What color is #516F72?

#516F72 is a grayish cyan, closest to the named color Rogue Waters. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #516F72?

The RGB value is 81, 111, 114: 81 red, 111 green and 114 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #516F72?

The complementary color is #725451, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #516F72?

White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 3.87:1 and white text 5.43:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#516F72 color

#516F72 rgb(81, 111, 114)

Shades of gray

The hex color #516F72 is a grayish cyan.

In the RGB color model it is made of 31.8% red, 43.5% green and 44.7% blue (81, 111, 114).

Its hue angle is 185°, with 17% saturation and 38% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 29% cyan, 3% magenta, 0% yellow and 55% black.

The closest named color is Rogue Waters (#4E7376), a difference of 2.2 ΔE, a small difference.

White text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 5.43:1).

#516F72 color codes

HEX	`#516F72`
RGB	`rgb(81, 111, 114)`
RGB percent	`rgb(31.8%, 43.5%, 44.7%)`
HSL	`hsl(185, 17%, 38%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(185, 29%, 45%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(29%, 3%, 0%, 55%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(44.71, -10.04, -5.19)`
CIE LCH	`lch(44.71, 11.3, 207.34)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(12.114, 14.333, 18.044)`
Decimal	`5336946`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #516F72, 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 #516F72	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	3.87:1	Fail	Fail	Pass
Sample text	5.43:1	Pass	Fail	Pass

#516F72 as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	5.43:1	Pass	Fail	Pass
Sample text	3.87:1	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 #516F72 looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #516f72; }
.text { color: #516f72; }
.border { border: 2px solid #516f72; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(81 111 114 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #516f72, #515e72); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Smoke.

Questions

What color is #516F72?: #516F72 is a grayish cyan, closest to the named color Rogue Waters. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #516F72?: The RGB value is 81, 111, 114: 81 red, 111 green and 114 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #516F72?: The complementary color is #725451, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #516F72?: White text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 3.87:1 and white text 5.43:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.