BLUES

Blue

#85BCDD

RGB 133, 188, 221 · HSL 203°, 56%, 69% · CMYK 40, 15, 0, 13

Blue is #85BCDD in HEX — rgb(133, 188, 221), hsl(203°, 56%, 69%), cmyk(40%, 15%, 0%, 13%).

Blue pulls into the light end of the blues spectrum — HSL 203°, 56%, 69%. The balanced saturation makes it confident without overpowering, 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#85BCDD

RGB133, 188, 221

HSL203°, 56%, 69%

HSV203°, 40%, 87%

CMYK40, 15, 0, 13

Decimal8764637

CSS RGBrgb(133, 188, 221)

CSS HSLhsl(203, 56%, 69%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Benjamin Moore

Blue 2063-50

Exact match

Vista Paint

Cascade Blue K-147

ΔE 2.4 · #7BB8D9

PPG

Horizon Haze 1237-4

ΔE 3 · #80C1E2

Sherwin-Williams

Regale Blue SW6801

ΔE 3.2 · #7DB5D3

Behr

Colorado Springs 570D-4

ΔE 3.2 · #85C2E0

Dunn-Edwards

Astral DE5856

ΔE 3.4 · #8EC2E7

Valspar

Billow 4008-9C

ΔE 3.5 · #87C5E6

Dulux

Pacific Harbour S35E2

ΔE 4.1 · #77BCDB

Hallman-Lindsay

Watery Sea 638

ΔE 4.1 · #88BFE7

Kilz

Washed Away RD180-02

ΔE 4.5 · #91BAD6

IKEA

IKEA085 85

ΔE 6.8 · #9FC1DF

Dutch Boy

Sky Blue D-6742

ΔE 8.4 · #7AC2D8

Kobra

Blue 27

ΔE 11.4 · #87C8D7

Farrow & Ball

Lulworth Blue 89

ΔE 11.9 · #A1B8CA

Colorhouse

Dream .03 Dream-03

ΔE 15.1 · #B4CBD9

RAL

Pastel Turquoise 6034

ΔE 18.7 · #7FB5B5

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

46/100

Medium

0 · DarkLight · 100

Balanced reflectance — holds colour without washing out. Versatile for most rooms and the most forgiving range for true-to-chip results.

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

#85BCDD

#DCA684

Analogous

#84DCD2

#85BCDD

#848EDC

Triadic

#85BCDD

#DC84BA

#BADC84

Split-Complementary

#85BCDD

#DC848E

#DCD284

Tetradic

#85BCDD

#D284DC

#DCA684

#8EDC84

Monochromatic

#2C709B

#4899CB

#85BCDD

#BFDCED

#EBF4F9

Rectangle

#85BCDD

#A684DC

#DCA684

#BADC84

Compound

#85BCDD

#848EDC

#DCA684

#DCD284

Variations

Lighter

#9CC8E3

#B9D5E6

#D8E6EE

Darker

#4A9CD0

#256F9C

#14415D

Saturation

#A3B3BD

#84BADC

#72BEEE

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

2.05:1

Fail

vs Black

10.23:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#85BCDD

#A1B0DE

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#85BCDD

#B4B4D9

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#85BCDD

#82C1BC

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Focused · Cooling

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

#A3BAC1

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#85BCDD

Daylight 5500K

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

#90BFE5

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#E9EBED

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.

#C88A63

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 · Trim · Soft furniture

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: #85BCDD;

CSS — background

background-color: #85BCDD;

CSS Variable

--color-blue: #85BCDD;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'blue': '#85BCDD' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#85BCDD] text-[#85BCDD]

SCSS

$blue: #85BCDD;

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Tidal Wave

#7CB7D6 · ΔE 2.6

Aquarius

#7BBDE1 · ΔE 3.1

Summer Day

#97C3DF · ΔE 4.9

Clear Sailing

#83B8D0 · ΔE 5.2

Blue Bayou

#92BAD4 · ΔE 5.3

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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 #85BCDD?

#85BCDD is Blue, a soft blue with a cool undertone.

Is #85BCDD warm or cool?

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

What rooms work best with Blue?

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

What colors pair well with Blue?

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 Blue?

You can download 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 Blue?

The hex code is #85BCDD. In RGB it's 133, 188, 221, and in HSL it's 203°, 56%, 69%.

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