Exploring the Color #221B5C

#221B5C sits at 246° on the color wheel, placing it in the blue family of the cool half of the spectrum. With 55% saturation and 23% lightness, it reads as a moderately saturated, deep tone — a balanced mid-energy presence that sits comfortably alongside other UI tones. Its RGB mix of 34, 27, 92 produces a 15.22:1 contrast ratio against white, which clears WCAG AAA for body text in that pairing.

In RGB space #221B5C is a clear variant of CSS navy — about 56 units away from #000080. Designers reach for blue hues at this saturation when the brief calls for a conversational, mid-energy register, and at this lightness when they want weight, depth, and grounded contrast. On screen the cool cast tends to pair best with warm neutrals in the 25°-45° range to add life.

Darkening Shades

Lightening Shades