Extract Color Palette from Image — Free Tool
Last updated: 2026-03-13
You see a photo with beautiful colors and want to use them in your design. Or a client sends a brand photo and says "match these colors." Manually eyedropping each color is tedious and imprecise. A palette extractor analyzes the entire image and gives you the dominant colors instantly.
What You Get
| Output | Format | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Dominant colors | 5-10 colors ranked by prominence | Quick overview of image colors |
| Hex codes | #FF5733, #2C3E50, etc. | Web design, CSS |
| RGB values | rgb(255, 87, 51) | Digital design tools |
| HSL values | hsl(14, 100%, 60%) | Color manipulation |
| Downloadable palette | ASE, PNG swatch | Import into Photoshop, Figma |
How Color Extraction Works
The algorithm clusters similar pixels together using k-means clustering. Each cluster center becomes one color in the palette. The cluster size determines the color prominence. This is why a photo of a sunset gives you oranges and purples, not the exact RGB value of every individual pixel.
Tips for Better Palettes
- Crop first. If you only want colors from part of the image, crop to that area before extracting.
- Adjust the number of colors. 5 colors for a simple palette, 8-10 for more nuance.
- Check contrast. Make sure your extracted colors have sufficient contrast for text readability (4.5:1 ratio minimum).
Extract colors from your image — free, instant, with hex codes.
Open Color Palette Extractor →Related Tools
According to WCAG 2.1, text must have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background.
As Material Design guidelines recommend, a cohesive color palette typically uses 5-6 colors derived from a primary color.