Tints & Shades
50
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Scale from white (50) through Tourmaline (500) to black (900), interpolated in Lab color space.
Color Values
- HEX
- #86A1A9
- RGB
- rgb(134, 161, 169)
- HSL
- hsl(194, 17%, 59%)
- OKLCH
- oklch(0.691 0.032 218)
- CMYK
- cmyk(21%, 5%, 0%, 34%)
--color-tourmalinebg-[#86A1A9]Accessibility
Score: 48/100On White (#FFF)
2.73:1
On Black (#000)
7.68:1
On Light Gray (#F5F5F5)
2.51:1
Best text color on this background:
Design Applications
background-color: #86A1A9
color: #86A1A9
bg-[#86A1A9] text-[#000000]
border-left: 4px solid #86A1A9
Color Harmonies
Complementary
Burnt Sienna
#E97451
Split-Complementary
Similar Colors
Color Meaning & Psychology
Cyan sits between blue and green at the edge of visible light and is the color the eye uses to adjust from warm to cool light. It feels technological, clean, and forward-thinking. In printing, cyan is a primary process color (CMYK), giving it an association with professional reproduction and precision. In design, bright cyan signals digital interfaces, clean tech, and innovation. Lighter cyans feel fresh and airy; deeper cyans approach teal's sophistication. Cyan's primary cultural associations are ocean, ice, and digital displays. It is widely used in healthcare technology brands because it combines blue's trust with green's health connotations without the blandness of either on their own. At medium lightness, it is the most versatile tone of this hue family — readable as text on light backgrounds, yet vibrant enough as a visual accent.
Industry Usage
Common contexts and industries where Tourmaline is applied in professional design.
- Digital technology and software products
- Water sports and aquatic brands
- Clean energy and sustainability companies
- Healthcare data visualization tools
- Modern media and streaming services
- Virtual reality and immersive tech brands
- Aerospace and precision technology
- Clinical data and diagnostic imaging products
Accessibility Considerations
Normal Text
Fails AA
4.5:1 minimum required
Large Text
Fails AA Large
3:1 minimum required
UI Components
Check contrast
3:1 for non-text UI
Tourmaline is a light color. Use black (#000000) text on top of it for maximum readability (7.68:1). Avoid white text on this background.
CSS & Code Examples
Background
background-color: #86A1A9;Text
color: #86A1A9;Border
border: 2px solid #86A1A9;Box Shadow
box-shadow: 0 4px 20px #86A1A940;Gradient
background: linear-gradient(135deg, #86A1A9, #b6d2db);Tailwind-style
--color-tourmaline: #86A1A9;Tailwind CSS Utilities
Use arbitrary value syntax in Tailwind CSS to apply Tourmaline without a custom config.
Background
bg-[#86A1A9]Text
text-[#86A1A9]Border
border-[#86A1A9]Ring
ring-[#86A1A9]Fill
fill-[#86A1A9]From (gradient)
from-[#86A1A9]Via (gradient)
via-[#86A1A9]To (gradient)
to-[#86A1A9]Design Tokens
Ready-to-use Tourmaline design token in CSS custom properties, SCSS, Tailwind v3/v4, and JSON formats.
CSS Custom Properties
:root {
--color-tourmaline: #86A1A9;
--color-tourmaline-rgb: 134, 161, 169;
--color-tourmaline-hsl: 194, 17%, 59%;
}SCSS Variables
$color-tourmaline: #86A1A9; $color-tourmaline-rgb: 134, 161, 169; $color-tourmaline-hsl: 194, 17%, 59%;
Tailwind v3 Config
// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
'tourmaline': '#86A1A9',
},
},
},
};Tailwind v4 (@theme)
/* tailwind.css */
@theme {
--color-tourmaline: #86A1A9;
}JSON Design Token (W3C format)
{
"tourmaline": {
"value": "#86A1A9",
"type": "color",
"description": "Tourmaline — #86A1A9"
}
}More cyan colors
View all →What Does Tourmaline Mean? Color Psychology & Cultural Symbolism
Cyan occupies a psychologically unusual space: it's simultaneously cool and energizing, precise and fresh—qualities that don't usually coexist in color psychology. At #86A1A9, Tourmaline resolves this tension as openness, a reading that makes it invaluable for brands operating at the intersection of technology and vitality.
- Across color psychology research, cyan consistently tests high for "precision" associations, making Tourmaline a reliable vehicle for openness in cross-demographic audiences.
- Brand designers draw on cyan-family tones to project modernity and innovation—values that Tourmaline communicates in a mid-tone key.
- At 17% saturation, Tourmaline reads as muted—Muted cyan and pale aqua tones soften the technological edge into a calm, refreshing quality—excellent for wellness and nature-tech crossover brands.
- Tourmaline's mid-tone lightness (59%) shifts its psychological register: a balanced mid-tone that embodies clarity, technology, freshness, and precision at its most direct.
The future feels like Tourmaline in design systems that want to get there first.
How to Use Tourmaline in Design: Applications, Pairings & Best Practices
In UI design, Tourmaline punches above its weight. Even small applications—a chart accent, an active state indicator, a badge color—carry significant visual energy in this wavelength range.
- Avoid: traditional or heritage brands, warm and artisanal contexts, and food packaging (no natural cyan foods).
- Color harmonies: Tourmaline's complementary color creates a high-energy split ideal for promotional design; its analogous palette (±30° hue) builds cohesive, monochromatic sophistication.
- Proportional use: Tourmaline's muted quality means it scales well across proportions—from full-bleed backgrounds to single-pixel borders—making it an unusually versatile palette component.
- Tourmaline creates strong legibility with black text overlays (7.7:1 contrast ratio), making it a reliable background or surface color in design systems
- Typography: Tourmaline as text requires a dark background; its 59% lightness means it provides 2.7:1 contrast on white, not meeting WCAG AA.
The future feels like Tourmaline in design systems that want to get there first.
Tourmaline Accessibility: WCAG Contrast Ratios, Color Blindness & Inclusive Design
Tourmaline (#86A1A9) achieves a 7.68:1 contrast ratio with black text, surpassing the WCAG 2.1 AAA threshold of 7:1. This exceptional contrast qualifies it for body text, UI components at any size, and all accessibility-sensitive interface contexts. Relative luminance: 33.4%.
- As text on white (#FFFFFF): 2.73:1 — Fail
- As text on black (#000000): 7.68:1 — AAA ✓
- Best text color on Tourmaline background: Black (#000000) at 7.68:1
- WCAG 2.1 luminance: 33.4% — mid-range luminance—it sits in the transition zone where both dark and light text approaches require testing against the 4.5:1 WCAG threshold
- Tourmaline qualifies for all text sizes including small body copy (AAA).
- Color blindness consideration: tritanopia (blue-yellow color blindness, ~0.003% of population) may affect how this color reads. While rare, for maximum accessibility supplement color signals with text or icon indicators in critical states.
For production use, test Tourmaline against your specific background colors rather than assuming #FFFFFF or #000000 performance translates. Surrounding colors alter perceived contrast.
Tourmaline in Industry: Branding, Design & Market Applications
Tourmaline's brand positioning falls squarely in the territory of clarity, technology, freshness, and precision. Industry data supports its strongest performance in technology, healthcare, water & marine categories, where the muted saturation calibrates the message at a mid-tone, considered level.
- Technology & Software: Cyan's additive light origins make it inherently digital—it's literally the color of screens. Tech brands use it to signal cutting-edge, screen-native products and the precision of digital systems. (examples: Apple, Microsoft, Salesforce) Works especially well in dark-mode interfaces where cyan provides high contrast and futuristic character.
- Healthcare & Medical Imaging: Medical imaging technology (X-rays, ultrasounds, 3D scans) frequently uses cyan highlighting for precision and clarity. Healthcare tech brands have adopted this association to signal clinical precision in digital health products. (examples: CVS Health, Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente) Pairs naturally with white and dark gray for a medical-precision aesthetic.
- Clean Energy & Environment: Clean energy brands use cyan to signal the intersection of technology and environmental consciousness—the "clean" tech positioning that neither pure green (environmental emphasis) nor pure blue (tech emphasis) fully achieves alone. Cyan-to-green gradients have become a shorthand for clean tech and sustainable innovation.
- Brand positioning: Tourmaline is best suited for brands projecting precision, technology, clarity. Categories outside this positioning—traditional or heritage brands—tend to see weaker results.
- Adjacent applications: Beyond primary industries, Tourmaline works effectively in tech products, data dashboards, medical imaging—contexts where technology serves a secondary but reinforcing role.
For marketers and brand strategists, Tourmaline is a commitment to clarity, technology, freshness, and precision. Match it with industries that make that promise and it will pay dividends consistently.
Accessibility & Design Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the hex code for Tourmaline? ▾
- The hex code for Tourmaline is #86A1A9. Its RGB values are rgb(134, 161, 169) and its HSL values are hsl(194, 17%, 59%).
- What does Tourmaline mean in design? ▾
- Cyan sits between blue and green at the edge of visible light and is the color the eye uses to adjust from warm to cool light. It feels technological, clean, and forward-thinking. In printing, cyan is a primary process color (CMYK), giving it an association with professional reproduction and precision. In design, bright cyan signals digital interfaces, clean tech, and innovation. Lighter cyans feel fresh and airy; deeper cyans approach teal's sophistication. Cyan's primary cultural associations are ocean, ice, and digital displays. It is widely used in healthcare technology brands because it combines blue's trust with green's health connotations without the blandness of either on their own. At medium lightness, it is the most versatile tone of this hue family — readable as text on light backgrounds, yet vibrant enough as a visual accent.
- Is Tourmaline WCAG accessible? ▾
- Tourmaline (#86A1A9) does not pass WCAG AA on white (2.73:1 ratio). Use it on dark backgrounds where it achieves 7.68:1. Its overall accessibility score is 48/100.
- What colors go well with Tourmaline? ▾
- Tourmaline pairs well with its complementary color Burnt Sienna (#E97451). Analogous colors like Alexandrite and Ice Blue also work harmoniously. Check the Color Harmonies section above for the full palette.
- What is Tourmaline used for? ▾
- Tourmaline is commonly used for: Digital technology and software products; Water sports and aquatic brands; Clean energy and sustainability companies; Healthcare data visualization tools; Modern media and streaming services.
- What are the CSS and Tailwind values for Tourmaline? ▾
- In CSS, use `color: #86A1A9` or `background-color: #86A1A9`. The CSS custom property is `--color-tourmaline: #86A1A9`. In Tailwind CSS, use the arbitrary value class `bg-[#86A1A9]` for backgrounds or `text-[#86A1A9]` for text.