Image Color Picker
Click any pixel to read its HEX, RGB and HSL value plus the name of that exact color, and the image never leaves your browser. Upload, drag in, or paste a photo, screenshot, or mockup, then pick — you also get an auto-extracted palette of the picture's dominant colors.
What is the Image Color Picker?
The Image Color Picker is a free online tool that lets you pull the exact color out of any image. Upload, drag in, or paste a photo, screenshot, or design mockup, then click any pixel — you instantly get that color's HEX, RGB and HSL value, and the name of the color (like Dodger Blue or Salmon). It also extracts a small palette of the image's dominant colors. Everything runs in your browser: your image is never uploaded to a server, never stored, and gone the moment you close the tab.
How to use it
- Add your image — click to choose a file, drag and drop it onto the drop zone, or paste a screenshot with Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on Mac).
- Move your cursor over the image; click (or tap) the exact pixel whose color you want.
- Read the HEX, RGB and HSL values plus the matched color name. Tap any value to copy it.
- Check the auto-extracted palette below the image for the picture's dominant colors, each already named.
- Pick another pixel anytime — answer in a second, then close the tab.
The method behind it
The image is drawn onto an HTML <canvas> and read with the
Canvas API's getImageData(), which returns the raw
red/green/blue/alpha values for the pixel under your cursor. From that RGB
triple we derive HEX and HSL with standard color math. To name the color,
the RGB value is compared against a curated list of thousands of named
colors using a perceptual CIELAB delta-E distance — the same color-naming
engine used across our color tools — so the closest human-readable name is
returned, with alternates. The palette is built by sampling and quantizing
the whole image client-side. Because all of this happens in JavaScript on
your device, nothing is sent over the network — that is
both the privacy benefit and why it feels instant.
Examples
- Click the sky in a landscape photo and get a blue HEX like
#5B9BD5, rgb(91,155,213), with its nearest name such as "Picton Blue." - Click a brand button in a screenshot and get
#E63946, the exact red you need for CSS. - Click a fabric in a product photo and get its HEX plus a multi-color palette of the whole shot.
Common use cases
- Matching a website's accent color from a screenshot when you don't have the source CSS.
- Sampling a color from a photo or moodboard to start a brand palette.
- Designers grabbing a swatch from a reference image without opening Photoshop.
- Developers turning a picked pixel into ready-to-paste HEX/RGB/HSL.
- Learning what a color is actually called so you can communicate it clearly.
Why use this one
Most image color pickers — including imagecolorpicker.com — only hand you a raw HEX code and, in several cases, upload your image to their server first. This tool is different on two counts that matter: it names the color you pick (not just the number), and it is 100% in-browser, so your image never leaves your device. Add drag-and-drop, clipboard paste, an auto palette, and no sign-up, and you get the answer faster and more privately.
It is part of a focused color toolkit. Once you have a HEX, you can name any HEX color and its variations, browse named colors, or convert HEX to RGB for your CSS.
Frequently asked questions
Is my image uploaded to a server?
No. The image is loaded straight into a canvas in your browser and read with the Canvas API. It never leaves your device, is never uploaded, and is gone the moment you close the tab.
How does it know the name of the color I pick?
Each picked pixel's RGB value is matched against a curated list of thousands of named colors using a perceptual CIELAB deltaE distance, so the closest human-readable name (like Dodger Blue or Salmon) is returned along with a few alternates.
What image formats are supported?
Any format your browser can draw — JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF and SVG all work. You can upload a file, drag and drop it, or paste a screenshot directly with Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on Mac).
Can I get the color in RGB and HSL too, not just HEX?
Yes. Every pick shows HEX, RGB and HSL side by side, each with a one-tap copy button so you can paste straight into CSS, a design tool, or code.
What is the palette below the image?
It is an automatically extracted set of the most dominant colors in the whole image, each with its own HEX value and name, so you get a ready-to-use scheme without clicking every pixel.