Exploring the Color #596F72

#596F72 sits at 187° on the color wheel, placing it in the cyan family of the cool half of the spectrum. With 12% saturation and 40% lightness, it reads as a heavily muted, shadowed tone — a quiet, restrained presence that recedes rather than competes. Its RGB mix of 89, 111, 114 produces a 5.33:1 contrast ratio against white, which clears WCAG AA for body text in that pairing.

In RGB space #596F72 is a close cousin of CSS dim gray — about 19 units away from #696969. Designers reach for cyan hues at this saturation when the brief calls for restraint and atmosphere, and at this lightness when they want a present, comfortable mid-canvas voice. On screen the cool cast tends to pair best with warm neutrals in the 25°-45° range to add life.

Darkening Shades

Lightening Shades