Color Picker
Upload an image and click anywhere to pick a color. Get HEX, RGB, and HSL values with one-click copy.
Drop an image here or click to upload
Supports JPG, PNG, WebP, BMP
📖 How to Use
Upload an image, then click anywhere on it to pick a color. The HEX, RGB, and HSL values update instantly. Click any color code to copy it to your clipboard.
Color Format Reference
HEX
6-digit code like #FF5733. The standard for CSS, HTML, and most design tools. Easy to copy and paste.
RGB
Red, Green, Blue values (0-255). Used in CSS as rgb(255, 87, 51). Common in programming and digital displays.
HSL
Hue, Saturation, Lightness. More intuitive for humans — easy to create color variations by adjusting lightness or saturation.
Common Use Cases
Designers frequently need to extract exact colors from reference images, brand assets, or competitor websites. Instead of guessing hex codes, pick them directly from the source image for pixel-perfect color matching.
Web developers use color picking to match design mockups exactly. When a designer sends a screenshot, you can extract every color value needed for CSS without going back and forth asking for hex codes.
Content creators use it to build cohesive color palettes from photographs. Pick the dominant colors from a hero image, then use those exact values for text, buttons, and backgrounds to create a harmonious design.
Color Theory Basics
The Color Wheel
The color wheel is the foundation of color theory. It starts with three primary colors — red, blue, and yellow — which cannot be created by mixing other colors. Combining primaries produces the secondary colors: orange, green, and purple. Mixing a primary with an adjacent secondary gives you the six tertiary colors, such as red-orange or blue-green. Understanding where a color sits on the wheel helps you predict how it will interact with other colors in your design.
Color Harmony
Color harmony refers to combinations that are visually pleasing. Complementary colors sit opposite each other on the wheel (e.g., blue and orange) and create high contrast. Analogous colors are neighbors on the wheel (e.g., blue, blue-green, green) and produce calm, cohesive designs. Triadic schemes use three colors equally spaced around the wheel for vibrant balance. Split-complementary takes one base color and the two colors adjacent to its complement, offering contrast without the intensity of a full complementary pair.
Warm vs. Cool Colors
Warm colors — reds, oranges, and yellows — evoke energy, urgency, and warmth. They tend to advance visually, making elements feel closer to the viewer. Cool colors — blues, greens, and purples — convey calm, trust, and professionalism, and appear to recede into the background. Understanding this psychological effect helps you set the right tone: a healthcare app might lean cool for trust, while a food delivery brand might use warm tones to stimulate appetite and excitement.
Building a Palette from an Image
One of the best ways to create a cohesive color palette is to extract colors from a photograph or artwork. Use this color picker to sample 4-6 colors from a hero image: pick one dominant color, one or two supporting colors, and a neutral. Test these values against each other for contrast and balance before applying them to your UI, brand materials, or social media templates.
Accessible Color Contrast
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) require a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text (18px+ bold or 24px+ regular). After picking colors from an image, always verify that your text-to-background combinations meet these thresholds. Poor contrast makes content unreadable for users with low vision or color blindness. Tools like contrast checkers can compare the HEX values you extract here and confirm whether your palette is accessible.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is the color picking?
The tool reads the exact pixel color from the image, so it's 100% accurate for the displayed image. Keep in mind that screen calibration and color profiles may cause colors to appear slightly different across devices.
Can I pick multiple colors?
Yes! Click anywhere on the image as many times as you want. Each click updates the color values. Copy each code before clicking again to build your palette.
Is my image uploaded?
No. The image is loaded into your browser's Canvas element. No data is sent to any server. Complete privacy.