Color Converter

You have a HEX color code from a website you like but your design software wants RGB. You have an RGB value from a Figma file but your CSS needs HSL. Converting between color formats by hand involves math — and getting it wrong means your colors will not match. Our Color Converter handles all these conversions instantly and accurately.

The Color Format Ecosystem

Different tools and platforms have different preferred color formats. CSS and web development primarily use HEX (#FF5733) and RGB/RGBA. Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator work well with all formats but CMYK for print. Figma uses HEX and RGB. Flutter (mobile development) uses hex but in a different format (0xFFFF5733). Android development uses ARGB. Understanding which format your tool needs saves time and prevents color mismatches.

HEX to RGB Conversion

HEX #FF5733 breaks into three pairs: FF (red), 57 (green), 33 (blue). Convert each from hex to decimal: FF = 255, 57 = 87, 33 = 51. Result: RGB(255, 87, 51). This math is simple but tedious for every color — our converter does it in milliseconds.

RGB to HSL Conversion

This is where manual conversion gets genuinely complex. HSL calculation involves finding the minimum and maximum of the R, G, B values, computing lightness as the average, then calculating saturation based on whether lightness is above or below 0.5, then determining hue based on which channel has the maximum value. Three different formulas depending on the situation. Our converter handles all of this automatically.

Screen vs Print Colors

RGB is additive color — mixing red, green and blue light creates white. CMYK is subtractive color — mixing cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink creates dark colors. The same color can look quite different in RGB (screen) versus CMYK (print). When designing for both screen and print, start with CMYK values to ensure the print version looks correct, then convert to RGB for screen display.

Brand Color Management

Professional brand guidelines specify colors in multiple formats to ensure consistency across all media. A brand's primary color might be listed as HEX #1A73E8, RGB(26, 115, 232), CMYK(89, 50, 0, 9) and Pantone 285 C — all representing the same color for use in different contexts. Our converter helps verify these cross-format values are accurate.