Soft cool teal

Where it sits

True Summer palette

Soft cool teal is an anchor color in True Summer. Its closest relative outside the palette is Muted teal #5F8080, a Soft Summer color, at a perceptual distance of 9. That is near enough for that season to wear it as a neutral, with the accents kept in its own palette.

At RGB 78, 138, 136 the green and blue are almost level and the red is well below. The level green and blue make it a true teal, neither a green nor a blue. The moderate saturation is the softness. It is the color of the sea on an overcast day. Push the green ahead and warm it and it becomes True Autumn's warm teal; darken it and it becomes Dark Autumn's deep teal.

A True Summer wears it as a mid-tone with presence: a knit, a dress, a shirt, a coat. It is the color that makes the palette's roses and blues look less sweet. It works with soft white, cool grey and grey-taupe, and it pairs well with cool rose and rose-beige.

Retail calls it teal, dusty teal, sea pine, lagoon and blue spruce. Because so many seasons have a version, most soft teal in stores will be close. The versions to avoid are the bright peacock teal, which belongs to the Winters, and the yellowed one that leans toward olive.

Easily confused with

This is a crowded spot. True Summer's own spruce blue-green and Soft Autumn's muted teal are both seven points away. Soft Summer's muted teal is nine points off, and True Autumn's warm teal is nine as well. All four are close enough to pass in a store. The differences are small: the Autumn versions lean a little greener and warmer, the Soft versions a little greyer. Dark Autumn's deep teal is eighteen points away and clearly darker.

The nearest named colors in other seasons, by perceptual distance (ΔE in CIELAB; under 10 is hard to tell apart on a screen, over 25 is a different color).

In stock in this color today

As of November 11, 2026, 4 in-stock pieces across Boden, Christy Dawn and STAUD sample within a close match of #4E8A88. The dot on each card is the color we sampled from the garment itself; trust it over the photograph. Links are affiliate links: we earn a commission when you buy through them, at no cost to you.

The Douglas Pant

Juniper

$248 at Christy Dawn

Marianne Merino Wool Cardigan

Storm Blue

$190 at Boden

Olympia Dress

Tidal Shell

$298 at STAUD

Elsie Cashmere Crew Sweater

Deep Sea Depths

$170 at Boden

What it's sold as

Retailers almost never use the palette name. These are the color names on the in-stock pieces that sample within a close match of #4E8A88 today, so they are the words to search for.

Boden

Storm Blue, Deep Sea Depths

Christy Dawn

Juniper

STAUD

Tidal Shell

A retailer's name for a color says nothing about its undertone. "Navy" at one shop is a True Winter color and at another a Spring one. The sampled dot on each card above is what we trust.

Questions

The True Summer guide · All in-stock True Summer pieces · ← Muted plum · All colors