What color is #B9BBCB?

#B9BBCB is a light, grayish blue, closest to the named color Cosmic. It belongs to the gray family of colors.

What is the RGB value of #B9BBCB?

The RGB value is 185, 187, 203: 185 red, 187 green and 203 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.

What is the complementary color of #B9BBCB?

The complementary color is #CBC9B9, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.

Is black or white text better on #B9BBCB?

Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 11.03:1 and white text 1.9:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.

#B9BBCB color

#B9BBCB rgb(185, 187, 203)

Shades of gray

The hex color #B9BBCB is a light, grayish blue.

In the RGB color model it is made of 72.5% red, 73.3% green and 79.6% blue (185, 187, 203).

Its hue angle is 233°, with 15% saturation and 76% lightness. For print, the CMYK equivalent is 9% cyan, 8% magenta, 0% yellow and 20% black.

The closest named color is Cosmic (#B8B9CB), a difference of 1.1 ΔE, which is barely visible.

Black text is the more readable choice on this background (contrast 11.03:1).

#B9BBCB color codes

HEX	`#B9BBCB`
RGB	`rgb(185, 187, 203)`
RGB percent	`rgb(72.5%, 73.3%, 79.6%)`
HSL	`hsl(233, 15%, 76%)`
HSV / HSB	`hsv(233, 9%, 80%)`
CMYK	`cmyk(9%, 8%, 0%, 20%)`
CIE LAB	`lab(76.17, 2.41, -8.28)`
CIE LCH	`lch(76.17, 8.62, 286.24)`
CIE XYZ	`xyz(48.555, 50.166, 63.613)`
Decimal	`12172235`
Short hex	`None (no 3-digit form)`

Color harmonies

Colors that go with #B9BBCB, 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 #B9BBCB	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	11.03:1	Pass	Pass	Pass
Sample text	1.9:1	Fail	Fail	Fail

#B9BBCB as text on	Ratio	AA	AAA	AA large
Sample text	1.9:1	Fail	Fail	Fail
Sample text	11.03:1	Pass	Pass	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 #B9BBCB looks to people with the most common types of color vision deficiency.

CSS examples

.background { background-color: #b9bbcb; }
.text { color: #b9bbcb; }
.border { border: 2px solid #b9bbcb; }
.transparent { background-color: rgb(185 187 203 / 50%); }
.gradient { background: linear-gradient(to right, #b9bbcb, #c0b9cb); }

Background

Text color

Border

Similar colors

Closest common color name: Light Steel Blue.

Questions

What color is #B9BBCB?: #B9BBCB is a light, grayish blue, closest to the named color Cosmic. It belongs to the gray family of colors.
What is the RGB value of #B9BBCB?: The RGB value is 185, 187, 203: 185 red, 187 green and 203 blue on a 0 to 255 scale.
What is the complementary color of #B9BBCB?: The complementary color is #CBC9B9, found by rotating the hue 180° on the color wheel.
Is black or white text better on #B9BBCB?: Black text. Black text has a contrast ratio of 11.03:1 and white text 1.9:1. WCAG asks for at least 4.5:1 for normal text.