Color #42A5F5 Color / Colour Code #42A5F5
This page shows the hex color code for color #42a5f5 (#42A5F5). The colour is a blue tone with 90% saturation and 61% lightness. Explore its conversions, colour palettes, gradients, accessibility data, and CSS code below.
Color Conversions
Accessibility Contrast
WCAG contrast ratios for #42A5F5 against common backgrounds.
Complementary Colors
#42A5F5 paired with its color wheel opposite for maximum contrast.
Analogous Colors
Hues at 177, 207, and 237 degrees for harmonious combinations.
Triadic Palette
Three colors at 207, 327, and 87 degrees.
Color Palettes Using #42A5F5
Five shades at lightness levels 15% through 85% while keeping hue at 207 and saturation at 90%. Use the darkest shade for text and the lightest for backgrounds to build a cohesive single-hue design system.
Adjacent hues from 207 to 252 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 207 with its complement at 27 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 #42A5F5
Lightness variations at hue 207 and 90% saturation.
CSS Gradients with #42A5F5
Design Use Cases for #42A5F5
High-Impact Accent
With 90% saturation, #42A5F5 is highly vivid. Reserve this for elements that need maximum attention: primary action buttons, notification badges, error states, or promotional banners. Use sparingly alongside neutral tones to avoid visual fatigue.
Soft Accent & Highlight
With 61% lightness, #42A5F5 has a softer, more approachable quality. It works well for hover states, subtle highlights, progress indicators, and secondary UI elements. This lightness range is particularly effective for tag backgrounds and status indicators.
Trust & Professional Identity
#42A5F5 sits in the blue range (hue 207). 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 #42A5F5 (hue 207) to its complement at hue 27. For a subtler effect, try pairing with an analogous color at hue 237. Use CSS: background: linear-gradient(135deg, #42a5f5, #f59342);
CSS Code for #42A5F5
Similar Colors
Colors visually similar to #42A5F5 based on RGB, lightness, and hue variations.
Use This Color in Design Tools
Apply #42A5F5 across image editing and color design tools.
About Color #42A5F5 (#42A5F5)
#42A5F5 is a blue color (colour) with RGB channel values of 66 red, 165 green, and 245 blue. The blue channel is dominant by a ratio of 3.7:1 over the weakest channel. In HSL terms, the hue sits at 207 degrees with 90% saturation and 61% lightness, placing it in the cool range of the colour spectrum.
The perceived brightness of #42A5F5 is 145/255 using the ITU-R BT.601 luma formula (0.299R + 0.587G + 0.114B). This is a medium-brightness color that can work with either dark or light text depending on font weight and size. For print production, the CMYK equivalent is 73% cyan, 33% magenta, 0% yellow, and 4% key (black).
The WCAG contrast ratio of #42A5F5 against white is 2.65:1 and against black is 7.93:1. This does not meet AA requirements on white. Use it on dark backgrounds where it achieves 7.93:1, or use it exclusively for decorative purposes.
The complementary colour #F59342 creates maximum visual tension when paired with #42A5F5. For more harmonious color combinations, use the analogous colours #42F5EC and #424BF5, 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 #42A5F5
- 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 #42A5F5?
- #42A5F5 is Color #42A5F5, a blue color (colour) with RGB(66, 165, 245), HSL(207, 90%, 61%), and CMYK(73%, 33%, 0%, 4%). Its perceived brightness is 145/255.
- Is #42A5F5 accessible for text?
- Against white, #42A5F5 has a contrast ratio of 2.65:1 (fails AA for normal text). Against black, it has 7.93:1 (passes AA). Use the contrast checker tool for custom background pairings.
- What colours pair well with #42A5F5?
- The complementary colour is #F59342 (hue 27). For subtle color combinations, use analogous colours #42F5EC and #424BF5. The triadic palette adds #F542A5 and #A5F542 for vibrant variety.
- How do I use #42A5F5 in CSS?
- Use any format: color: #42a5f5; or rgb(66, 165, 245); or hsl(207, 90%, 61%). For CSS custom properties: --color-primary: 207 90% 61%; 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.