BLUES

Academic Blue

#2C3F56

RGB 44, 63, 86 · HSL 213°, 32%, 25% · CMYK 49, 27, 0, 66

Academic Blue is #2C3F56 in HEX — rgb(44, 63, 86), hsl(213°, 32%, 25%), cmyk(49%, 27%, 0%, 66%).

Academic Blue pulls into the deep end of the blues spectrum — HSL 213°, 32%, 25%. The muted saturation makes it quiet but present, and the hue reads cool. In interior projects it shines on bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices — for calm, focused environments. Reads best alongside warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware.

Color Codes

HEX#2C3F56

RGB44, 63, 86

HSL213°, 32%, 25%

HSV213°, 49%, 34%

CMYK49, 27, 0, 66

Decimal2899798

CSS RGBrgb(44, 63, 86)

CSS HSLhsl(213, 32%, 25%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Dulux

Academic Blue S39D9

Exact match

Hallman-Lindsay

Star-studded 620

ΔE 1.9 · #32425A

Vista Paint

Star-Studded C-619

ΔE 2.3 · #313F58

Behr

Soulful HDC-FL13-7

ΔE 2.6 · #354258

Kobra

Blue 31

ΔE 2.7 · #334059

Sherwin-Williams

Salty Dog SW9177

ΔE 2.8 · #234058

Dunn-Edwards

Black River Falls DEA189

ΔE 3 · #343E54

Benjamin Moore

North CC-932

ΔE 4.1 · #2C3C4D

PPG

Victory Blue 1165-7

ΔE 5.3 · #3A405A

RAL

Ocean Blue 5020

ΔE 5.6 · #1D334A

Kilz

Fountain Pen RC100-02

ΔE 6 · #354A67

Valspar

Indigo Streamer 4010-4

ΔE 8.2 · #404C5B

IKEA

IKEA122 122

ΔE 9 · #3A5170

Dutch Boy

Royal Blue D-6740

ΔE 10.2 · #1D375C

Farrow & Ball

Hague Blue 30

ΔE 11.3 · #3D4E57

Colorhouse

Wool .06 Wool-06

ΔE 13.4 · #485761

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

5/100

Very Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Absorbs almost all light — dramatic and cocooning. Needs strong artificial lighting and works best as an accent or in well-lit rooms.

Undertone

TemperatureCool MasstoneBlue UndertoneViolet

Reads as a cool blue with a violet undertone showing through, especially in daylight. Pair trim and adjacent colours to either calm or amplify that undertone.

Color Theory

Complementary

#2C3F56

#54422B

Analogous

#2B5254

#2C3F56

#2D2B54

Triadic

#2C3F56

#542B3E

#3E542B

Split-Complementary

#2C3F56

#542D2B

#52542B

Tetradic

#2C3F56

#542B52

#54422B

#2B542D

Monochromatic

#090C11

#111922

#2C3F56

#456387

#6889B1

Rectangle

#2C3F56

#422B54

#54422B

#3E542B

Compound

#2C3F56

#2D2B54

#54422B

#52542B

Variations

Lighter

#456387

#6D89AB

#ADBBCB

Darker

#223144

#17222F

#0D141C

Saturation

#3A3F46

#2B3E54

#163C6A

Interior Use

Best Rooms

bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices

Best Uses

main walls, ceilings, trim, cabinetry

Pairs With

warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

10.76:1

AAA

vs Black

1.95:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#2C3F56

#333C56

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#2C3F56

#3C3C53

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#2C3F56

#294340

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Focused · Cooling

Academic Blue lowers the temperature of a room — useful in south-facing rooms that overheat visually, and in home offices where you want a clear head. Pair with warm wood and brass to keep it from reading clinical.

SymbolismTrust, depth, stability

PersonalityClear-headed, dependable, contemplative

focustrustcalmofficebedroomdepth

How it looks under different light

#605C5C

Warm Bulb 2700K

Incandescent / soft white LED — pulls colour toward yellow/amber.

#2C3F56

Daylight 5500K

Midday natural light or daylight-spec LED — closest to the paint chip.

#4E6180

Cool Bulb 6500K

Cool white LED / overcast daylight — pulls colour toward blue.

Pairs With

#E9EAEC

Trim

Matched off-white

Same hue at 92% lightness — trim reads coordinated, not stark.

#F7F7F8

Ceiling

Whisper tint

Near-white with a hint of the hero's undertone — ceiling feels intentional.

#453827

Accent

Complementary punch

Hue +180°, slightly muted for paint vs. screen — use on a door, frame, or single piece.

#574738

Floor

Walnut neutral

Warm mid-brown grounds the scheme regardless of hero hue.

Paint Info

Brand · Product Line

Benjamin Moore / Regal Select Interior

Recommended Finishes

Eggshell (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Matte (ceiling)

Eggshell hides imperfections on main walls while keeping the color rich; pearl on trim adds subtle sheen and easier cleaning; flat matte on ceilings prevents glare.

Best Surfaces

Primary walls · Cabinetry · Doors · Mouldings

Coverage & Dry Time

Typical coverage 350-400 sq ft per gallon over a primed surface.

Touch-dry in ~1 hour. Recoat after 4 hours. Full cure 7-14 days.

Primer

Standard primer is adequate.

Application Tip

Use a 9" microfiber roller on walls and a 2.5" angled sash brush for trim cuts. Two coats minimum for even depth.

Paint Calculator

Wall area (m²)

Coats

Coverage (m² / L)

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

Code Snippets

CSS — color

color: #2C3F56;

CSS — background

background-color: #2C3F56;

CSS Variable

--color-academic-blue: #2C3F56;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'academic-blue': '#2C3F56' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#2C3F56] text-[#2C3F56]

SCSS

$academic-blue: #2C3F56;

Similar Colors

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#2B3B4C · ΔE 4.3

Marine Blue

#1D3E59 · ΔE 4.3

Deep Royal

#2F394B · ΔE 4.6

Old Navy

#2E3549 · ΔE 5.6

Champion Cobalt

#264864 · ΔE 5.7

Washington Blue

#304656 · ΔE 5.8

Twilight

#254455 · ΔE 6.2

Jet Blue

#414A62 · ΔE 6.5

Built by DSGN.HOUSE Updated 2026

Our color tools run on our own catalogue of 26,000+ real paint colors across 16 brands — Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux, RAL and more — with the color math (HSL and CIELAB matching) computed in-house, not scraped from summaries. Every color you pick maps to a real, buyable paint with its code, so what you see here you can actually take to the store. We review and update these tools and their data regularly.

Created by Denis Kataev, founder of DSGN.HOUSE — a software engineer and digital entrepreneur building professional color-design tools for everyone.

Frequently Asked Questions

What color is #2C3F56?

#2C3F56 is Academic Blue, a deep blue with a cool undertone.

Is #2C3F56 warm or cool?

Academic Blue reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Academic Blue?

Academic Blue works well in bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices. Designers typically use it for main walls, ceilings, trim, cabinetry.

What colors pair well with Academic Blue?

Academic Blue pairs naturally with warm white trim, oak or walnut, brass or matte black hardware. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Academic Blue?

You can download Academic Blue on DSGN.HOUSE in 15 designer formats including CSS gradient, Figma, Procreate swatches, Tailwind config, Adobe ASE, SVG, and 4K wallpapers — all free.

What's the hex code for Academic Blue?

The hex code is #2C3F56. In RGB it's 44, 63, 86, and in HSL it's 213°, 32%, 25%.

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