Nearest-color comparison
Light Steel Blue #B0C4DE vs Pastel Blue #AEC6CF: RGB distance 15.3 and contrast 1:1. Compare hue, luminance, saturation, WCAG and practical use.
Light Steel Blue and Pastel Blue are very close, with an RGB distance of 15.3. Light Steel Blue is lighter by 0.0009, and Light Steel Blue is more saturated by 15 percentage points. Their mutual contrast is 1:1. The pair is too close for a readable foreground/background combination and works better as neighboring palette colors.
The main measurable differences between Light Steel Blue and Pastel Blue across RGB distance, luminance, hue, saturation, and contrast.
blue color
Light Steel Blue is #B0C4DE, a cool blue with hue 214°, saturation 41% and luminance 0.5398. Beside Pastel Blue, it is lighter and more saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 11.8:1.
blue color
Pastel Blue is #AEC6CF, a cool blue with hue 196°, saturation 26% and luminance 0.5389. Beside Light Steel Blue, it is darker and less saturated. Of the two standard text choices, black text gives the higher contrast at 11.78:1.
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 Light Steel Blue and Pastel Blue, 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": "light-steel-blue",
"name": "Light Steel Blue",
"hex": "#B0C4DE",
"rgb": [
176,
196,
222
],
"hsl": [
214,
41,
78
],
"cmyk": [
21,
12,
0,
13
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.5398,
"contrast": {
"black": 11.8,
"white": 1.78
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.8
},
"description": "Light Steel Blue is #B0C4DE, a cool blue color with balanced character. Compared with Pastel Blue, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/light-steel-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/light-steel-blue.json"
},
{
"slug": "pastel-blue",
"name": "Pastel Blue",
"hex": "#AEC6CF",
"rgb": [
174,
198,
207
],
"hsl": [
196,
26,
75
],
"cmyk": [
16,
4,
0,
19
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.5389,
"contrast": {
"black": 11.78,
"white": 1.78
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.78
},
"description": "Pastel Blue is #AEC6CF, a cool blue color with muted character. Compared with Light Steel Blue, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for soft ui backgrounds, pastel palettes, and gentle product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/pastel-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pastel-blue.json"
}
]{
"rgbDistance": 15.3,
"contrastRatio": 1,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 18,
"saturation": 15,
"lightness": 3
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0009,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Light Steel Blue",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Light Steel Blue"
}{
"pairContrastRatio": 1,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Light Steel Blue",
"background": "#B0C4DE",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.8
},
{
"color": "Pastel Blue",
"background": "#AEC6CF",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.78
}
]
}{
"chooseFirstWhen": "Light Steel Blue is better when the design needs balanced blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #B0C4DE.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Pastel Blue is better when the design needs muted blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #AEC6CF.",
"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/light-steel-blue-vs-pastel-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/light-steel-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pastel-blue.json"
]{
"datasetVersion": "1.0.0",
"slug": "light-steel-blue-vs-pastel-blue",
"type": "nearest",
"name": "Light Steel Blue vs Pastel Blue",
"verdict": "Light Steel Blue and Pastel Blue are very close colors. Light Steel Blue is the lighter option. They share similar temperature behavior. Their mutual contrast is 1:1, so the pair is too low for text and better treated as a palette relationship.",
"summary": "Light Steel Blue and Pastel Blue are different blue colors with HEX values #B0C4DE and #AEC6CF. According to Colors Encyclopedia, their RGB distance is 15.3, their contrast ratio is 1:1, and the comparison helps choose between tone, temperature, and accessibility behavior.",
"rgbDistance": 15.3,
"contrastRatio": 1,
"colors": [
{
"slug": "light-steel-blue",
"name": "Light Steel Blue",
"hex": "#B0C4DE",
"rgb": [
176,
196,
222
],
"hsl": [
214,
41,
78
],
"cmyk": [
21,
12,
0,
13
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"balanced"
],
"luminance": 0.5398,
"contrast": {
"black": 11.8,
"white": 1.78
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.8
},
"description": "Light Steel Blue is #B0C4DE, a cool blue color with balanced character. Compared with Pastel Blue, it is lighter and more saturated. Use it for web design, css color systems, and ui prototyping, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/light-steel-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/light-steel-blue.json"
},
{
"slug": "pastel-blue",
"name": "Pastel Blue",
"hex": "#AEC6CF",
"rgb": [
174,
198,
207
],
"hsl": [
196,
26,
75
],
"cmyk": [
16,
4,
0,
19
],
"family": "blue",
"temperature": "cool",
"tone": [
"muted"
],
"luminance": 0.5389,
"contrast": {
"black": 11.78,
"white": 1.78
},
"wcag": {
"AA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A",
"#36454F"
],
"AAA": [
"#000000",
"#1A1A1A"
]
},
"bestText": {
"text": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.78
},
"description": "Pastel Blue is #AEC6CF, a cool blue color with muted character. Compared with Light Steel Blue, it is darker and less saturated. Use it for soft ui backgrounds, pastel palettes, and gentle product design, with black text as the safer foreground option.",
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/colors/pastel-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pastel-blue.json"
}
],
"differences": {
"rgbDistance": 15.3,
"contrastRatio": 1,
"hslDelta": {
"hue": 18,
"saturation": 15,
"lightness": 3
},
"luminanceDelta": 0.0009,
"sameFamily": true,
"sameTemperature": true,
"sharedTones": [],
"lighterColor": "Light Steel Blue",
"moreSaturatedColor": "Light Steel Blue"
},
"accessibility": {
"pairContrastRatio": 1,
"textRecommendation": "Do not use this pair for text; use it for neighboring palette colors, decoration, or low-emphasis surfaces.",
"safeText": [
{
"color": "Light Steel Blue",
"background": "#B0C4DE",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.8
},
{
"color": "Pastel Blue",
"background": "#AEC6CF",
"foreground": "#000000",
"label": "black text",
"ratio": 11.78
}
]
},
"useCases": {
"chooseFirstWhen": "Light Steel Blue is better when the design needs balanced blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #B0C4DE.",
"chooseSecondWhen": "Pastel Blue is better when the design needs muted blue character, cool temperature, and the specific HEX value #AEC6CF.",
"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/light-steel-blue-vs-pastel-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/light-steel-blue.json",
"https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/colors/pastel-blue.json"
],
"url": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/compare/light-steel-blue-vs-pastel-blue/",
"apiUrl": "https://www.colorsencyclopedia.com/api/compare/light-steel-blue-vs-pastel-blue.json"
}