How to Extract a Color Palette from an Image with HEX and Pantone Codes

Updated

You can pull a usable palette out of almost any image by uploading it to a browser-based color extractor: Clariss accepts JPEG, PNG, GIF, and WEBP files, scans the pixels with a k-means clustering algorithm, and returns swatches with exact HEX codes plus the closest Pantone (PMS) references. The whole scan runs in your browser, so the image itself is never sent to or stored on a server. This works well when you need screen-ready HEX values for web or UI work and print-oriented Pantone references for physical materials — but you should pick a scan depth that matches how much color variety the image actually contains, or you'll end up with near-duplicate swatches.

What you need before you start

  • An image file in JPEG, PNG, GIF, or WEBP format.
  • Rights to use that image — the extracted color values are free to use commercially, but the source image still needs to be yours or properly licensed.
  • A rough sense of whether the image is color-rich (a photo, a detailed illustration) or color-poor (a logo, a flat graphic). This decides your scan depth.

Step-by-step: extract the palette

  1. Open the tool and load your image. Click the image selector, or drag and drop the file onto the page. Accepted formats are jpeg, png, gif, and webp.

  2. Choose a scan depth. The tool offers four levels, and the number of colors returned scales with each one:

    Scan level Colors returned Best for
    Quick Scan 9 Simple graphics, logos, low-variety images
    Standard Scan 18 Most photos and illustrations
    Deep Scan 27 Detailed images with many distinct hues
    Extended Scan 36 Highly varied images where you want maximum coverage

  3. Run the scan. The tool reads the image's pixels and clusters them into dominant colors. Because the processing happens in JavaScript in your browser, there's no upload wait and no server round-trip.

  4. Read the results. You get a set of color swatches, each showing its exact HEX code and the nearest Pantone (PMS) reference. These are ready to copy or download.

  5. Copy or download the swatches into your design file, brand document, or print spec.

The tool's own guidance is that Standard or Deep Scan gives the most useful palette for most photos and illustrations without too much repetition — so start there unless your image is unusually simple or unusually complex.

HEX vs Pantone: which value do you actually use?

The two codes serve different production contexts, and the tool gives you both so you don't have to convert manually.

  • HEX is a six-character value like #FF5733. Use it for digital design, web development, and anything screen-based.
  • Pantone (PMS) is a standardized reference number used in physical print, textiles, and manufacturing, where it keeps color consistent across different materials and production processes.

If your project is a website or app, the HEX codes are what you'll paste into CSS or a design tool. If you're specifying a printed brochure, packaging, or fabric, the Pantone reference is the one your printer or manufacturer will recognize.

Fixing common extraction problems

  • Too many near-identical swatches. Drop to a lower scan depth. If Deep or Extended returns several shades that look the same, Quick or Standard will give you a cleaner, more usable set.
  • Colors look off from the original. Check the source file's format and quality first — a heavily compressed JPEG or a low-resolution image can shift the extracted values. Re-exporting a cleaner version of the image usually resolves it.
  • You need a specific brand color matched. Extract the palette, then compare the returned HEX or Pantone value against your brand standard rather than assuming an exact match; clustering returns the dominant colors, not a guarantee of a specific target value.

What happens to your image

All extraction happens directly in your browser using JavaScript. Your image is never sent to or stored on any server, and once you close or refresh the page, no trace of it remains. That makes the tool practical for client work or any image you'd rather not upload elsewhere.