
$base-500: #4685AE;
$base-600: #3C6886;
$base-700: #304C5F;
$base-800: #22333F;
$base-900: #172027;
$base-hover: #3184BC;
$base-subtle: #D0E2ED;

{
    "color": {
        "base": {
            "value": "#56A0D3",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "onBase": {
            "value": "#141310",
            "type": "color"
        },
        "scale": {
            "50": {
                "value": "#F2F8FC",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "100": {
                "value": "#DEEDF7",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "200": {
                "value": "#BEDBEE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "300": {
                "value": "#92BFDE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "400": {
                "value": "#68A3CA",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "500": {
                "value": "#4685AE",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "600": {
                "value": "#3C6886",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "700": {
                "value": "#304C5F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "800": {
                "value": "#22333F",
                "type": "color"
            },
            "900": {
                "value": "#172027",
                "type": "color"
            }
        }
    }
}

Palettes built on Carolina Blue

Color Lab

Pairs with Carolina Blue

UI roles & guardrails

In real applications

Scales

Every model

Export