Exploring the Color #72A09B

#72A09B sits at 173° on the color wheel, placing it in the cyan family of the cool half of the spectrum. With 19% saturation and 54% lightness, it reads as a heavily muted, balanced tone — a balanced mid-energy presence that sits comfortably alongside other UI tones. Its RGB mix of 114, 160, 155 produces a 7.22:1 contrast ratio against black, which clears WCAG AAA for body text in that pairing.

In RGB space #72A09B is a clear variant of CSS gray — about 44 units away from #808080. 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