#5EC8D8 · #2E8CB8 · #E8A070 · #12405C
Use #5EC8D8 as the background. Use #2E8CB8 as the primary accent. Use #E8A070 as secondary. Use #12405C as body text/supporting color. Palette mood: Great Barrier Reef — ocean, tropical, cool.
Technical breakdown for the Great Barrier Reef color scheme. Use these values for web design (HEX/RGB), print projects (CMYK), or specialized design software (HSL).
| Swatch | Design Role | HEX | RGB | CMYK | HSL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background Luminance: 48.6% | 94, 200, 216 | 56%, 7%, 0%, 15% | 188°, 61%, 61% | ||
| Primary Accent Luminance: 22.8% | 46, 140, 184 | 75%, 24%, 0%, 28% | 199°, 60%, 45% | ||
| Secondary Luminance: 43.5% | 232, 160, 112 | 0%, 31%, 52%, 9% | 24°, 72%, 67% | ||
| Body Text Luminance: 4.6% | 18, 64, 92 | 80%, 30%, 0%, 64% | 203°, 67%, 22% |
Hover states, borders and elevation need lighter and darker steps of your base colors. Here are computed tints and shades for every color in the Great Barrier Reef palette — click any swatch to copy its hex.
Every color tested as text on every other color as background. Body copy needs 4.5:1 (AA), large text and UI components 3:1. AAA requires 7:1.
| Text on Background | Preview | Ratio | Grade | Safe For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #12405C on #5EC8D8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 5.61:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #5EC8D8 on #12405C |
Aa Sample Text
| 5.61:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #12405C on #E8A070 |
Aa Sample Text
| 5.07:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #E8A070 on #12405C |
Aa Sample Text
| 5.07:1 | AA | Body text, UI |
| #12405C on #2E8CB8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.91:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #2E8CB8 on #12405C |
Aa Sample Text
| 2.91:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #2E8CB8 on #5EC8D8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.93:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #5EC8D8 on #2E8CB8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.93:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #E8A070 on #2E8CB8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.74:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #2E8CB8 on #E8A070 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.74:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #E8A070 on #5EC8D8 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.11:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
| #5EC8D8 on #E8A070 |
Aa Sample Text
| 1.11:1 | Fail | Decorative use only |
The Great Barrier Reef palette is built using a complementary relationship between its hues. This ensures that even with high-contrast accents, the overall scheme feels balanced and intentional.
A complementary palette is often preferred by professional designers because it provides maximum contrast and energy by using opposite colors.
Need a fifth color? These three companions are computed from the palette's own hue positions on the color wheel, so they extend the scheme without breaking its harmony.
directly opposite #2E8CB8 on the wheel — the strongest accent for CTAs and highlights when you need maximum energy
30° beside #2E8CB8 — a calm secondary that extends the palette without adding tension
a ink-black carrying the palette's own hue — perfect for surfaces and dividers
To use this Great Barrier Reef color palette in your web project, you can copy the following CSS variables or Tailwind CSS configuration. These roles ensure your UI maintains accessibility and visual hierarchy.
:root {
/* {name} Palette - ihatecolors.com */{'
'} --color-bg: {colors[0]};{'
'} --color-primary: {colors[1]};{'
'} --color-secondary: {colors[2]};{'
'} --color-text: {colors[3]};{'
'} {'}'}Use #5EC8D8 for the main background and #2E8CB8 for primary buttons. This creates a high-contrast focal point.
The contrast ratio between #12405C and #5EC8D8 is 5.61:1 (AA). Ensure your body text remains legible.
The Great Barrier Reef palette contains #5EC8D8, #2E8CB8, #E8A070, #12405C. Click any swatch on this page to copy its value, or export all four at once as CSS variables, Tailwind config, SCSS or a Figma-ready list.
Yes for its strongest pairings: #12405C on #5EC8D8 reaches 5.6:1 (AA). For body text always keep a 4.5:1 ratio and for large UI elements 3:1 — the full contrast matrix above shows the exact score for every color-on-color combination in this palette.
Beyond its own four colors, #B85A2E, #394EAC, #111718 extend it naturally: the complementary hue for high-energy accents, an analogous neighbor for calm transitions, and a tinted neutral for surfaces. All three are computed from this palette's hues on the color wheel.
Great Barrier Reef reads as ocean, tropical, cool. Gently saturated cyan-blue drives the personality, grounded by gently saturated teal — a combination that works best when the light base gets most of the canvas.
Yes. Individual color values can't be copyrighted, so the Great Barrier Reef palette is free for personal, client and commercial work — websites, branding, apps, print and social content, with no attribution required.
Use the export panel on this page: CSS variables, a Tailwind config block, SCSS variables, or a Figma copy list are generated from Great Barrier Reef's exact values, including the tint and shade ramps shown above.