Color Palette from Image
Extract dominant colors from any uploaded image. Get HEX, RGB, and HSL values. Copy as CSS variables or download as a palette PNG. Free, browser-only.
The Color Palette from Image tool extracts the dominant colors from any uploaded photo or graphic and displays them as a ready-to-use color palette — entirely in your browser, with no files sent to any server. It is ideal for brand designers, web developers, marketers, and small business owners who want to build a color scheme that is visually consistent with an existing image, logo, product photo, or mood board.
Upload a JPG, PNG, WEBP, or any other image format and the tool immediately samples the pixel data using the Canvas API and runs a median cut color quantization algorithm to identify the most representative colors across the image. Unlike simple averages, median cut splits the color space iteratively along the channel with the widest spread, producing a palette that captures distinct hues rather than muddy midpoints.
You can choose to extract 4, 8, 12, or 16 colors depending on the richness of your image. Each extracted color is displayed as a large swatch alongside its HEX code, RGB values, and HSL values — all three formats that designers and developers commonly need. Click any swatch to copy the HEX code to your clipboard instantly.
For development workflows, the "Copy all as CSS variables" button generates a ready-to-paste :root {} block with all palette colors named as --color-1 through --color-N, which you can drop directly into a stylesheet. You can also download the entire palette as a PNG image — useful for design presentations, brand guidelines, or sharing with clients.
Common use cases include matching brand colors to a company logo, extracting a web color scheme from a product photograph, building UI themes from a photography style guide, and creating consistent social media visuals based on a hero image.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How does the color extraction work?
The tool draws your image onto an HTML canvas element and reads the pixel data using the Canvas API. It then runs a median cut quantization algorithm: all pixels start in one bucket, which is repeatedly split along the color channel with the widest range until the target number of buckets is reached. Each bucket is averaged to produce one color. This approach captures distinct dominant hues rather than blending everything into a dull average.
- Does my image get uploaded to a server?
No. Your image never leaves your device. All processing happens in your browser using the Canvas API. The file is read locally into memory, processed client-side, and the extracted color data is displayed directly in the page. Nothing is transmitted to any external server.
- How many colors can I extract?
You can extract 4, 8, 12, or 16 dominant colors. Use 4 for a minimal brand palette, 8 for a richer scheme, and 12 or 16 for images with a wide variety of colors like photographs or illustrations. The tool adjusts instantly when you change the count.
- What image formats are supported?
Any image format your browser can render — which includes JPG, JPEG, PNG, WEBP, GIF, SVG, AVIF, and BMP. Simply drag and drop your file or click to browse and select it.
- How do I use the palette in CSS?
Click