Closest web-safe match: #003399

Color Details and Palettes for #153C8B

Details about the color One Minute to Midnight#153C8B

Conversions, palettes, contrast & design ideas for this color.

Blue family Cool WCAG ink: white
HEX #153C8B RGB rgb(21, 60, 139) HSL hsl(220, 74%, 31%) CMYK cmyk(85%, 57%, 0%, 45%)

Color profile

About Color Hex #153C8B

#153C8B is a cool color from the Blue family, closest in name to “One Minute to Midnight”. In RGB it is rgb(21, 60, 139); in HSL, hsl(220, 74%, 31%).

The color One Minute to Midnight, with hexadecimal code #153c8b, belongs to the blue color family, the world's most universally preferred hue. Blue projects trust, stability, and intellectual calm, which is why it dominates corporate, financial, and technology branding worldwide. Additionally, it evokes emotions such as Trust, Peace, Loyalty, Integrity and Tranquility. Blue signifies tranquility and stability. In Middle Eastern cultures, it can also represent protection against the evil eye, while in Western cultures, it symbolizes calmness and reliability. At 74% saturation, this color is clearly chromatic yet balanced—colorful enough to be distinctive without overwhelming adjacent content. Its low lightness of 31% produces a deep, rich appearance—conveying gravity and luxury, particularly effective in dark-mode designs and premium packaging. This color is ideal for designs that aim to express Trust, Peace, Loyalty, Integrity, or Tranquility. It can be effectively used in web design, branding, and marketing materials to attract attention and convey specific messages.

Key facts

RGB 21, 60, 139 red · green · blue HSL 220° 74% 31% hue · sat · light HSV 220° 85% 55% design-app pickers CMYK 85 57 0 45 print inks, % Luminance 0.053 0 dark → 1 light On black 2.05:1 ✕ AA contrast ratio On white 10.24:1 ✓ AA contrast ratio Web-safe #003399 closest web-safe Best text white ideal foreground Character Vivid cool · blue family

The story of this color

History, Usage, Psychology & Design Ideas for #153C8B

One Minute to Midnight (#153C8B) belongs to the Blue color family.

This deep, saturated shade conveys authority and richness. Deep tones are favored in luxury packaging, evening-event branding, and dark-mode interfaces where they provide dramatic contrast against lighter elements.

Historical Background

Blue's scarcity in nature made it a late addition to human color vocabulary—Homer's 'wine-dark sea' notably omits the word blue entirely. The breakthrough came with Egyptian Blue (~2200 BC) and later ultramarine from Afghan lapis lazuli, which Medieval artists hoarded for divine subjects. Synthetic ultramarine (1826) and cobalt blue democratized the color, enabling Impressionists like Monet and Renoir to paint blue-drenched landscapes affordably.

Design & Usage Tips

Blue is the most universally liked color and dominates corporate branding (Facebook, LinkedIn, IBM, Samsung). Use it to establish trust, competence, and professionalism. Lighter blues suit wellness and social apps, while darker blues convey authority and security. Avoid using blue for food branding—it suppresses appetite.

Sitting on the cool side of the spectrum (hue 220°), it promotes a feeling of calm distance and intellectual clarity, which is why cool hues dominate corporate identities, healthcare design, and productivity tools. With 74% saturation, it occupies a comfortable middle ground: colorful enough to be distinctive, yet restrained enough for extended reading or large surface areas.

Psychological Impact

Blue lowers blood pressure and heart rate, promoting calm and focused thought. It signals reliability and integrity, which is why it is the default choice for banks, insurance companies, and government institutions. In UX, blue links and buttons feel intuitive because users have been trained by decades of web convention.

Its low lightness of 31% gives it a deep, intense presence. Deep tones like this excel as dark-mode backgrounds, header bars, and anywhere a sense of gravity or luxury is desired.

Creative Design Ideas

Pair classic blue (#0047AB) with warm amber for a nautical or heritage brand. Use gradient blues (light-to-dark, top-to-bottom) for app onboarding screens that feel expansive and inviting. In data dashboards, blue is the safest primary chart color—it's distinct, professional, and colorblind-friendly.

Every format

#153C8B Color Conversions

Every way to write One Minute to Midnight — one-tap copy on every format; tap on any card to learn what it is and when to use it.

12 formats
HEX Web
#153C8B

Hexadecimal is the web’s universal color notation — two digits each for red, green and blue. Drop it straight into HTML, CSS or any design tool.

RGB Screen
rgb(21, 60, 139)

RGB is the additive Red-Green-Blue model every screen uses to emit light. The default choice for websites, apps and on-screen UI.

HSL Web
hsl(220, 74%, 31%)

HSL breaks a color into Hue, Saturation and Lightness — the most intuitive way to lighten, darken or mute a color in CSS.

HSV HSB Design
hsv(220, 85%, 55%)

HSV (also called HSB) maps Hue, Saturation and Value/Brightness. It is the model behind the color pickers in Photoshop, Figma and most design apps.

HWB CSS 4
hwb(220 8% 45%)

HWB blends a pure hue with Whiteness and Blackness — a painter-friendly model added in CSS Color 4 for quick tints and shades.

CMYK Print
cmyk(85%, 57%, 0%, 45%)

CMYK is the subtractive Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black ink model. Use these values when preparing artwork for a printer or commercial press.

OKLCH Modern
oklch(38.09% 0.139 262.25)

OKLCH is a modern, perceptually-uniform space (Lightness, Chroma, Hue). It powers smooth gradients and accessible palettes in today’s CSS.

OKLab Modern
oklab(38.09% -0.019 -0.138)

OKLab is the Cartesian form of OKLCH — ideal for blending and interpolating colors without the muddy midpoints older spaces produce.

CIELAB L*a*b* Perceptual
L: 27.45, a: 18.08, b: -47.71

CIELAB is a device-independent, perceptually-uniform space. It is the standard for measuring color difference (ΔE) and matching across devices.

LCH Perceptual
L: 27.45, C: 51.02, H: 290.75

LCH is CIELAB in cylindrical form — Lightness, Chroma and Hue — letting you adjust vividness and hue while staying perceptually even.

XYZ CIE Science
X: 6.59, Y: 5.26, Z: 25.09

CIE XYZ is the 1931 master space that underpins every other model here — the scientific bridge used to convert between color systems.

Decimal int Code
1391755

The 24-bit integer value of the color — handy for databases, APIs, game engines and low-level graphics code.

Channel breakdown

RGB Color Percentages for #153C8B

How much red, green and blue light mixes into One Minute to Midnight.

Red 21/255 9.6% Green 60/255 27.3% Blue 139/255 63.2%

Percentages show each channel's share of the total light (R + G + B) in One Minute to Midnight.

Ink coverage

CMYK Ink Levels & Print Guide for #153C8B

Ink needed to reproduce One Minute to Midnight in four-color print. Heaviest ink: Cyan.

85% CYAN 57% MAGENTA 0% YELLOW 45% KEY

Print tip: treat these values as a starting point — final output depends on printer profile, paper stock and calibration.

Accessibility · WCAG

Luminance & Contrast for #153C8B

How bright One Minute to Midnight is, and how far black and white text clear each WCAG bar.

Relative luminance 0.053
0 · dark1 · light

Contrast ratio · 1:1 → 21:1 (log scale)

Aa Black text 2.05:1 ✕ AA ✕ AAA ✕ Large
Aa White text 10.24:1 ✓ AA ✓ AAA ✓ Large

Developer shortcuts

Quick CSS Snippets for #153C8B

Copy-and-paste CSS for One Minute to Midnight — per-line copy, or grab the whole block.

one-minute-to-midnight.css
background-color: #153C8B;
color: #153C8B;
border: 2px solid #153C8B;
background-color: rgb(21, 60, 139);
background-color: hsl(220, 74%, 31%);
--color: #153C8B;

Shades · light to dark

#153C8B Monochrome Palette

Lighter and darker steps of One Minute to Midnight — the color's full brightness range in one strip.

#E8EBF3
#C5CEE2
#A1B1D1
#7E94BF
#5B77AE
#38599C
#153C8B
#123376
#0F2A61
#0C214C
#081838
#050F23
#02060E

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex or open its color page.

Harmony · 180° apart

#153C8B Complementary Palette

Two colors opposite on the wheel — maximum contrast for attention-grabbing accents.

#153C8B
#8A6315

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex or open its color page.

Harmony · adjacent hues

#153C8B Analogic Palette

Neighboring hues on the wheel — harmonious, calm combinations that feel unified.

#153C8B
#28158A
#15768A
#63158A
#158A63
#8A1576
#158A28

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex or open its color page.

Harmony · 120° apart

#153C8B Triadic Palette

Three colors evenly spaced on the wheel — vibrant and energetic, yet balanced.

#153C8B
#8A153C
#3C8A15

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex or open its color page.

Harmony · 90° apart

#153C8B Quad Palette

Four colors evenly spaced on the wheel (tetradic) — rich schemes with multiple accents.

#153C8B
#8A1576
#8A6315
#158A28

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex or open its color page.

Accessibility

Color Blindness Simulation for #153C8B

How One Minute to Midnight reads across five kinds of color vision — a ✓ Friendly verdict means the color difference stays distinguishable for that vision type.

#153C8B
#242173
#262678
#176965
#393939
Normal vision full color Deuteranopia green weakness ✓ Friendly Protanopia red weakness ✓ Friendly Tritanopia blue-yellow weakness ✕ Not friendly Achromatopsia total color blindness ✕ Not friendly

The dot marks the original color. Hover any shade to copy its hex.

Harmony overview

Color Harmonies for #153C8B

The lead color from each harmony scheme, side by side — a shortcut to the full palettes above.

#8A6315
#28158A
#8A153C
#8A1576
Complementary opposite hue Analogous adjacent hue Triadic 120° apart Tetradic (Quad) 90° apart

Perceptually nearby

#153C8B Nearby Colors

A step away in brightness, richness or shade — each still feels like the same color.

Galaxy Express#334499
Atlantic Navy#003377
Blasphemous Blue#4455AA
Midnight Melancholia#002266
Nuit Blanche#004499
Maritime Outpost#224477
Majestic Eggplant#443388
Pacific Depths#004488

From the color-name library

Colors Similar to #153C8B

The closest named colors to #153C8B — same mood, each with its own character.

One Minute to Midnight#003388
Maritime Outpost#1E4581
Cascade Twilight#234893
Deep Space Royal#223382
Twilight Express#1C3378
Pacific Navy#25488A
Nuit Blanche#1E488F
Smalt#003399
Pacific Depths#004488
Below the Surface#0A2F7C
Atlantic Navy#13336F
Intergalactic Highway#273287

Looking for more Blue shades? Browse Blue colors →

Inspiration

Explore Vibrant Images Featuring One Minute to Midnight (#153c8b)

Curated Unsplash photos that carry the mood of One Minute to Midnight — hover any tile to download it or view the original.

Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions about #153C8B

#153C8B is a cool color from the Blue family. Its closest matched name is “One Minute to Midnight”, matched perceptually with the CIEDE2000 color-difference formula. In RGB it is rgb(21, 60, 139); in HSL, hsl(220, 74%, 31%).
In RGB, #153C8B is rgb(21, 60, 139); in HSL it is hsl(220, 74%, 31%); and in CMYK — the model used for print — it is cmyk(85%, 57%, 0%, 45%).
#153C8B has a contrast ratio of 2.05:1 against black and 10.24:1 against white. For readability, white body text meets the WCAG AA threshold of 4.5:1 on it, while black does not.
The direct complement of #153C8B is #8A6315 (opposite on the color wheel). For ready-made combinations, this page includes monochrome, analogous, triadic and tetradic palettes built from #153C8B in the palette sections above.