Phthalo blue: Color codes, color palettes, and uses

Phthalo blue is no shy wallflower — it’s bold, punchy, and unapologetically intense. With its deep, inky vibe and subtle green undertone, this modern synthetic blue means business.

Initially discovered in the 1930s, it started with the scientific title phthalocyanine blue before acquiring a snappier nickname: phthalo blue. On screen, it’s best captured by the hex code #000F89. Want something a little lighter? Ultramarine blue or cerulean blue are great alternatives, but let’s be honest: phthalo blue brings the drama.

Let’s explore everything creatives need to know about phthalo blue:

Finding the perfect palette for your projects can be challenging. We’ve created five stunning phthalo blue color palettes for inspiration.

Monochromatic palettes are all about harmony. They combine variations in tints, tones, or shades of hue. We chose to use tints of phthalo blue to create our monochromatic palette below. To do this, we’ve added increasing percentages of white to lighten the original phthalo blue hue.

The Hex, CMYK, and RGB codes for this palette are:

Analogous colors play well together, so they’re a great alternative when you’re looking for a cohesive and harmonious color scheme with a bit more variety than the monochromatic palette. You can create an analogous phthalo blue palette by choosing colors on either side of phthalo blue on the color wheel. Usually, an analogous palette has three colors, but we’ve included a fourth to round out our palette.

Take a deeper dive into color theory with this terrific video for beginners.

Looking for a color scheme with a bit more va-va-voom? The complementary color scheme is a great choice for you. Pair phthalo blue with the color opposite it on the color wheel to create a stunning scheme that offers contrasts and excitement. We’ve added two shades of dandelion, the color opposite phthalo blue, to bring more depth to the palette.

Let’s ramp things up a notch with the triadic phthalo color palette. Pick three colors equally spaced on the color wheel to create an eye-poppingly colorful palette. To keep your color palette tasteful and less in your face, you can add tints, tones, or shades of any of your triadic colors. Here we added a shade of phthalo as the fourth color in our palette.

If riotous color is your jam, you’ll love the tetradic phthalo blue color palette. The palette is composed of two pairs of complementary colors. To create this palette, start with your dominant color (in this case, phthalo blue), and then draw a rectangle or square on the color wheel. Each of the other three corners of the rectangle/square will fall on the colors that complete your tetradic scheme.

If you want to tone down the vibrance of this color scheme, use some neutrals like white, gray or black, and/or tints, tones and shades of your triadic colors.

When looking for a color that brings depth without darkness and calm without blandness, phthalo blue delivers. It’s a color that feels like it holds its breath — quiet, calm, and powerful just below the surface.

With its rich, almost velvety tone and subtle green undertone, phthalo blue evokes the depth of the ocean and the stillness of a twilight sky. It’s often associated with introspection, creativity, and emotional intelligence, making it ideal for designs that aim to soothe, inspire, or earn trust.

From a branding perspective, phthalo blue communicates:

Bottom line? Phthalo blue is more than just a pretty pigment. It’s a mood, a message, and a brand-building tool that says: “You can trust me… and I’ve got taste.”

Plumb the depths of color psychology in the video below, or learn more about the best logo color schemes.

The birth of the pigment phthalo blue can be attributed to several independent discoveries in Switzerland, Scotland, and London between 1907 and 1934. Made from copper phthalocyanine, the pigment was initially sold as monastral blue in 1935, but was later renamed phthalocyanine blue, or phthalo blue for short.

Phthalo blue is just one of a family of blue and green synthetic organic pigments based on variants of copper phthalocyanine. When it was discovered, it was thought to be the most significant advance in artist pigments since the discovery of synthetic ultramarine blue in 1826.

With its intense color, high tinting strength, and resistance to fading, phthalo blue was prized by artists and designers in the printing, textile, and fashion industries. Let’s take a closer look at the famous uses of phthalo blue.

Artists rushed to adopt it once phthalo blue arrived on the scene in 1935. René Magritte was one of the earliest adopters of phthalo blue, which he used in this humorous self-portrait, La lampe philosophique (1936).

A tremendous work within the Abstract Expressionist tradition, Onement VI (1953) by Barnett Newman is the largest of six paintings in his Onement series. This stunning work is a vibrant blue field with the artist’s signature vertical “zip” in contrasting light blue down the middle.

A prominent figure in the Pop Art movement, Roy Lichtenstein, used phthalo blue as the primary blue in his Brushstrokes series. Created in the 1960s, Brushstrokes replicated the gestural marks associated with Abstract Expressionism.

With its eye-catching and intense hue, the phthalo blue color has been a hit in fashion since its discovery. Today, it can be found in high and low fashion, and it’s not just for women.

Blue lips used to be a sign of illness — now it’s a fun trend.

Speaking of fun trends, the fringe on display in autumn 2024 seems to be here to stay, and what better way to wear it in 2025 than on a gorgeous blue bag?

And, of course, hair has now joined the phthalo blue trend.

Blue is a great branding color for companies that want to show their customers they’re a safe choice. So it’s no wonder that famous brands like Ford use blue in their branding. The brand’s ‘Blue Oval’ logo conveys trust, reliability, and stability.

Samsung is another brand that uses blue in its branding to communicate trust and reliability. It also uses an oval, but this time slightly askew. This brings a dynamic feel to the logo, helping to communicate innovation alongside stability.

Lowe’s, a home improvement business, also uses blue in its logo and general branding, for the same reason Ford and Samsung use the color. The company wants its customers to know it’s a professional and dependable store for home improvement projects.

A: Phthalo is pronounced ‘THAL-oh’.

A: Phthalo blue is a cool color.

A: Digital creatives can achieve phthalo blue using the hex code #4166F5.

Phthalo blue green shade is the default hue of phthalo blue, which has an undertone of green.

A: Ultramarine blue and Prussian blue are popular blues that can be used instead of or in combination with phthalo blue, but there are key differences between these hues.

Now that you’re ready to take your own phthalo blue journey in design, you’ll need a great set of resources to make the trip smoother. Check out this collection of fab phthalo blue creative assets from Envato.

If you want to explore other terrific colors for creative design projects, check out our articles on cerulean blue, yellow ochre, and emerald green.