Steel Color
Steel is a blue color with hex code #738595. This page covers its meaning, all color values, harmonies, colors that go with steel, shades, tints, similar colors, CSS examples, FAQs, and WCAG contrast ratios.
Steel Color Values
What Does Steel Mean?
Steel belongs to the blue family of colors. Blue wins popularity surveys in every culture that runs them, and corporate design reflects it. Trust and stability are the usual words people reach for. Dark navies project authority, pale blues open a layout up, and almost nothing clashes with it. Steel sits at a mid-lightness, which keeps it readable on both white and black without much fuss.
In the ISCC-NBS color naming system, Steel is classified as a gray (nearest centroid: bluish gray, #81878B). It is also known as New Steel.
Color Harmonies
Complementary
Analogous
Triadic
Colors That Go With Steel
Steel and #968373 are complements, parked opposite each other on the wheel. Together they hit maximum contrast, so a rough 70/30 split keeps the pairing from shouting.
Analogous neighbors — #739695 and #737596, which sit beside steel on the wheel. Pairings like this feel calm and settled, which suits backgrounds and gradients.
For an energetic three-color palette, pair steel with triadic partners #967386 and #869673. All three sit evenly spaced around the wheel, so the scheme stays lively without clashing.
Build and test these combinations in our Color Wheel Tool or check text readability with the Contrast Checker.
Tints and Shades
Tints (lighter)
Shades (darker)
Similar Colors
- LightSlateGray —
#778899(Delta E 1) - SlateGray —
#708090(Delta E 2) - Bluish Grey —
#748B97(Delta E 4) - Raven —
#727B89(Delta E 5) - Blue/grey —
#758DA3(Delta E 5)
CSS Examples
.text { color: #738595; }
.background { background-color: #738595; }
.border { border: 2px solid #738595; }
.shadow { box-shadow: 0 4px 6px #73859540; }WCAG Contrast
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the hex code for steel?
Steel has the hex code #738595. In RGB notation it is rgb(115, 133, 149), in HSL it is hsl(208, 14%, 52%), and its OKLCH value is 0.608, 0.032, 245.2.
What does the color steel mean?
Blue-family colors like steel carry distinct psychological associations. Steel belongs to the blue family of colors. Blue wins popularity surveys in every culture that runs them, and corporate design reflects it. Trust and stability are the usual words people reach for. Dark navies project authority, pale blues open a layout up, and almost nothing clashes with it. Steel sits at a mid-lightness, which keeps it readable on both white and black without much fuss.
What colors go with steel?
Steel has three easy routes: its complement #968373 for punch, its neighbors #739695 and #737596 for something calmer, or triadic partners #967386 and #869673 when you want energy.
Is steel a standard web color?
No — Steel is not a CSS keyword. Use its hex value #738595 or any RGB/HSL equivalent in your stylesheets.
How do I make steel lighter or darker?
To lighten steel, add white to create tints; to darken it, add black to create shades. The tints and shades table above shows five computed steps of each, from #E8EBED (lightest tint) to #14171A (darkest shade).
About Steel
Steel is classified as a Gray in the ISCC-NBS color naming system, within the Blue hue family. It has alternative names including New Steel. The color is recognized by XKCD, meodai.
Use our Color Converter to convert #738595 to any other color format, or explore the Color Wheel to find harmonious color combinations.