Named after the uniforms of the British Royal Navy, navy blue is a deep, dark blue that is almost black, although some shades of navy are slightly bluer. Navy blue is a cool color that can be used as a neutral in graphic design.

Navy blue carries the blue symbolism associated with the darker shades of blue, and conveys importance, confidence, power and authority, as well as intelligence, stability, unity and conservatism. Like black, it carries a sense of elegance and refinement. It is associated with the police and military.

Navy is a sophisticated replacement for black in print and web design. It is a timeless color that works well with nautical or preppy themes. For a formal design, use navy with cream for a rich, classic look or combine navy with coral or orange for a modern pop of color. Navy is a gender-neutral color that works anywhere. It doesn’t draw attention.

When planning a design project that will go to a commercial printer, use CMYK formulations for navy blue in your page layout software or select a Pantone spot color. Use RGB values for display on a computer monitor. Use Hex codes when working with HTML, CSS, and SVG. Navy blue hues are best achieved with the following information: