Tailwind CSS v3 color

Tailwind sky-500 #0EA5E9

Tailwind CSS v3's sky-500 is #0EA5E9. It is a light soft blue in the blue family. In OKLCH it sits at lightness 0.685, chroma 0.148 and hue 237.3°. The nearest CSS named color is deepskyblue (#00BFFF), ΔE2000 7.6 away.

Relative luminance
0.3289
OKLCH L · C · h
0.685 · 0.148 · 237.3
Best text
Black 7.57:1
Hue family
Blue
Inspect this color Check contrast

#0EA5E9 color codes

HEX
#0EA5E9
RGB
rgb(14, 165, 233)
HSL
hsl(199, 89%, 48%)
OKLCH
oklch(0.685 0.148 237.3)
OKLab
oklab(0.685 -0.080 -0.124)
CIELAB (D65)
L* 64.07, a* -11.09, b* -43.86
XYZ (D65)
X 28.34, Y 32.88, Z 81.93
CMYK (naive)
cmyk(94%, 29%, 0%, 9%)

CIELAB and XYZ use the D65 white point; CSS lab() uses D50, so paste the OKLCH or HEX value into stylesheets. CMYK here is a plain formula with no press profile.

Legibility

Contrast: is #0EA5E9 accessible?

Black text on it reaches 7.57:1, passing AAA. White text fails at 2.77:1.

WCAG 2 gives the same ratio whichever color is the text; APCA does not, so its Lc changes sign and size with polarity.

Open the Contrast System

  • Black text on it

    7.57:1

    • AA passes
    • AA large passes
    • AAA passes
    • APCA Lc +51

  • White text on it

    2.77:1

    • AA fails
    • AA large fails
    • AAA fails
    • APCA Lc −58

  • As text on black

    7.57:1

    • AA passes
    • AA large passes
    • AAA passes
    • APCA Lc −49

  • As text on white

    2.77:1

    • AA fails
    • AA large fails
    • AAA fails
    • APCA Lc +52

Nearest versions that pass 4.5:1

  • For text on white

    #007DB3 4.58:1

    Darkening its OKLCH lightness from 0.68 to 0.56 reaches 4.58:1 on white, keeping the hue.

    Compare both in the Contrast System

  • For text on black

    #0EA5E9 7.57:1

    It already reaches 7.57:1 on black, so no change is needed.

Checking another pair? Use the Contrast Checker.

Studio

Adjust #0EA5E9 live

Move lightness, chroma and hue in OKLCH, or drag on the map. The map is every lightness and chroma at the current hue: sRGB inside the solid area, Display P3 out to the dashed line.

The studio needs JavaScript.

Scale

Shades and tints of #0EA5E9

Eleven OKLCH lightness steps at this hue, each with its contrast against white and black. #0EA5E9 sits at step 400.

  1. 50#EBF7FF
    White
    1.08
    Black
    19.28
  2. 100#D8EFFF
    White
    1.18
    Black
    17.71
  3. 200#AEDFFF
    White
    1.41
    Black
    14.79
  4. 300#6FC9FF
    White
    1.83
    Black
    11.47
  5. 400This color#0EA5E9
    White
    2.77
    Black
    7.57
  6. 500#0090CD
    White
    3.57
    Black
    5.87
  7. 600#0077AB
    White
    4.96
    Black
    4.22
  8. 700#005F89
    White
    7.00
    Black
    2.99
  9. 800#004565
    White
    10.29
    Black
    2.03
  10. 900#002D43
    White
    14.41
    Black
    1.45
  11. 950#001828
    White
    18.08
    Black
    1.16

Under each step, white and black text on it; a bold figure passes 4.5:1.

Tailwind CSS v3 sky scale

The real Tailwind palette, for comparison with the computed ramp above.

  1. 50#F0F9FF
    White
    1.06
    Black
    19.69
  2. 100#E0F2FE
    White
    1.14
    Black
    18.30
  3. 200#BAE6FD
    White
    1.32
    Black
    15.82
  4. 300#7DD3FC
    White
    1.66
    Black
    12.59
  5. 400#38BDF8
    White
    2.14
    Black
    9.80
  6. 500This color#0EA5E9
    White
    2.77
    Black
    7.57
  7. 600#0284C7
    White
    4.09
    Black
    5.12
  8. 700#0369A1
    White
    5.93
    Black
    3.53
  9. 800#075985
    White
    7.56
    Black
    2.77
  10. 900#0C4A6E
    White
    9.45
    Black
    2.22
  11. 950#082F49
    White
    13.87
    Black
    1.51

Gamut

How vivid #0EA5E9 can get

At its lightness and hue, sRGB reaches OKLCH chroma 0.150; #0EA5E9 uses 98% of it. Display P3, which many recent phones and laptops show, reaches 0.197 there: 31% more.

0.00.20.40.60.80.20.40.60.8 460480500520540560580600620
  • sRGB
  • Display P3
  • Rec. 2020
  • Dominant wavelength
OKLCH chroma
0.148
sRGB edge
0.150
Display P3 edge
0.197
Rec. 2020 edge
0.208
Dominant wavelength
480 nm
Excitation purity
52%
Chromaticity
x 0.1980, y 0.2297
  • This color#0EA5E9
  • Most vivid in sRGB#00A5EA
  • Most vivid in Display P3oklch(0.685 0.197 237.3)

On a screen without Display P3 the last tile shows the sRGB edge instead.

Use the wider color where screens show it
.accent {
  color: #0ea5e9;
}
@media (color-gamut: p3) {
  .accent { color: color(display-p3 0 0.6388 0.9839); }
}

Mixing

Mixing #0EA5E9

Each row is the same mix worked out in a different space, with the halfway color at its end. sRGB, which older CSS gradients use, can sag gray or dark in the middle; OKLab keeps the lightness steps even; OKLCH holds chroma and hue as it goes.

White #FFFFFF

  • sRGB50%#87D2F4
  • OKLab50%#9ED3F6
  • OKLCH50%#9ED3F6

Black #000000

  • sRGB50%#075375
  • OKLab50%#023D5A
  • OKLCH50%#023D5A

Its complement #DC7F2B

  • sRGB50%#75928A
  • OKLab50%#999A9A
  • OKLCH50%#50B262
In CSS
/* A gradient and a mix, worked out in OKLCH */
background: linear-gradient(in oklch, #0ea5e9, white);
color: color-mix(in oklch, #0ea5e9 50%, white);

In use

#0EA5E9 in an interface

A button, a link, a heading, a focused field, an icon and a chart line in this color, on a light page and a dark one. Each check is a WCAG 2 contrast minimum: 1.4.3 for text, 1.4.11 for the rest.

Light page

  • Button labelText, 4.5:17.57:1 Passes
  • Link and body-size textText, 4.5:12.77:1 Fails
  • Large headingLarge text, 3:12.77:1 Fails
  • Icons, borders and focus ringsNon-text, 3:12.77:1 Fails

For text on this page, the nearest shade that passes is #007DB3 4.58:1

Dark page

  • Button labelText, 4.5:17.57:1 Passes
  • Link and body-size textText, 4.5:16.75:1 Passes
  • Large headingLarge text, 3:16.75:1 Passes
  • Icons, borders and focus ringsNon-text, 3:16.75:1 Passes

Color vision

How #0EA5E9 looks with color blindness

Achromatopsia changes it most, ΔE2000 22.6; deuteranopia changes it least, 13.0.

Simulated with Machado et al. (2009) at full severity, in linear light.

Simulate a whole page What each type sees

  • Protanopia

    No working red (long-wavelength) cones

    #84A5EC ΔE2000 13.8

    Distinct

    Reads as light soft blue

  • Deuteranopia

    No working green (medium-wavelength) cones

    #6893E8 ΔE2000 13.0

    Distinct

    Reads as light soft blue

  • Tritanopia

    No working blue (short-wavelength) cones

    #00B6BD ΔE2000 19.3

    Distinct

    Reads as light soft cyan

  • Achromatopsia

    No cone color vision; lightness only

    #9B9B9B ΔE2000 22.6

    Distinct

    Reads as gray

Pairing check

Checked against its complement, #DC7F2B. Their lightness contrast is only 1.06:1, so where hue collapses, add a label, icon or pattern.

VisionThe pairΔE2000Verdict
Normal vision#0EA5E9 · #DC7F2B50.0Stays distinct
Protanopia#84A5EC · #9B891D51.8Stays distinct
Deuteranopia#6893E8 · #B19F2B55.3Stays distinct
Tritanopia#00B6BD · #F16A6F56.2Stays distinct
Achromatopsia#9B9B9B · #9696961.6Easily confused

Harmony

Color harmonies for #0EA5E9

Its complement is #DC7F2B, a light soft orange, on the warm side of the wheel.

Hue rotations in OKLCH, mapped into sRGB by trimming chroma so hue and lightness stay put.

Open the Harmony Studio
  • Base#0EA5E9
  • Complement#DC7F2B

Complementary

Open in Harmony Studio
  • −30°#00ADBF
  • Base#0EA5E9
  • +30°#7194F5

Analogous

Open in Harmony Studio
  • Base#0EA5E9
  • +120°#E06F9A
  • +240°#93A522

Triadic

Open in Harmony Studio
  • Base#0EA5E9
  • +150°#E77166
  • +210°#BE9300

Split-complementary

Open in Harmony Studio

Code

Design tokens

Ready-to-paste tokens in six formats. Rename them to fit your system.

CSS custom property

:root {
  --color-sky-500: #0ea5e9;
}

Tailwind config

// tailwind.config.js — already built in as sky-500;
// pin the v3 value explicitly like this:
module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        sky: { 500: '#0ea5e9' },
      },
    },
  },
};

Tailwind v4 theme

/* app.css — Tailwind CSS v4 */
@import "tailwindcss";

@theme {
  /* v4 has its own sky-500; this pins the v3 value. */
  --color-sky-500: oklch(0.685 0.148 237.3);
}

Design token (W3C DTCG)

{
  "color": {
    "sky-500": {
      "$type": "color",
      "$value": {
        "colorSpace": "srgb",
        "components": [0.0549, 0.6471, 0.9137],
        "hex": "#0ea5e9"
      },
      "$description": "Tailwind CSS v3 sky-500"
    }
  }
}

SwiftUI color

import SwiftUI

enum Palette {
    static let sky500 = Color(.sRGB, red: 0.055, green: 0.647, blue: 0.914, opacity: 1)
}

Jetpack Compose color

import androidx.compose.ui.graphics.Color

object Palette {
    val Sky500 = Color(0xFF0EA5E9)
}

Matches

The nearest match in each system

The closest CSS name, Tailwind shade, RAL Classic paint and Crayola crayon by ΔE2000; under 2 is hard to tell apart side by side. RAL and Crayola values approximate physical colors.

Neighbors

The eight nearest colors on this site by ΔE2000, closest first. Under 2 is hard to tell apart side by side.

Tools

Open #0EA5E9 in the tools

Each opens over this page. More colors live in the Color Library, and every color page is listed on the hub.