#6495EDCornflower Blue (#6495ED) is a mid-tone, saturated blue with an OKLCH hue of 261°, lightness 0.67 and chroma 0.141. It sits on the cool side of the color wheel. In practice it behaves as an accent color: strong in focal moments, dominant over large fields.
| HEX | #6495ED |
|---|---|
| RGB | rgb(100, 149, 237) |
| HSL | hsl(219, 79%, 66%) |
| HSV | hsv(219, 58%, 93%) |
| CMYK | cmyk(58%, 37%, 0%, 7%) |
| CIE Lab | lab(61.9 9.3 -49.3) |
| OKLCH | oklch(0.675 0.141 261) |
Under warm 2700K interior light Cornflower Blue shifts subtly: leans toward purple, loses intensity; in north-facing or shaded light it is virtually unchanged. Overall drift across common illuminants is small (max ΔE ≈ 2.3), so it is a lighting-stable choice.
#7092df — ΔE 2.3, shifts subtly: leans toward purple, loses intensity#6c96e9 — ΔE 1.1, shifts subtly: leans toward purple#6495ed — ΔE 0.0, is virtually unchanged#6396f0 — ΔE 0.5, is virtually unchangedTest Cornflower Blue in the color lighting simulator — sweep it through daylight, warm 2700K light, 4000K LED, and shade alongside the rest of your palette.
Against white it measures 2.97:1 and against black 7.06:1, so black text is the stronger pairing. That pairing passes WCAG AA for body text. Avoid white text on this color entirely.
One color explored: close hues with real lightness and chroma structure, so the palette is the anchor through value rather than a set of colors.
#e8f1ff · #a9c8ff · #6495ed · #4c79ca · #2e559c · #113270
The anchor's neighbours on the wheel — everything shares an undertone, so the chord carries color without anything having to be muted to get along.
#68c9f5 · #5fb0f3 · #6495ed · #727bd2 · #7763b2 · #744e91
The mid-gap pairing — sage and mustard, terracotta and olive. A foil rotated 40–65° toward warm or cool: too far to be kin, too near to argue, carried by temperature and a deliberate value offset.
#c6a9d6 · #6495ed · #4f77bf · #783f93 · #1c3e7c · #351a42
One deliberately opposed voice — a single restrained counterpoint across the wheel, or temperature against temperature where the anchor is too muted to carry a loud opposite.
#f2ba4a · #6495ed · #68768f · #3e5682 · #24385e · #101e35
The anchor as the only color in the room. True neutrals or complement-warmed near-neutrals let it stay dominant.
#f9f1e3 · #6495ed · #727c8d · #4f4a41 · #151e2e · #020100
This color as a ground rather than a subject — its own restraint held across a narrow value band, carrying one saturated voice from the opposite temperature.
#f7f1e6 · #d2cbbe · #a8a092 · #362c1b · #150b00 · #6495ed
The opposite hue on the perceptual wheel, tempered to field strength — warm/cool tension without vibration.
#fff0d6 · #6495ed · #9d7418 · #624400 · #2a1b00 · #000012
The complement's two neighbours instead of the complement itself — strong contrast with a lower clash risk.
#cdebce · #c4cd7d · #6495ed · #977963 · #3b4a3a · #04131b
Three hues spaced evenly around the wheel; the anchor leads and the other two are held at supporting strength.
#ffedec · #6495ed · #b55e5e · #0b5b00 · #012700 · #1a0001
Two complementary pairs offset by 90° — the richest chord, kept usable by a strict lightness hierarchy.
#ffecf4 · #6495ed · #ad5e83 · #624400 · #00251b · #0d0500
#79A5F4 · #8FB6FA · #A5C6FF · #BED6FF · #D7E6FF
#4E7AC8 · #395FA5 · #244683 · #112E62 · #021743
#7096DB · #7B97C9 · #8597B7
Its chroma is high enough to carry accents, calls to action, and focal moments; large fields of it will dominate a composition. In palettes it pairs most predictably with its tonal ramp and analogous neighbors; reserve the complementary hue for small, deliberate contrast.