Color #426EA9 Color / Colour Code #426EA9
This page shows the hex color code for color #426ea9 (#426EA9). The colour is a blue tone with 44% saturation and 46% lightness. Explore its conversions, colour palettes, gradients, accessibility data, and CSS code below.
Color Conversions
Accessibility Contrast
WCAG contrast ratios for #426EA9 against common backgrounds.
Complementary Colors
#426EA9 paired with its color wheel opposite for maximum contrast.
Analogous Colors
Hues at 184, 214, and 244 degrees for harmonious combinations.
Triadic Palette
Three colors at 214, 334, and 94 degrees.
Color Palettes Using #426EA9
Five shades at lightness levels 15% through 85% while keeping hue at 214 and saturation at 44%. Use the darkest shade for text and the lightest for backgrounds to build a cohesive single-hue design system.
Adjacent hues from 214 to 259 degrees create a warm, unified palette. This analogous scheme works for marketing materials, seasonal campaigns, and any design that needs visual warmth without clashing colors.
Combines the base color at hue 214 with its complement at 34 and two adjacent cool tones. This split-complementary approach provides strong visual contrast while remaining more balanced than a pure complementary scheme.
Five evenly spaced hues at 40% saturation and 80% lightness. Pastels are gentle on the eyes and work well for dashboards, onboarding screens, category tags, and any interface where multiple distinct colors are needed without visual aggression.
Shades & Tints of #426EA9
Lightness variations at hue 214 and 44% saturation.
CSS Gradients with #426EA9
Design Use Cases for #426EA9
Balanced UI Color
At 44% saturation, #426EA9 strikes a balance between vibrancy and restraint. This makes it versatile for primary UI elements like navigation bars, card headers, and form accents. It draws attention without overwhelming adjacent content.
Primary Interface Color
At 46% lightness, #426EA9 is in the mid-range, making it ideal for interactive elements like buttons, links, and selected states. This lightness level ensures good contrast against both light and dark adjacent elements in most layouts.
Trust & Professional Identity
#426EA9 sits in the blue range (hue 214). Blue is the world's most popular color for corporate identities because it conveys trust, stability, and competence. Use it for navigation bars, link text, form focus states, and any element where user confidence matters. Financial, healthcare, and technology brands rely heavily on this hue range.
Gradient Pairing
Create a gradient from #426EA9 (hue 214) to its complement at hue 34. For a subtler effect, try pairing with an analogous color at hue 244. Use CSS: background: linear-gradient(135deg, #426ea9, #a97c42);
CSS Code for #426EA9
Similar Colors
Colors visually similar to #426EA9 based on RGB, lightness, and hue variations.
Use This Color in Design Tools
Apply #426EA9 across image editing and color design tools.
About Color #426EA9 (#426EA9)
#426EA9 is a blue color (colour) with RGB channel values of 66 red, 110 green, and 169 blue. The blue channel is dominant by a ratio of 2.6:1 over the weakest channel. In HSL terms, the hue sits at 214 degrees with 44% saturation and 46% lightness, placing it in the cool range of the colour spectrum.
The perceived brightness of #426EA9 is 104/255 using the ITU-R BT.601 luma formula (0.299R + 0.587G + 0.114B). This appears dark to the human eye, so pair it with light text for adequate readability. For print production, the CMYK equivalent is 61% cyan, 35% magenta, 0% yellow, and 34% key (black).
The WCAG contrast ratio of #426EA9 against white is 5.20:1 and against black is 4.03:1. This meets the AA requirement (4.5:1) for normal text on white. For AAA compliance, consider darkening to at least 32% lightness.
The complementary colour #A97C42 creates maximum visual tension when paired with #426EA9. For more harmonious color combinations, use the analogous colours #42A2A9 and #4942A9, which sit 30 degrees on either side of the hue wheel. To build a complete design system, start with the monochromatic scale above for consistent shade variations, then add one complementary or triadic accent for interactive elements.
How to Explore Color #426EA9
- Enter your color value in HEX format.
- The tool converts it to RGB, HSL, CMYK format in real time.
- Copy the converted value to your clipboard.
What is HEX to RGB, HSL, CMYK color conversion
Converting from HEX to RGB, HSL, CMYK translates a color value between two different color models. Different color models are used in web design (HEX, RGB), print (CMYK), and color theory (HSL, HSV).
Related Tools & Colors
Frequently Asked Questions
- What color / colour is #426EA9?
- #426EA9 is Color #426EA9, a blue color (colour) with RGB(66, 110, 169), HSL(214, 44%, 46%), and CMYK(61%, 35%, 0%, 34%). Its perceived brightness is 104/255.
- Is #426EA9 accessible for text?
- Against white, #426EA9 has a contrast ratio of 5.20:1 (passes AA for normal text). Against black, it has 4.03:1 (fails AA). Use the contrast checker tool for custom background pairings.
- What colours pair well with #426EA9?
- The complementary colour is #A97C42 (hue 34). For subtle color combinations, use analogous colours #42A2A9 and #4942A9. The triadic palette adds #A9426E and #6EA942 for vibrant variety.
- How do I use #426EA9 in CSS?
- Use any format: color: #426ea9; or rgb(66, 110, 169); or hsl(214, 44%, 46%). For CSS custom properties: --color-primary: 214 44% 46%; then use it as hsl(var(--color-primary)).
- Is this color / colour explorer free?
- Yes, completely free with no signup required. All colour calculations run in your browser. You can explore any valid hex color code, not just the pre-generated palette.