Carolina Blue
#4B9CD3Carolina Blue is #4B9CD3, rgb(75, 156, 211).
About Carolina Blue
Carolina Blue is the hex color #4B9CD3, which translates to rgb(75, 156, 211) in RGB and hsl(204, 61%, 56%) in HSL. On the color wheel it sits at 204 degrees, with a saturation of 61 percent and a lightness of 56 percent. That combination gives Carolina Blue a saturated mid tone: strong enough for buttons and links, still calm enough for larger areas.
How Carolina Blue compares
The closest standard CSS keyword is steelblue (#4682B4), a CIE76 distance of 10.4 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-500 (#00A6F4), at a distance of 13.7. Inside this library the closest neighbour is Blue Gray at 6.4. Sorted by lightness, Carolina Blue is number 21 of the 30 blue colors here.
Text on Carolina Blue
One of the five common text colors below clears WCAG AA for normal text on Carolina Blue, led by Ink black at 6.37:1. The ratios are computed with the WCAG relative luminance formula, the same one the contrast checker uses, which opens with Carolina Blue already loaded as the background.
| Text color | Ratio | AA normal | AA large | AAA normal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White #FFFFFF | 3.00:1 | Fail | Pass | Fail |
| Ink black #0F0F12 | 6.37:1 | Pass | Pass | Fail |
| Mid grey #6B7280 | 1.61:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail |
| Dark grey #374151 | 3.43:1 | Fail | Pass | Fail |
| Light grey #E5E7EB | 2.42:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail |
Building a palette around Carolina 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 Carolina 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 Carolina Blue locked and let it fill in the rest.
Full values for Carolina Blue
| Format | Value |
|---|---|
| HEX | #4B9CD3 |
| RGB | rgb(75, 156, 211) |
| HSL | hsl(204, 61%, 56%) |
| HSV | hsv(204, 64%, 83%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(64%, 26%, 0%, 17%) |
| OKLCH | oklch(66.55% 0.1138 241.09) |
| CIELAB | lab(61.63 -7.80 -35.42) |
Frequently asked questions
What is the RGB value of Carolina Blue?
Carolina Blue (#4B9CD3) is rgb(75, 156, 211): 75 red, 156 green and 211 blue on the 0 to 255 scale. Blue leads at 211, green follows at 156 and red trails at 75, which puts the hue at 204 degrees. In HSL the same color is hsl(204, 61%, 56%).
What colour is #4B9CD3?
#4B9CD3 is Carolina Blue, a mid blue colour with a hue of 204 degrees, 61% saturation and 56% lightness. For print the CMYK breakdown is 64% cyan, 26% magenta, 0% yellow and 17% black. Its nearest neighbour in this library is Blue Gray, 6.4 away in CIELAB, a difference you can see.
Is Carolina Blue a CSS color name?
No. Carolina Blue is not one of the 148 CSS named colors, so write it as #4B9CD3. The nearest keyword is steelblue (#4682B4), a CIE76 distance of 10.4: far enough that the keyword reads as a different color.
What colors go with Carolina Blue?
Opposite Carolina Blue on the color wheel sits the complementary #D3824B, the boldest accent by hue. For a calmer scheme use the analogous neighbours #4BD3C6 (close to Robin Egg) and #4B58D3; for a balanced three-color scheme use the triadic pair #D34B9C and #9CD34B. Of these, #4B58D3 has the most contrast against Carolina Blue, at 1.92:1, so pair it by hue, not for legibility.
What text color is readable on Carolina Blue?
Ink black (#0F0F12) is the most readable on Carolina Blue, at 6.37:1, which clears WCAG AA (4.5:1) but not AAA. 1 of the 5 common text colors tested passes AA for normal text.
Use Carolina 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.