Tailwind CSS v4 default palette
Tailwind blue-950: #162456
In Tailwind CSS v4, blue-950 is defined as --color-blue-950: oklch(28.2% 0.091 267.935), which is #162456 in hex and rgb(22, 36, 86): a very dark, moderately saturated blue. In Tailwind v3, blue-950 was #172554.
In OKLCH, blue-950 has a lightness of 28.2%, chroma 0.091 and hue 267.9°.
The value fits inside sRGB, so the hex #162456 represents it without loss on any screen.
In v3, blue-950 was #172554. The v4 value is ΔE OK 0.4 away, below the point where most people can tell them apart.
Tailwind blue is the default for links, focus rings and primary buttons in many projects built on the framework.
Color codes for blue-950
| Tailwind v4 token | --color-blue-950 |
|---|---|
| OKLCH (source value) | oklch(28.2% 0.091 267.935) |
| HEX | #162456 |
| RGB | rgb(22, 36, 86) |
| HSL | hsl(227, 59%, 21%) |
| HWB | hwb(227 9% 66%) |
| CMYK (naive, no ICC profile) | cmyk(74%, 58%, 0%, 66%) |
| Decimal | 1,451,094 |
| Tailwind v3 hex | #172554 |
| Utility classes | bg-blue-950, text-blue-950, border-blue-950 |
Tailwind blue scale
Contrast and accessibility
On blue-950, white text has a contrast ratio of 14.77:1 and passes AAA at any text size; black text reaches 1.42:1.
WCAG 2.2 contrast ratios (success criteria 1.4.3 and 1.4.6: AA needs 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text, AAA needs 7:1 and 4.5:1). APCA Lc is the lightness contrast from the APCA-W3 0.0.98G model proposed for WCAG 3; a higher absolute value is more readable, and Lc 75 is its suggested minimum for body text.
| Pair | Ratio | AA | AA large | AAA | AAA large | APCA Lc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black text on blue-950 | 1.42:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail | Fail | 0.0 |
| White text on blue-950 | 14.77:1 | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | −104.2 |
| Blue-950 text on white | 14.77:1 | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | 101.4 |
| Blue-950 text on black | 1.42:1 | Fail | Fail | Fail | Fail | 0.0 |
Tints and shades
Each step mixes var(--color-blue-950) with white (tints) or black (shades) in gamma-encoded sRGB, the same result as color-mix(in srgb, var(--color-blue-950), white 25%) in CSS.
Tints (mixed with white)
- 5%
#222f5e - 15%
#39456f - 25%
#505b80 - 35%
#687191 - 45%
#7f87a2 - 55%
#969cb3 - 65%
#adb2c4 - 75%
#c5c8d5 - 85%
#dcdee6 - 95%
#f3f4f7
Shades (mixed with black)
- 5%
#152252 - 15%
#131f49 - 25%
#111b41 - 35%
#0e1738 - 45%
#0c142f - 55%
#0a1027 - 65%
#080d1e - 75%
#060916 - 85%
#03050d - 95%
#010204
Color harmonies
Rotating the hue in OKLCH while keeping lightness and chroma, blue-950's complementary color is #392600 (close to darkslategray), its analogous colors are #002D4F and #301C50, and its triadic partners are #4D110D and #00350A. For text on top, white gives the higher contrast.
| Harmony | Rotation | Color |
|---|---|---|
| Complementary | +180° | #392600 |
| Analogous | −30°, +30° | #002d4f#301c50 |
| Triadic | +120°, +240° | #4d110d#00350a |
| Split-complementary | +150°, +210° | #481a00#262e00 |
Computed in OKLCH: the hue is rotated by 180° (complementary), ±30° (analogous), ±120° (triadic) and 180° ±30° (split-complementary) while lightness and chroma stay fixed. Results that fall outside sRGB are brought back with the CSS Color 4 gamut mapping algorithm. Because this uses OKLCH, the values differ from tools that rotate hue in HSL, but every color keeps the same perceived lightness.
Warm or cool?
Tailwind blue-950 is a cool color: its hue is 227° on the HSL wheel, in the green, blue and violet range that is conventionally called cool.
Nearest named and Tailwind colors
Distance is ΔE OK, the Euclidean distance in OKLab multiplied by 100. Values under about 2 are hard to tell apart side by side.
Nearest CSS named colors
| Color | HEX | ΔE OK |
|---|---|---|
| midnightblue | #191970 | 5.4 |
| navy | #000080 | 9.8 |
| darkblue | #00008b | 10.9 |
Nearest Tailwind v4 colors
| Color | HEX | ΔE OK |
|---|---|---|
| indigo-950 | #1e1a4d | 3.3 |
| sky-950 | #052f4a | 4.3 |
| slate-800 | #1d293d | 5.1 |
Code snippets
<div class="bg-blue-950 text-white">...</div>
<p class="text-blue-950 border-blue-950">...</p>.element {
color: var(--color-blue-950);
background-color: oklch(28.2% 0.091 267.935);
border-color: #162456;
outline-color: rgb(22 36 86);
}import SwiftUI
extension Color {
static let blue950 = Color(red: 0.086, green: 0.141, blue: 0.337)
}import androidx.compose.ui.graphics.Color
val Blue950 = Color(0xFF162456)import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
const blue950 = Color(0xFF162456);<!-- res/values/colors.xml -->
<color name="blue_950">#162456</color>Frequently asked questions
- What is the hex code for Tailwind blue-950?
- In Tailwind CSS v4, blue-950 is oklch(28.2% 0.091 267.935), which converts to #162456 (rgb(22, 36, 86)) in sRGB. In Tailwind v3 the same name was #172554.
- What is the difference between blue-950 in Tailwind v3 and v4?
- v3 used the hex #172554; v4 redefined the palette in OKLCH as oklch(28.2% 0.091 267.935). In v3, blue-950 was #172554. The v4 value is ΔE OK 0.4 away, below the point where most people can tell them apart.
- How do I use blue-950 in plain CSS?
- Tailwind v4 defines every palette color as a theme variable, so in CSS you write var(--color-blue-950). By default Tailwind only emits the variables your project uses; @theme static emits all of them.
- Can you use white text on blue-950?
- White text on blue-950 has a contrast ratio of 14.77:1, which passes both AA and AAA under WCAG 2.2. Black text reaches 1.42:1 and fails AA even for large text. In APCA terms that is Lc −104.2 for white and Lc 0.0 for black.
- Which CSS named color is closest to blue-950?
- The closest is midnightblue (#191970) at ΔE OK 5.4, followed by navy and darkblue.
Last reviewed by Arielton Oberek.