Nearest-color comparison
Cobalt Blue #0047AB vs Sapphire #0F52BA: RGB distance 23.9 and contrast 1.18:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Cobalt Blue and Sapphire are very close, with an RGB distance of 23.9. Sapphire is lighter by 0.0223, and Cobalt Blue is more saturated by 15 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1.18:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Cobalt Blue and Sapphire across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
blue color
Cobalt Blue is #0047AB, a cool blue with hue 215°, saturation 100% and luminance 0.0745. Beside Sapphire, it is darker and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 8.43:1.
blue color
Sapphire is #0F52BA, a cool blue with hue 216°, saturation 85% and luminance 0.0968. Beside Cobalt Blue, it is lighter and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, white text gives the higher contrast at 7.15:1.
Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.
Downloadable color comparison infographic
Save a high-resolution comparison infographic with both HEX colors, visual distance, mutual contrast, and accessibility guidance.
A compact visual strip showing the two compared colors with nearby harmony and variant context.
Machine-readable data
Structured comparison data for Cobalt Blue and Sapphire, including color systems, RGB distance, HSL deltas, contrast, accessibility guidance, use cases, and API links.
Colors Encyclopedia
colorsBoth named color records with HEX, RGB, HSL, CMYK, luminance, WCAG, and linksdifferencesRGB distance, HSL deltas, luminance delta, contrast, and shared attributesaccessibilityPair contrast and safer text choices for each coloruseCasesWhen to choose each color and when to use them togetherrelatedApiMachine-readable comparison and color endpoints[
{
"slug": "cobalt-blue",
"name": "Cobalt Blue",
"hex": "#0047AB",
"rgb": [
0,
71,
171
],
"hsl": [
215,
100,
34
],
"cmyk": [
100,
58,
0,
33
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"jewel-tone"
],
"luminance": 0.0745,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.49,
"white": 8.43
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.43
},
"description": "Cobalt Blue is #0047AB, a cool blue color with jewel tone character. Compared with Sapphire, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for interfaces, brand systems, and technical design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cobalt-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cobalt-blue.json"
},
{
"slug": "sapphire",
"name": "Sapphire",
"hex": "#0F52BA",
"rgb": [
15,
82,
186
],
"hsl": [
216,
85,
39
],
"cmyk": [
92,
56,
0,
27
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"vibrant",
"jewel-tone"
],
"luminance": 0.0968,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.94,
"white": 7.15
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 7.15
},
"description": "Sapphire is #0F52BA, a cool blue color with vibrant and jewel tone character. Compared with Cobalt Blue, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for interfaces, brand systems, and technical design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/sapphire/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/sapphire.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 23.9,
"contrastRatio": 1.18,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 1,
"saturation": 15,
"lightness": 5
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0223,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"jewel-tone"
],
"lighterColor": "Sapphire",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cobalt Blue"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1.18,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Cobalt Blue",
"background": "#0047AB",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.43
},
{
"color": "Sapphire",
"background": "#0F52BA",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 7.15
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Cobalt Blue is better when the design needs jewel tone blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #0047AB.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Sapphire is better when the design needs vibrant and jewel tone blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #0F52BA.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
}[
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/cobalt-blue-vs-sapphire.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cobalt-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/sapphire.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "cobalt-blue-vs-sapphire",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Cobalt Blue vs Sapphire",
"verdict": "Cobalt Blue and Sapphire are very close colors. Sapphire is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1.18:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Cobalt Blue and Sapphire are different blue colors with HEX values #0047AB and #0F52BA. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 23.9, their contrast ratio is 1.18:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 23.9,
"contrastRatio": 1.18,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "cobalt-blue",
"name": "Cobalt Blue",
"hex": "#0047AB",
"rgb": [
0,
71,
171
],
"hsl": [
215,
100,
34
],
"cmyk": [
100,
58,
0,
33
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"jewel-tone"
],
"luminance": 0.0745,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.49,
"white": 8.43
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.43
},
"description": "Cobalt Blue is #0047AB, a cool blue color with jewel tone character. Compared with Sapphire, it is darker and more saturated. Use it for interfaces, brand systems, and technical design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/cobalt-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cobalt-blue.json"
},
{
"slug": "sapphire",
"name": "Sapphire",
"hex": "#0F52BA",
"rgb": [
15,
82,
186
],
"hsl": [
216,
85,
39
],
"cmyk": [
92,
56,
0,
27
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"vibrant",
"jewel-tone"
],
"luminance": 0.0968,
"contrast": {
"black": 2.94,
"white": 7.15
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#FFFFFF",
"#F5F5F5"
],
"AAA": [
"#FFFFFF"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 7.15
},
"description": "Sapphire is #0F52BA, a cool blue color with vibrant and jewel tone character. Compared with Cobalt Blue, it is lighter and less saturated. Use it for interfaces, brand systems, and technical design, with white text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/sapphire/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/sapphire.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 23.9,
"contrastRatio": 1.18,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 1,
"saturation": 15,
"lightness": 5
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0223,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [
"jewel-tone"
],
"lighterColor": "Sapphire",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Cobalt Blue"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1.18,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Cobalt Blue",
"background": "#0047AB",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 8.43
},
{
"color": "Sapphire",
"background": "#0F52BA",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"label": "white text",
"ratio": 7.15
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Cobalt Blue is better when the design needs jewel tone blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #0047AB.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Sapphire is better when the design needs vibrant and jewel tone blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #0F52BA.",
"useTogetherWhen": "Use these colors together as related palette neighbors, subtle material differences, or tonal alternatives rather than readable foreground/background pairs."
},
"relatedApi": [
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/cobalt-blue-vs-sapphire.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/cobalt-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/sapphire.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/cobalt-blue-vs-sapphire/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/cobalt-blue-vs-sapphire.json"
}