# #9ca8ce

A color — cool, muted, light, minimal, clean. Deterministic analysis from BrandSweets (no inference).

## Values

- Hex: `#9ca8ce`
- RGB: rgb(156, 168, 206)
- HSL: hsl(226, 34%, 71%)
- OKLCH: oklch(0.735 0.057 271.2)
- Relative luminance: 0.3953
- Nearest named color: Birdie Num Num (#89acda, Δ 2.748) — https://brandsweets.com/colors/birdie-num-num
- Moods: cool, muted, light, minimal, clean
- Page: https://brandsweets.com/colors/9ca8ce

## Tints & shades

- Tints (toward white): #a6b1d3, #adb7d7, #b7c0dc, #c1c9e1, #ccd2e6, #d3d8e9, #dde1ee, #e7eaf3, #eef0f7, #f8f9fc
- Shades (toward black): #8493c2, #6f80b8, #586bad, #4a5c96, #404f82, #34416a, #283252, #1d233a, #131726, #07080e

## Harmonies

- Complementary: #cec29c
- Analogous: #9cc1ce, #a99cce
- Triadic: #ce9ca8, #a8ce9c
- Split-complementary: #cea99c, #c1ce9c
- Tetradic: #ce9cc1, #cec29c, #9ccea9

## Colors that go with #9ca8ce

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 #9ca8ce: softer than #000 and cool enough to feel like part of the same palette. Seen in: Mercury (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/mercury-com), Harbour (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#harbour), Paper & Pine (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/minimal#paper-and-pine), Coastal (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#coastal). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/charcoal
- **Sand** #c2b280 [harmony, pool: complementary] — Sand sits directly opposite #9ca8ce on the wheel — the strongest contrast one hue can give another, so use it small: a button, a link colour, one highlight. Seen in: Garden Wedding (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/light#garden-wedding). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/sand
- **Amber** #ffbf00 [pool] — Amber is paired with #9ca8ce in 4 real palettes, including NBA's brand system and Ahrefs's brand system, as the lead colour. Seen in: NBA (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/nba-com), Ahrefs (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/ahrefs-com), Blueprint (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/technical#blueprint), Salesforce (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/salesforce-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/amber
- **Blue** #0000ff [pool] — 4 real palettes, including Canva's brand system and Spotify's brand system put Blue beside #9ca8ce, as the accent. Seen in: Canva (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/canva-com), Spotify (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/spotify), Uber (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/uber-com), Warp (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/warp-dev). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/blue
- **Dark Orange** #ff8c00 [pool] — Dark Orange shows up next to #9ca8ce in 4 real palettes, including Ahrefs's brand system and PayPal's brand system, as the lead colour. Seen in: Ahrefs (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/ahrefs-com), PayPal (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/paypal-com), Learning App (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/playful#learning-app), Elastic (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/elastic-co). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/darkorange
- **Deep Sky Blue** #00bfff [pool] — Designers have shipped Deep Sky Blue with #9ca8ce: 4 real palettes, including Calm's brand system and Max's brand system, as the lead colour. Seen in: Calm (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/calm-com), Max (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/max-com), Snowflake AI Data Cloud (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/snowflake-com), Remix (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/remix-run). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/deepskyblue
- **Denim** #1560bd [pool] — Designers have shipped Denim with #9ca8ce: 4 real palettes, including Open House and Dusk, as the lead colour. Seen in: Open House (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/clean#open-house), Dusk (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/cool#dusk), Coca-Cola (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/coca-cola-com), Venmo (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/venmo-com). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/denim
- **Dodger Blue** #1e90ff [pool] — Designers have shipped Dodger Blue with #9ca8ce: 5 real palettes, including Patreon's brand system and Opensea's brand system, as the accent. Seen in: Patreon (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/patreon-com), Opensea (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/opensea-io), Venmo (https://brandsweets.com/colors/brands/venmo-com), Studio Grey (https://brandsweets.com/palettes/minimal#studio-grey). — https://brandsweets.com/colors/dodgerblue

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

- On white (#ffffff): 2.36:1 — AA fail, AA-large fail, AAA fail. Fix: AA: text → #6274b2 (4.51:1); AA: background → #3d3d3d (4.61:1); AAA: text → #45568c (7.09:1); AAA: background → #1c1c1c (7.23:1)
- On black (#000000): 8.91:1 — AA pass, AA-large pass, AAA pass

## Curated palettes containing it

- **First Snow** (winter, cool, light, minimal) — #2b4c7e, #8fa8c8, #c9d6e3, #fbfcfe, #14213d — Ice blue on snow-white with a deep navy — the quietest winter palette; everything is a tint of one cold hue. — tool: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/2b4c7e-8fa8c8-c9d6e3-fbfcfe-14213d — collection: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/winter

## Fonts for this mood

- minimal: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/minimal
- clean: https://brandsweets.com/fonts/mood/clean

## Palette tool

Open this color locked as the lead with four explored companions: https://brandsweets.com/palettes/new/9ca8ce-9ca1c4-df774e-221f2d-e9eff1?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: "#9ca8ce" })`), `check_contrast` (with fixes), `generate_palette` (explore around locks), `suggest_palette` (mood/industry → curated-first), `list_palettes`.