Carolina Blue Color Code: #8AB8FE, RGB & HSL

Carolina Blue color values

HEX #8AB8FE

RGB rgb(138, 184, 254)

HSL hsl(216, 98%, 77%)

HSV 216, 46%, 100%

HWB hwb(216 54% 0%)

CMYK 46%, 28%, 0%, 0%

Decimal 9091326

77%HSL lightness (light)

98%HSL saturation (vivid)

216°Hue angle (azure)

0.468Relative luminance

CMYK is a standard screen-to-print conversion. Printed results depend on inks, paper and color profiles.

What is Carolina Blue?

“Carolina Blue” is a crowd-sourced name from the XKCD Color Survey, in which participants typed names for colors they were shown. It is a popular everyday label rather than an official standard.

Its hue angle of 216° places it in the azure part of the color wheel, with 98% saturation (vivid) and 77% lightness (light). It is a cool color.

Compared with the other blue colors in the Aqeeb Studio library, it is lighter than 88% of them and more saturated than 71% of them.

Its relative luminance is 0.468, which makes it a light color. That is above the 0.179 crossover point at which black and white text have equal contrast, so black text has the advantage.

Carolina Blue counts as a light color: its HSL lightness is 77% and its relative luminance is 0.468. Black text reads best on it (10.36:1 contrast).

Text contrast on Carolina Blue

WCAG contrast of white and black text on Carolina Blue
Text	Preview	Ratio	AA normal	AA large	AAA normal	AAA large
White text	Sample text	2.02:1 Poor	Fail	Fail	Fail	Fail
Black text	Sample text	10.36:1 Excellent	Pass	Pass	Pass	Pass

Ratios use the WCAG 2 formula and are truncated, never rounded up. Test any pair with the contrast checker.

Colors that go with Carolina Blue

Complementary color

Complementary colors sit directly opposite each other on the color wheel (180° apart). They give the strongest hue contrast, which suits calls to action and accents.

≈ Sand#FED08A

Analogous colors

Analogous colors are neighbors on the wheel, 30° either side of the base hue. They blend smoothly and are easy to combine in backgrounds, gradients and illustrations.

≈ Pale Turquoise#8AF2FE ≈ Lavender Blue#968AFE

Triadic colors

A triadic scheme uses three hues spaced 120° apart. It is lively yet balanced, and works best when one color leads and the other two act as accents.

≈ Carnation Pink#FE8AB8 ≈ Pistachio#B8FE8A

Split-complementary colors

Split-complementary keeps the base color and uses the two colors on either side of its complement (150° and 210°). The contrast is strong but gentler than a direct complement.

≈ Peachy Pink#FE968A ≈ Pale Yellow#F2FE8A

Tetradic colors

A tetradic (rectangle) scheme combines two complementary pairs at 0°, 60°, 180° and 240°. It offers variety but needs one dominant color to stay balanced.

≈ Light Purple#D08AFE ≈ Sand#FED08A ≈ Pistachio#B8FE8A

Monochromatic variants

Monochromatic variants keep the same hue and saturation and only change lightness, which makes them dependable for UI scales and subtle layered designs.

#0251CA#0251CA

#1672FD#1672FD

#5D9DFE#5D9DFE

#A4C8FE#A4C8FE

#EBF3FF#EBF3FF

A “≈” before a name means the exact harmony color has no named match, so the link goes to the closest named color.

Tints and shades of Carolina Blue

Lighter tints (mixed with white)

Darker shades (mixed with black)

Select any swatch to copy its HEX code. Build longer scales with the tints and shades tool.

Pastel Blue#A2BFFE Sky#82CAFC Baby Blue#A2CFFE Light Periwinkle#C1C6FC Cornflower Blue#6495ED Light Sky Blue#87CEFA Dark Sky Blue#448EE4 Faded Blue#658CBB

Where to use Carolina Blue

Card, highlight and section backgrounds with dark text (10.36:1 contrast with black)
Charts and dashboards
Links, buttons and primary interface accents
Corporate, finance and software branding
Headers and navigation bars

Use Carolina Blue in CSS

:root {
  --color-carolina-blue: #8AB8FE;
}

.element {
  color: var(--color-carolina-blue);
  background-color: #8AB8FE;
  border: 2px solid #8AB8FE;
}

Questions about Carolina Blue

What is the HEX code for Carolina Blue?

Carolina Blue is #8AB8FE.

What is the RGB value of Carolina Blue?

The RGB value of Carolina Blue is 138, 184, 254: 138 red, 184 green and 254 blue on a 0–255 scale, written rgb(138, 184, 254) in CSS.

What is the HSL value of Carolina Blue?

The HSL value of Carolina Blue is 216°, 98%, 77% (hue, saturation, lightness), written hsl(216, 98%, 77%) in CSS.

What is the CMYK value of Carolina Blue?

A standard conversion gives about C 46%, M 28%, Y 0%, K 0%. Real print results depend on the inks, paper and color profile, so treat CMYK here as a reference value.

Is Carolina Blue a light or dark color?

Carolina Blue counts as a light color: its HSL lightness is 77% and its relative luminance is 0.468. Black text reads best on it (10.36:1 contrast).

How does Carolina Blue look with white text?

White text on Carolina Blue has a contrast ratio of 2.02:1, rated Poor. It falls below the WCAG minimum for text.

How does Carolina Blue look with black text?

Black text on Carolina Blue has a contrast ratio of 10.36:1, rated Excellent. It meets WCAG AA for normal text.

What colors go well with Carolina Blue?

Sand is its complementary color, and Pale Turquoise sits beside it as an analogous color. Lighter and darker variants of the same hue also work well for monochromatic palettes.

Where can Carolina Blue be used?

It suits card, highlight and section backgrounds with dark text (10.36:1 contrast with black); charts and dashboards; links, buttons and primary interface accents.

How do I use Carolina Blue in CSS?

Use color: #8AB8FE; for text, background-color: #8AB8FE; for fills, or define a custom property such as --color-carolina-blue: #8AB8FE; and reuse it with var(--color-carolina-blue).

About this color page

Crowd-sourced name from the XKCD Color Survey (CC0). Values are calculated from the HEX code; color names are labels, not trademarks or standards unless stated. Screens render colors differently, so always check important colors on your own device. See the disclaimer.

Carolina Blue Color Code: #8AB8FE