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Modest Tide

#9ce9fd
Notes

Modest Tide (#9CE9FD) is a soft cyan with a pastel character. It reads calm and airy, with enough chroma to feel intentional rather than washed out. Its HSL profile (192°, 96%, 80%) places it in the highly saturated band at a light lightness. Best used in small doses, like logos, CTAs, focus rings, or highlight text, where its saturation becomes a feature rather than noise. For a confident two-color system, pair it with its complementary red. For something softer, pull in its analogous neighbors on either side of the wheel.

HEX
#9ce9fd
RGB
rgb(156, 233, 253)
HSL
hsl(192, 96%, 80%)
HWB
hwb(192 61% 1%)
OKLCH
oklch(89.1% 0.080 215.9)
HSV
hsv(192, 38%, 99%)
LAB
lab(88.18% -18.76 -17.16)
LCH
lch(88.18% 25.42 222.45)
CMYK
cmyk(38%, 8%, 0%, 1%)

Closest matches

The nearest named color in three reference sources, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE76 in CIELAB). ΔE < 1 is imperceptible to most viewers; ΔE > 10 is clearly different. When two sources point to the same hex they’re merged into one tile; click any to open that color’s page.

Variations

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Harmonies

Accessibility

Color-vision simulation

How this color appears to viewers with the four major color-vision-deficiency types. Computed via the Machado (2009) physiologically-based model. If a tile matches the original, the color reads the same to that viewer.

#9ce9fd
Original
#dbe4fe
Protanopia
#cbd8fd
Deuteranopia
#75f1ef
Tritanopia
#dadada
Achromatopsia
WCAG contrast

The color used as foreground text against pure white and pure black, with the contrast ratio and WCAG 2.1 grade. Aim for AA (4.5:1) for body text and AA Large (3:1) for 18 pt+ headlines; AAA (7:1) is the gold standard for long-form reading surfaces.

The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
Failon White
1.36:1
The quick brown foxSample body text at normal size. The wcag minimum for body contrast is 4.5:1 (AA) or 7:1 (AAA).
AAAon Black
15.49:1

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Canvas