# #281b74

A color — cool, vivid, dark, technical, modern, luxury, bold. Deterministic analysis from BrandSweets (no inference).

## Values

- Hex: `#281b74`
- RGB: rgb(40, 27, 116)
- HSL: hsl(249, 62%, 28%)
- OKLCH: oklch(0.307 0.143 280.5)
- Relative luminance: 0.025
- Nearest named color: midnightblue (#191970, Δ 2.694) — https://brandsweets.com/colors/midnightblue
- Moods: cool, vivid, dark, technical, modern, luxury, bold
- Page: https://brandsweets.com/colors/281b74

## Tints & shades

- Tints (toward white): #332291, #3d29ae, #472fca, #5e49d4, #7866db, #9183e2, #aba0e9, #c4bdef, #dedaf6, #f8f7fd
- Shades (toward black): #26196b, #21165f, #1e1457, #1a114a, #171042, #140e3a, #100b2d, #0d0925, #090619, #060411

## Harmonies

- Complementary: #66741b
- Analogous: #1b3a74, #551b74
- Triadic: #74281b, #1b7428
- Split-complementary: #74551b, #3a741b
- Tetradic: #741b3a, #66741b, #1b7455

## Colors that go with #281b74

Named partners (harmony on the OKLCH wheel, co-occurrence in curated palettes and brand systems, and the neutrals that carry it), best first:

- **Charcoal** #36454f [role, pool] — Charcoal is the text near-black for #281b74: softer than #000 and cool enough to feel like part of the same palette. Seen in: Boeing (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/boeing-com), dbt Labs (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/getdbt-com), CeraVe (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/cerave-com), Microsoft (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/microsoft-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/charcoal
- **Steel Blue** #4682b4 [harmony, pool: analogous] — Steel Blue is #281b74's neighbour on the wheel, so the two read as one family — use it for hover states, gradients and secondary surfaces. Seen in: FedEx (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/fedex-com), Hershey's (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/hersheys-com), Deep Water (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/dark#deep-water), Glacier (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#glacier). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/steelblue
- **Blue** #0000ff [pool] — 4 real palettes, including Sketch's brand system and Alaska Airlines's brand system put Blue beside #281b74, as the accent. Seen in: Sketch (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/sketch-com), Alaska Airlines (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/alaskaair-com), Monzo (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/monzo-com), Procter & Gamble (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/pg-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/blue
- **Cobalt Blue** #0047ab [pool] — Designers have shipped Cobalt Blue with #281b74: 4 real palettes, including Purina Pro Plan's brand system and Blue Mono, as the accent. Seen in: Purina Pro Plan (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/chewy-com), Blue Mono (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#blue-mono), Glacier (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#glacier), MLB (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/mlb-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/cobalt
- **Crimson** #dc143c [pool] — Crimson is paired with #281b74 in 5 real palettes, including Casper Sleep's brand system and Nintendo's brand system, as the lead colour. Seen in: Casper Sleep (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/casper-com), Nintendo (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/nintendo-com), Marvel (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/marvel-com), Pepsi (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/pepsi-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/crimson
- **Denim** #1560bd [pool] — Designers have shipped Denim with #281b74: 11 real palettes, including Bank of America's brand system and Panasonic's brand system, as the accent. Seen in: Bank of America (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/bankofamerica-com), Panasonic (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/panasonic-com), Hasbro (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/hasbro-com), Skechers (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/skechers-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/denim
- **Orange Red** #ff4500 [pool] — Orange Red is paired with #281b74 in 4 real palettes, including Tide's brand system and NASA's brand system, as the accent. Seen in: Tide (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/tide-com), NASA (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/nasa-gov), Monzo (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/monzo-com), Tumblr (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/tumblr-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/orangered
- **Royal Blue** #4169e1 [pool] — Royal Blue is paired with #281b74 in 7 real palettes, including Discord's brand system and Confluent's brand system, as the lead colour. Seen in: Discord (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/discord), Confluent (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/confluent-io), Nivea (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/nivea-com), Spectrum (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/spectrum-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/royalblue

## Contrast (WCAG 2.x, as text)

- On white (#ffffff): 14.01:1 — AA pass, AA-large pass, AAA pass
- On black (#000000): 1.5:1 — AA fail, AA-large fail, AAA fail. Fix: AA: text → #7462da (4.5:1); AA: background → #949494 (4.62:1); AAA: text → #998be4 (7.17:1); AAA: background → #b8b8b8 (7.06:1)

## Fonts for this mood

- technical: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/technical
- modern: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/modern
- luxury: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/luxury
- bold: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/bold

## Palette tool

Open this color locked as the lead with four explored companions: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/281b74-a79cc4-dfae4e-271f2d-e9ecf1?lock=0&style=vibrant
(Humans lock/regenerate in the tool; the URL is the state — read `lock=` back to see what they kept.)

## Connect an agent

Point any MCP client at the BrandSweets colors endpoint for the same engine:

- Endpoint: https://mcp.brandsweets.com/colors/mcp
- Tools: `analyze_color` (e.g. `analyze_color({ color: "#281b74" })`), `check_contrast` (with fixes), `generate_palette` (explore around locks), `suggest_palette` (mood/industry → curated-first), `list_palettes`.