Shademix

Get Pro€4.99 lifetime

About

What's inside Shademix

Six tools, every one solving a real problem designers, decorators, photographers and brand teams hit every day. Tap any to read what it does and when to reach for it.

🎯Pick - sample any color from any image

Drop a photo (or use your camera live) and tap any pixel. Shademix samples a 5×5 pixel average for stability and tells you the exact code in 10 color systems simultaneously: RAL Classic, NCS, Pantone-equivalent, Munsell, HKS, Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, Farrow & Ball, Dulux, Federal Standard 595.

When to use: matching a paint to a photographed wall, finding a brand color from a screenshot, identifying a fabric tone, building a palette from a sunset photo, sampling a logo's exact color from your phone screen.

  • Press-and-hold drag with magnifier loupe for pixel-precise sampling
  • Live camera capture - sample colors from the world in real time
  • Dominant color extraction - top 6 colors automatically detected from any image

🔍Lookup - enter a code, get every equivalent

Type any code (RAL 5015, NCS S 3060-B, PE-300, SW 6204…) or any color value (HEX, RGB, HSL, OKLCH, LAB) and instantly see the closest match across all 10 systems, ranked by perceptual distance (ΔE2000 - the industry standard).

When to use: a client gave you a Pantone code but you need the Sherwin-Williams equivalent for paint; converting a brand HEX into a printer-friendly CMYK; finding the closest Benjamin Moore match for a sample on Pinterest.

  • Same-hue family browser - see all shades within one system that share the chosen tone
  • Auto-detection of code format - type freely, no syntax rules

🎨Palettes - browse every color system

Explore all 10 catalogued color systems with search and filter. Tap any color to make it the active sample. Plus 30 hand-curated mood palettes (Mediterranean Sunset, Tokyo Neon, Studio Ghibli Dawn, Bauhaus, Velvet Plum and more) tagged so you can find the right vibe in seconds.

When to use: starting a brand or interior project from scratch and needing inspiration; finding a 5-color theme that fits a mood (autumn, scandinavian, retro 80s); learning what colors exist in a system before committing.

  • Mood tag search - type "ocean" or "ghibli" and matching palettes appear
  • One-tap save into your library

🎵Harmonies - generate matching colors

Pick a base color and Shademix generates 7 types of color harmonies - complementary, analogous, triadic, tetradic, split-complementary, square, and monochromatic - using OKLCH, the modern perceptual color space. The result: harmonies that actually look balanced, unlike old HSL-based tools.

When to use: picking a secondary brand color that "goes with" the primary; designing a multi-color UI without it looking off; finding a complementary accent for a hero image.

  • Saved as a palette with one tap
  • Free tier covers complementary + analogous + monochromatic Pro unlocks the other 4

⚙️Tools - accessibility, lighting, gamut, gradients Pro

The professional toolkit. Audit a palette for accessibility, simulate how it looks for color-blind viewers, preview it under different light sources, check whether your screen colors will survive print, and build perceptually-uniform gradients.

  • WCAG contrast checker - full pairwise table with AA/AAA badges for normal and large text. Catch unreadable color combinations before they ship.
  • Color blindness simulator - render your palette as a person with protanopia, deuteranopia, tritanopia or achromatopsia would see it. ~8% of men have one of these.
  • Lighting / metamerism preview - apply Bradford chromatic adaptation across 6 illuminants (D65 daylight, D50 print, A tungsten, F2 cool fluorescent, F11 tri-band, D75 north sky). Critical for interior + product design.
  • CMYK gamut warning - flags saturated screen colors that won't survive offset print, with an in-gamut approximation suggested.
  • OKLCH gradient generator - perceptually uniform gradients with copyable CSS. No more muddy mid-tones.

📚Library - your saved palettes

Every palette you save lives here. Rename, share via link (no account needed - palette is encoded directly in the URL), export to industry-standard formats, and compare up to 4 palettes side-by-side.

When to use: organizing client palettes by project; sharing a palette with a teammate via a single link; exporting to your design tool's native format.

  • Free: JSON + CSS exports, up to 5 saved palettes
  • Pro: unlimited palettes, plus Adobe ASE, GIMP GPL, Tailwind config, SVG swatch sheet exports

The philosophy

Shademix runs entirely on your device. No accounts, no analytics, no servers - your photos and palettes stay with you. We use OKLCH and ΔE2000 because they reflect how human vision actually works, not legacy 1980s math. We list approximations of trademarked color systems clearly (e.g. Pantone-equivalents marked "PE-") so you know what's an industry-licensed match and what's a guide.

Free on the web. €4.99 once on iOS & Android unlocks everything forever - no subscription, Family Sharing supported. See what Pro adds →

Credits & trademarks

RAL®, NCS®, HKS®, Munsell®, Sherwin-Williams®, Benjamin Moore®, Farrow & Ball®, Dulux® and Federal Standard 595 are trademarks of their respective owners. Codes are listed for cross-reference only - we are not affiliated with or endorsed by these companies. PANTONE® is a trademark of Pantone LLC; Shademix's "PE-" entries are visual approximations for design exploration only, not official Pantone matches.

Support

We answer every email. Usually within 24 hours.

✉️

Email us anytime

Bug reports, feature requests, color-system corrections, refund queries, partnership offers - all welcome. Please include your device (iPhone / Android model, OS version, browser) so we can reproduce.

Average reply time: 12 hours · Monday-Friday

Frequently asked questions

How do I sample a color from a photo?

Open the Pick tab, drop or upload your image (or tap Use camera for a live frame), then tap any pixel. Shademix samples a 5×5 pixel average for stability and shows the exact code in every supported color system. On phones, press-and-hold for the magnifier loupe.

Which color systems does Shademix cover?

Ten catalogued systems: RAL Classic, NCS, Pantone-equivalent, Munsell, HKS, Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, Farrow & Ball, Dulux, and Federal Standard 595. The closest match in each system is ranked by ΔE2000 perceptual distance.

Is Shademix really free? What does Pro unlock?

The web app is free with all six tools accessible. Shademix Pro is a one-time €4.99 lifetime purchase (no subscription) that unlocks: every color system, every format (CMYK, OKLCH, OKLab), all 7 harmonies, all pro tools (lighting, gamut, gradient generator), unlimited saved palettes, and pro export formats (Adobe ASE, GIMP GPL, Tailwind config, SVG).

Does the app work offline?

Yes. On first visit the service worker caches the entire app plus all color databases. The iOS and Android apps work fully offline - the eyedropper, lookup, harmonies and tools never require an internet connection.

Are my photos uploaded to a server?

Never. Every pixel of every photo you load is processed on your device, in the browser canvas or Capacitor webview. Shademix has no backend, no analytics, and no telemetry. See the full Privacy Policy.

How do I export a palette to Adobe / Figma / Procreate?

Open the Library tab, tap a palette, then choose Export. Free tier supports JSON and CSS. Pro adds Adobe ASE (loads into Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign), GIMP GPL, Tailwind config, and an SVG swatch sheet. Procreate users can import the SVG directly.

How accurate are the Pantone matches?

Our Pantone-equivalent (PE-) entries are visual approximations for design exploration only - we are not licensed by Pantone LLC. For production print work where exact Pantone is required, always cross-reference using an official Pantone color guide. Other systems (RAL, NCS, Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore etc.) use published spectral data and match to ΔE2000 perceptual distance.

How does the WCAG contrast checker work?

Open the Tools tab and pick Accessibility. Shademix builds a full pairwise contrast table for your active palette, badging every pair against WCAG 2.1 AA (4.5:1) and AAA (7:1) for normal text and the relaxed thresholds (3:1 / 4.5:1) for large text. Use this to catch unreadable color combinations before they ship.

Can I see how my palette looks for color-blind viewers?

Yes - the Color Blindness Simulator in the Tools tab uses the Brettel-Viénot-Mollon transform to render your palette as a person with protanopia, deuteranopia, tritanopia or achromatopsia would see it. About 8% of men and 0.5% of women have one of these forms of color vision deficiency, so this is essential for inclusive design.

How do I restore my Pro purchase on a new device?

On iOS / Android: open the FAB menu in the bottom-right and tap Restore. Apple / Google will reissue the receipt for the same Apple ID / Google account. Pro is shareable via Apple Family Sharing and Google Play Family Library at no extra charge. On the web there is no Pro subscription - the web app is free with the core tools.