What color is #515A72?

#515A72 is a grayish blue, closest to the named color Heavy Violet. It belongs to the blue family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #515A72?

The RGB value is 81, 90, 114: 81 red, 90 green and 114 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #515A72?

The complementary color is #726951, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #515A72?

White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 3.06:1 and white text 6.87:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#515A72 color

#515A72 rgb(81, 90, 114)

Shades of blue

The hex color #515A72 is a grayish blue.

In the RGB color model it is made of 31.8% red, 35.3% green and 44.7% blue (81, 90, 114).

Its hue angle is 224°, with 17% saturation and 38% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 29% cyan, 21% magenta, 0% yellow and 55% black.

The closest named color is Heavy Violet (#4F566C), a difference of 1.6 ΔE, which is barely visible.

White text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 6.87:1).

#515A72 color codes

HEX	`#515A72`
RGB	`rgb(81, 90, 114)`
RGB percent	`rgb(31.8%, 35.3%, 44.7%)`
HSL	`hsl(224, 17%, 38%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(224, 29%, 45%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(29%, 21%, 0%, 55%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(38.33, 2.52, -14.79)`
CIE LCH	`lch(38.33, 15, 279.67)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(10.086, 10.276, 17.368)`
Decimal	`5331570`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #515A72, based on their position on the color wheel.

Complementary

The color opposite on the color wheel (180°). Strongest contrast.

Analogous

Neighbors 30° either side. Calm, natural combinations.

Split complementary

The two colors next to the complement (150° and 210°).

Triadic

Three colors evenly spaced, 120° apart.

Tetradic (square)

Four colors 90° apart.

Shades, tints and tones

Shades (darker, mixed with black)

Tints (lighter, mixed with white)

Tones (mixed with gray)

Contrast and accessibility

Text on #515A72	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	3.06:1	Fail	Fail	Pass
Sample text	6.87:1	Pass	Fail	Pass

#515A72 as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	6.87:1	Pass	Fail	Pass
Sample text	3.06:1	Fail	Fail	Pass

WCAG 2 asks for 4.5:1 for normal text (AA), 7:1 for AAA, and 3:1 for large text. Check other pairs.

Color blindness simulation

How #515A72 looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #515a72; }
.text { color: #515a72; }
.border { border: 2px solid #515a72; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(81 90 114 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #515a72, #595172); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Charcoal.

Questions

What color is #515A72?: #515A72 is a grayish blue, closest to the named color Heavy Violet. It belongs to the blue family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #515A72?: The RGB value is 81, 90, 114: 81 red, 90 green and 114 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #515A72?: The complementary color is #726951, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #515A72?: White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 3.06:1 and white text 6.87:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.