Exploring the Color #9D9CB6

#9D9CB6 sits at 242° on the color wheel, placing it in the blue family of the cool half of the spectrum. With 15% saturation and 66% lightness, it reads as a heavily muted, light tone — a balanced mid-energy presence that sits comfortably alongside other UI tones. Its RGB mix of 157, 156, 182 produces a 7.86:1 contrast ratio against black, which clears WCAG AAA for body text in that pairing.

In RGB space #9D9CB6 is a clear variant of CSS silver — about 51 units away from #C0C0C0. Designers reach for blue 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