About Yale Blue
Yale Blue is the hex color #004F98, which translates to rgb(0, 79, 152) in RGB and hsl(209, 100%, 30%) in HSL. On the color wheel it sits at 209 degrees, with a saturation of 100 percent and a lightness of 30 percent. That combination gives Yale Blue a saturated mid tone: strong enough for buttons and links, still calm enough for larger areas.
How Yale Blue compares
The closest standard CSS keyword is darkslateblue (#483D8B), a CIE76 distance of 17.5 away in CIELAB. That is a visible difference, so the keyword is not a substitute here. In the Tailwind CSS 4.3.1 palette the nearest token is sky-700 (#0069A8), at a distance of 14.5. Inside this library the closest neighbour is Denim at 13.1. Sorted by lightness, Yale Blue is number 5 of the 30 blue colors here.
Text on Yale Blue
2 of the five common text colors below clear WCAG AA for normal text on Yale Blue, led by White at 8.17:1. The ratios are computed with the WCAG relative luminance formula, the same one the contrast checker uses, which opens with Yale Blue already loaded as the background.
| Text color | Ratio | AA normal | AA large | AAA normal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White #FFFFFF | 8.17:1 | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Ink black #0F0F12 | 2.34:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Mid grey #6B7280 | 1.69:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Dark grey #374151 | 1.26:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Light grey #E5E7EB | 6.60:1 | Pass | Pass | Fail |
Building a palette around Yale Blue
The pairings above give you three classic starting points. The complementary color sits opposite on the wheel and works well as an accent that draws the eye. The analogous colors sit right beside Yale Blue for calmer, harmonious combinations. The triadic pair spaces three hues evenly for a balanced, energetic palette. Open any swatch to explore it as its own color, or open the palette generator with Yale Blue locked and let it fill in the rest.
Full values for Yale Blue
| Format | Value |
|---|---|
| HEX | #004F98 |
| RGB | rgb(0, 79, 152) |
| HSL | hsl(209, 100%, 30%) |
| HSV | hsv(209, 100%, 60%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(100%, 48%, 0%, 40%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(43.06% 0.1366 253.89) |
| CIELAB | lab(33.68 9.10 -45.58) |
Frequently asked questions
What is the RGB value of Yale Blue?
Yale Blue (#004F98) is rgb(0, 79, 152): 0 red, 79 green and 152 blue on the 0 to 255 scale. Blue leads at 152, green follows at 79 and red trails at 0, which puts the hue at 209 degrees. In HSL the same color is hsl(209, 100%, 30%).
What colour is #004F98?
#004F98 is Yale Blue, a dark blue colour with a hue of 209 degrees, 100% saturation and 30% lightness. For print the CMYK breakdown is 100% cyan, 48% magenta, 0% yellow and 40% black. Its nearest neighbour in this library is Denim, 13.1 away in CIELAB, a difference you can see.
Is Yale Blue a CSS color name?
No. Yale Blue is not one of the 148 CSS named colors, so write it as #004F98. The nearest keyword is darkslateblue (#483D8B), a CIE76 distance of 17.5: far enough that the keyword reads as a different color.
What colors go with Yale Blue?
Opposite Yale Blue on the color wheel sits the complementary #984900 (close to Brown Web), the boldest accent by hue. For a calmer scheme use the analogous neighbours #009895 (close to Blue Green) and #000398; for a balanced three-color scheme use the triadic pair #98004F and #4F9800. Of these, #009895 has the most contrast against Yale Blue, at 2.30:1, so pair it by hue, not for legibility.
What text color is readable on Yale Blue?
White (#FFFFFF) is the most readable on Yale Blue, at 8.17:1, which also clears WCAG AAA (7:1). 2 of the 5 common text colors tested pass AA for normal text.
Use Yale Blue in a tool
Nearby colors
Last updated by FusionStudios. Every value on this page is computed by the same functions the tools use. How this is calculated.