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How to Use Color Picker — Complete Guide

Learn how to eyedrop colors from any image and get hex, RGB, and HSL values instantly using Tools.Town's free Color Picker.

8 May 2026 4 min read By Tools.Town Team Fact Checked

Key Takeaways

  • PNG, JPG, WEBP, GIF (first frame), and SVG
  • Color profiles and gamma correction can shift displayed colors
  • Yes — take a screenshot, upload it to the color picker, and eyedrop any pixel
  • RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is how screens render color — each channel 0–255

What is Color Picker?

Color Picker lets you upload any image and sample exact color values by hovering over pixels. Get the hex, RGB, and HSL representation of any color you can see — perfect for matching brand colors, extracting palettes from photos, or reverse-engineering designs.

Color Picker is the “where did they get that color?” tool. When you see a shade you love in a screenshot, a photo, or a reference site, upload it here to get the exact code.


Color Format Outputs

Hex (#RRGGBB)

The standard format for CSS and design tools. 6 hex digits encoding red, green, and blue channels.

RGB (0–255)

Red, Green, Blue channels as decimal numbers. Useful in code where you need individual channel values.

HSL

Hue (0–360°), Saturation (0–100%), Lightness (0–100%). Best for programmatic color adjustments and tints.

CMYK (preview)

Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key (Black). Informational — for reference if passing colors to print design.


How to Use Color Picker

Upload an image

Drag-and-drop or click to upload any PNG, JPG, or WEBP image.

Hover to sample

Move your cursor over the image — a magnified preview shows the pixel under your pointer.

Click to lock

Click any spot to lock the sampled color and see its hex, RGB, and HSL values in the panel.

Copy the value

Click any color format to copy it to your clipboard in one click.


Common Use Cases

Use CaseHow
Match a brand colorUpload a brand asset, sample the primary color
Extract palette from photoSample 5–6 spots across the image
Reverse-engineer a websiteScreenshot → upload → sample the colors
Get CSS value from Figma exportExport PNG, upload, sample

Tips & Common Mistakes

Zoom in before sampling gradients. Gradients shift color gradually — hovering over the edge of a gradient element can give a blended value. Zoom into the flat center for the pure color.

JPEG compression shifts colors. If you sampled from a JPEG and the color looks slightly off from what you see on screen, take a PNG screenshot instead — PNG is lossless and preserves exact pixel values.

Use HSL for dark/light variants. Once you have a sampled hex, convert it to HSL and adjust lightness to create tints (+L) and shades (-L) of the same hue.


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Frequently Asked Questions

What image formats does the color picker support?
PNG, JPG, WEBP, GIF (first frame), and SVG. For best accuracy, use PNG — JPEG compression can shift colors slightly from their true values.
Why does the hex value differ from what I see in my design tool?
Color profiles and gamma correction can shift displayed colors. For precision color matching, work in sRGB color space and ensure your design tool exports in the same profile.
Can I sample colors from a website screenshot?
Yes — take a screenshot, upload it to the color picker, and eyedrop any pixel. This is the fastest way to extract colors from a competitor or reference site.
What is the difference between RGB and HSL?
RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is how screens render color — each channel 0–255. HSL (Hue, Saturation, Lightness) is how humans perceive color — easier to reason about when adjusting shades.

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