Palettes / Colors / #281BDB

#281BDB — Vivid Blue

#281BDB is a blue color we call Vivid Blue, closest to the named color Blue (#0000FF). It belongs to the blue family.

Color name

Closest CSS keyword: blue (#0000FF) — not an exact match. CSS blue gives you #0000FF, a different color; use #281BDB when you need this exact shade.

Sources: common names follow widely used color-name references; CSS keywords and their hex values follow the CSS Color specification.

#281BDB is a cool blue color associated with trust, calm and professionalism. It is saturated enough to be the accent — buttons, highlights and calls to action — while neutrals do the quiet work around it.

Its strongest partner is its complement #CDDA1B; it also sits naturally between #1B6EDA and #871BDA. In the palettes below you can see it working alongside real color combinations from our collection.

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Color values

RGB & CMYK percentages

Red 16% · Green 11% · Blue 86%

Cyan 82% · Magenta 88% · Yellow 0% · Key 14%

CMYK values are unprofiled approximations for screen reference — not a print-proofing guarantee.

Previews

CSS code for #281BDB

.text { color: #281BDB; }
.background { background-color: #281BDB; }
.border { border: 3px solid #281BDB; }
.text-rgb { color: rgb(40, 27, 219); }
.text-hsl { color: hsl(244, 78%, 48%); }
.text-shadow-hex { text-shadow: 4px 4px 2px #281BDB; }
.text-shadow-rgba { text-shadow: 4px 4px 2px rgba(40, 27, 219, 0.8); }
.box-shadow-hex { box-shadow: 1px 1px 3px 2px #281BDB; }
.box-shadow-rgba { box-shadow: 1px 1px 3px 2px rgba(40, 27, 219, 0.8); }

HTML: <p style="color:#281BDB">Text here</p> · <div style="background-color:#281BDB">Div content here</div>

Shades of #281BDB

Tints of #281BDB

Tones of #281BDB

Color harmonies

Complementary — #CDDA1B:

Analogous:

Triadic:

Contrast & accessibility

Best text color on #281BDB: #FFFFFF.

Semi-transparent (opacity) text on #281BDB

Text set with opacity blends into the background, so its real contrast is lower than the solid ratios above. Choose a text color and an opacity to see the blended color and its true ratio:

How #281BDB looks with color blindness

Simulated with standard Machado color-vision-deficiency matrices — useful when this color carries meaning in charts, maps or interfaces:

Closest design-system colors

The nearest matches in the Tailwind CSS, Material Design and Bootstrap palettes — handy when you need a framework class instead of a raw hex:

Palettes with a similar color

These palettes use a close neighbour of #281BDB rather than the exact color:

Similar colors

The closest colors that actually appear in our palette collection — click any to open its page:

Browse neighbouring colors

← #281BDA  ·  #281BDC →

Frequently asked questions

What color is #281BDB?

#281BDB is Vivid Blue, a blue color (RGB 40, 27, 219). Its closest standard named color is Blue.

What is the RGB and HSL of #281BDB?

#281BDB is RGB 40, 27, 219 — HSL 244°, 78%, 48% — CMYK 82%, 88%, 0%, 14%.

What colors go with #281BDB?

Its complement is #CDDA1B; analogous partners are #1B6EDA and #871BDA. It also appears in 6+ palettes in our collection.

Can I use #281BDB for text?

White text on #281BDB has a contrast ratio of 9.25:1 (passes WCAG AA); black text gives 2.27:1.