Color #87DAFE Color / Colour Code #87DAFE
This page shows the hex color code for color #87dafe (#87DAFE). The colour is a blue tone with 98% saturation and 76% lightness. Explore its conversions, colour palettes, gradients, accessibility data, and CSS code below.
Color Conversions
Accessibility Contrast
WCAG contrast ratios for #87DAFE against common backgrounds.
Complementary Colors
#87DAFE paired with its color wheel opposite for maximum contrast.
Analogous Colors
Hues at 168, 198, and 228 degrees for harmonious combinations.
Triadic Palette
Three colors at 198, 318, and 78 degrees.
Color Palettes Using #87DAFE
Five shades at lightness levels 15% through 85% while keeping hue at 198 and saturation at 98%. Use the darkest shade for text and the lightest for backgrounds to build a cohesive single-hue design system.
Adjacent hues from 198 to 243 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 198 with its complement at 18 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 #87DAFE
Lightness variations at hue 198 and 98% saturation.
CSS Gradients with #87DAFE
Design Use Cases for #87DAFE
High-Impact Accent
With 98% saturation, #87DAFE 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.
Light Background Tint
#87DAFE at 76% lightness creates a gentle tinted background. Use it for section backgrounds, alert banners, or card surfaces that need to stand out from a white page without strong contrast. It adds color personality while keeping the design light and open.
Trust & Professional Identity
#87DAFE sits in the blue range (hue 198). 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 #87DAFE (hue 198) to its complement at hue 18. For a subtler effect, try pairing with an analogous color at hue 228. Use CSS: background: linear-gradient(135deg, #87dafe, #feaa86);
CSS Code for #87DAFE
Similar Colors
Colors visually similar to #87DAFE based on RGB, lightness, and hue variations.
Use This Color in Design Tools
Apply #87DAFE across image editing and color design tools.
About Color #87DAFE (#87DAFE)
#87DAFE is a blue color (colour) with RGB channel values of 135 red, 218 green, and 254 blue. The blue channel is dominant with a relatively balanced channel distribution. In HSL terms, the hue sits at 198 degrees with 98% saturation and 76% lightness, placing it in the cool range of the colour spectrum.
The perceived brightness of #87DAFE is 197/255 using the ITU-R BT.601 luma formula (0.299R + 0.587G + 0.114B). This means it appears bright to the human eye and is best paired with dark text for readability. For print production, the CMYK equivalent is 47% cyan, 14% magenta, 0% yellow, and 0% key (black).
The WCAG contrast ratio of #87DAFE against white is 1.56:1 and against black is 13.49:1. This does not meet AA requirements on white. Use it on dark backgrounds where it achieves 13.49:1, or use it exclusively for decorative purposes.
The complementary colour #FEAA86 creates maximum visual tension when paired with #87DAFE. For more harmonious color combinations, use the analogous colours #86FEE6 and #869EFE, 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 #87DAFE
- 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 #87DAFE?
- #87DAFE is Color #87DAFE, a blue color (colour) with RGB(135, 218, 254), HSL(198, 98%, 76%), and CMYK(47%, 14%, 0%, 0%). Its perceived brightness is 197/255.
- Is #87DAFE accessible for text?
- Against white, #87DAFE has a contrast ratio of 1.56:1 (fails AA for normal text). Against black, it has 13.49:1 (passes AA). Use the contrast checker tool for custom background pairings.
- What colours pair well with #87DAFE?
- The complementary colour is #FEAA86 (hue 18). For subtle color combinations, use analogous colours #86FEE6 and #869EFE. The triadic palette adds #FE86DA and #DAFE86 for vibrant variety.
- How do I use #87DAFE in CSS?
- Use any format: color: #87dafe; or rgb(135, 218, 254); or hsl(198, 98%, 76%). For CSS custom properties: --color-primary: 198 98% 76%; 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.