Cornflower blue
A clear, medium-light blue named for the cornflower and prized in sapphires
Cornflower blue is a medium-to-light blue with little green, named after the cornflower plant. It is known for its use in art, especially by Johannes Vermeer, and as the prized colour of the finest blue sapphires. The shade is defined in web standards and appears in uniforms and popular culture.
Share on WhatsAppOpen in the lab
- Named for the blue petals of the cornflower plant
- The finest blue sapphires are called cornflower blue
- A favourite colour of painter Johannes Vermeer
- Defined as a web colour with hex code #6495ED
- Used in Bavarian infantry uniforms in the 19th century
What colour is Cornflower blue?
Cornflower blue is a shade of blue that sits between medium and light on the scale, with a clear tone and little green. It is named for the colour of the cornflower plant’s petals. The shade is sometimes described as a violet-blue, especially when referring to gemstones. It stands out from other blues for its clarity and the absence of strong green or grey undertones.
Where does Cornflower blue come from?
The name comes from the cornflower, a plant with blue petals. The shade became notable in art, being a favourite of the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer. The term is also used for the most valuable blue sapphires, which are described as having a cornflower blue hue. The colour has been defined in various standards, including web colours and crayon sets.
How Cornflower blue is defined
Cornflower blue is defined as a standard colour in digital and print systems, such as the X11 web colour list and Crayola crayons. In the past, a blue dye was produced from the cornflower plant, known as Boyle's Blue or Cyan Blue, but it was not widely used commercially.
Where Cornflower blue is used
Artists have favoured cornflower blue for its clear, bright tone, with Johannes Vermeer being a notable example. The colour is used in digital design as a named web colour and is the default clear colour in the Microsoft XNA framework. It has appeared in uniforms, such as the coats of Bavarian infantry in the early 19th century, and is also a Crayola crayon shade.
What Cornflower blue means
The sources do not tie cornflower blue to any specific symbolic meanings or emotions. In popular culture, it appears in references such as a German song and in literature, but these do not assign it a consistent meaning.
Blue around the world
What the blue family means from country to country.
Lapis lazuli has been mined in the mountains of Badakhshan for more than six thousand years. Ground to powder it gave ultramarine, the costliest blue in European painting.
Royalty and powerSacred and holyAweSource: Lapis lazuliThe chadari is a full-length covering for women with a mesh panel over the eyes. In Kabul and the north it is most often a light blue.
Protection and healingSource: BurqaThe blue band of the flag stands for the wish of the Armenian people to live under peaceful skies. The red above it is for the highlands and the struggle to survive.
Politics and protestHopeSource: Flag of ArmeniaThe flag is sky blue, white and sky blue, created by Manuel Belgrano in 1812. National teams are called the Albiceleste, the white and sky blue.
Politics and protestPrideSource: Flag of ArgentinaBoca Juniors play in blue and gold. The club's story is that in 1907 it took the colours of the flag of the next ship into port, which was Swedish.
Festival and celebrationPrideSource: Boca JuniorsTo be true blue is to be honestly and loyally Australian. The phrase is older than the country, but Australians have made it their own.
Politics and protestTrustSource: True Blue (John Williamson song)Shades and relatives of Cornflower blue
Cornflower blue is sometimes called light cornflower in crayon sets. The shade can vary from a medium-light blue to a slightly violet blue, especially in sapphires. It is distinct from other blues by its low green content and clear appearance.
Colours that go with Cornflower blue
Harmonies are worked out from the value #6495ED. Contrast ratios follow the WCAG 2 formula.
Questions people ask about Cornflower blue
What colour is cornflower blue?
Cornflower blue is a medium-to-light blue shade with little green, known for its clear and bright appearance.
Where does the name cornflower blue come from?
The name comes from the cornflower plant, whose petals are a similar shade of blue.
Is cornflower blue used in art?
Yes, it was a favourite of the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer and is used in various art and design contexts.
What is the hex code for cornflower blue?
The web colour cornflower blue is defined by the hex code #6495ED.
Are there other names for cornflower blue?
It has also been called Boyle's Blue, Cyan Blue, and light cornflower in some contexts.
Good reading and sources
The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Cornflower blue", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Rang rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
It may contain mistakes. The swatch is an approximation: named colours are not fixed standards, and every screen shows them a little differently. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.
More of the blue family
All of blue
#0000FF
Blue
A primary colour seen in the sky and sea, used since ancient times in art and dyeBasic colour
#6A5DFF
Indigo
A deep blue named for the dye once exported from IndiaNamed shade · 🇮🇳 India +5
#120A8F
Ultramarine
A deep blue pigment once made from lapis lazuli, prized for centuries in artPigment · 🇦🇫 Afghanistan +2
#007FFF
Azure
A clear sky blue, halfway between blue and cyan on the colour wheelNamed shade · 🇮🇹 Italy +2
#87CEEB
Sky blue
A light blue named for the colour of a clear daytime skyNamed shade · 🇦🇷 Argentina +5
#0047AB
Cobalt blue
A strong, stable blue pigment made from cobalt and alumina since the early 1800sPigment · 🇫🇷 France +3
#000080
Navy blue
A deep blue shade named for the uniforms of the Royal NavyNamed shade · 🇺🇸 United States +2
#007BA7
Cerulean
A blue-green colour once made from cobalt stannate and linked with the skyNamed shade · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom