#F0EFE6
#3E9E9E
#1E6E70
#2E3A38
Background
Primary Accent
Secondary
Body Text

Mid Century Teal Color Palette

#F0EFE6 · #3E9E9E · #1E6E70 · #2E3A38

AAA
WCAG Grade
10.2:1
Contrast Ratio
1,010
Saves
2,984
AI Copies
AI Prompt

Use #F0EFE6 as the background. Use #3E9E9E as the primary accent. Use #1E6E70 as secondary. Use #2E3A38 as body text/supporting color. Palette mood: Mid Century Teal — ocean, vintage, cool, pastel.

Hex Codes, RGB & CMYK Color Values

Technical breakdown for the Mid Century Teal 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: 86.0%
240, 239, 230 0%, 0%, 4%, 6% 54°, 25%, 92%
Primary Accent
Luminance: 27.9%
62, 158, 158 61%, 0%, 0%, 38% 180°, 44%, 43%
Secondary
Luminance: 12.6%
30, 110, 112 73%, 2%, 0%, 56% 181°, 58%, 28%
Body Text
Luminance: 3.9%
46, 58, 56 21%, 0%, 3%, 77% 170°, 12%, 20%

Mid Century Teal Tints & Shades

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 Mid Century Teal palette — click any swatch to copy its hex.

#F0EFE6 gently saturated yellow
#3E9E9E gently saturated teal
#1E6E70 gently saturated teal
#2E3A38 muted teal

Mid Century Teal Palette Contrast Matrix (WCAG 2.1)

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
#2E3A38 on #F0EFE6
Aa Sample Text
10.23:1 AAA Body text, headings, UI
#F0EFE6 on #2E3A38
Aa Sample Text
10.23:1 AAA Body text, headings, UI
#1E6E70 on #F0EFE6
Aa Sample Text
5.17:1 AA Body text, UI
#F0EFE6 on #1E6E70
Aa Sample Text
5.17:1 AA Body text, UI
#2E3A38 on #3E9E9E
Aa Sample Text
3.70:1 Fail Large headings, UI components
#3E9E9E on #2E3A38
Aa Sample Text
3.70:1 Fail Large headings, UI components
#3E9E9E on #F0EFE6
Aa Sample Text
2.76:1 Fail Decorative use only
#F0EFE6 on #3E9E9E
Aa Sample Text
2.76:1 Fail Decorative use only
#2E3A38 on #1E6E70
Aa Sample Text
1.98:1 Fail Decorative use only
#1E6E70 on #2E3A38
Aa Sample Text
1.98:1 Fail Decorative use only
#1E6E70 on #3E9E9E
Aa Sample Text
1.87:1 Fail Decorative use only
#3E9E9E on #1E6E70
Aa Sample Text
1.87:1 Fail Decorative use only

Mid Century Teal Color Psychology & Meaning

Mid-century teal appeared on kitchen counters, cars and formica tabletops because it was new, bright and unlike anything available in natural pigments, and this palette is cream with teal dark. It feels optimistic and retro, the color of a colour that belongs to a catalogue page.

Color Harmony: Triadic Scheme

The Mid Century Teal palette is built using a triadic relationship between its hues. This ensures that even with high-contrast accents, the overall scheme feels balanced and intentional.

Hue Wheel

A triadic palette is often preferred by professional designers because it balances visual interest with cohesion.

History & Design Context

Post-war synthetic pigments made saturated blue-greens cheap and stable, which is why teal, turquoise and aqua appear so heavily in 1950s and 1960s consumer design.

Best Design Use Cases

Use the cream for backgrounds, mid century teal for primary actions, teal dark for highlights, and walnut dark for text.

Industries This Palette Suits

Fintech and healthcare products, data platforms, developer tools, SaaS marketing.

Colors That Pair Well With Mid Century Teal

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.

red

directly opposite #3E9E9E on the wheel — the strongest accent for CTAs and highlights when you need maximum energy

cyan-blue

30° beside #3E9E9E — a calm secondary that extends the palette without adding tension

tinted neutral

a ink-black carrying the palette's own hue — perfect for surfaces and dividers

Using Mid Century Teal Without Breaking Accessibility

  • Avoid #3E9E9E for small UI elements on #F0EFE6 — at 2.8:1 it misses the 3:1 WCAG threshold; darken it with a shade from the ramp below.
  • Set body text in #2E3A38 — 10.2:1 against #F0EFE6 passes WCAG AA (AAA) for long-form reading.
  • Let #1E6E70 carry sidebars, cards and footers — at a mid lightness it separates zones without stealing focus from #3E9E9E.

How to Implement the Mid Century Teal Color Scheme

To use this Mid Century Teal 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.

Option 1: CSS Variables

:root { 
  /* {name} Palette - ihatecolors.com */{'
'}  --color-bg: {colors[0]};{'
'}  --color-primary: {colors[1]};{'
'}  --color-secondary: {colors[2]};{'
'}  --color-text: {colors[3]};{'
'} {'}'}

Web Design Tip

Use #F0EFE6 for the main background and #3E9E9E for primary buttons. This creates a high-contrast focal point.

Accessibility Note

The contrast ratio between #2E3A38 and #F0EFE6 is 10.23:1 (AAA). Ensure your body text remains legible.

Mid Century Teal Palette — Frequently Asked Questions

What are the hex codes in the Mid Century Teal color palette?

The Mid Century Teal palette contains #F0EFE6, #3E9E9E, #1E6E70, #2E3A38. 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.

Is the Mid Century Teal color palette accessible (WCAG)?

Yes for its strongest pairings: #2E3A38 on #F0EFE6 reaches 10.2:1 (AAA). 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.

What colors go well with the Mid Century Teal palette?

Beyond its own four colors, #9E3D3D, #486E93, #161513 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.

What mood does the Mid Century Teal palette create?

Mid Century Teal reads as ocean, vintage, cool. Gently saturated teal drives the personality, grounded by gently saturated yellow — a combination that works best when the very light base gets most of the canvas.

Can I use the Mid Century Teal color palette commercially?

Yes. Individual color values can't be copyrighted, so the Mid Century Teal palette is free for personal, client and commercial work — websites, branding, apps, print and social content, with no attribution required.

How do I add the Mid Century Teal palette to Tailwind or CSS?

Use the export panel on this page: CSS variables, a Tailwind config block, SCSS variables, or a Figma copy list are generated from Mid Century Teal's exact values, including the tint and shade ramps shown above.

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