Color Palette Generator

What Is a Color Harmony?

A color harmony is a set of colors chosen according to their positions on the color wheel so that they look balanced and intentional together. Rather than picking colors at random, color theory gives you repeatable relationships — such as colors sitting opposite one another, evenly spaced, or clustered close together — that the human eye tends to read as pleasing. Designers, illustrators, and front-end developers lean on these relationships to build coherent brand palettes, UI themes, data visualizations, and marketing assets without guesswork.

Under the hood, this generator converts your base color from HEX into the HSL color model (hue, saturation, lightness). Working in HSL makes it straightforward to rotate the hue by precise angles for harmonies like complementary or triadic schemes, and to step the lightness value up or down for shades and tints. Every swatch you see is computed from that single base color, so changing the base instantly recalculates the entire palette while keeping the relationships intact.

How to Use This Color Palette Generator

Set your starting color by typing a six-digit HEX value (for example #2563eb) into the text field, or use the native color picker swatch next to it to choose visually. Pick a harmony type from the Harmony dropdown — Monochromatic, Complementary, Analogous, Triadic, Tetradic (Square), Split Complementary, Shades, or Tints — and set how many colors you want with the Colors field, which accepts between 3 and 12 swatches.

The palette updates live as you change any option. Click the Random Color button to jump to a fresh, pleasantly saturated base color, click any swatch to copy its HEX value to your clipboard, and use Copy as CSS to grab a :root block of custom properties (--color-1, --color-2, and so on) or Copy as JSON to export the palette as a plain array of HEX strings. Each swatch also shows its equivalent hsl() value for quick reference.

Real-World Use Cases

• Brand palettes — Start from a brand's primary color and generate supporting accent and neutral tones that stay on-brand.
• UI theming — Export CSS custom properties straight into a design system or component library to drive buttons, links, and surfaces.
• Data visualization — Use analogous or monochromatic ramps so charts and heatmaps read clearly without clashing.
• Illustration and digital art — Explore triadic or split-complementary schemes to build a balanced color story before committing.
• Marketing and social graphics — Quickly assemble a coordinated set of colors for slides, banners, and posts that match a campaign.

Tips for Building Better Palettes

• Use Monochromatic or Analogous schemes when you want a calm, cohesive feel, and Complementary or Triadic when you need contrast and energy.
• Generate Shades and Tints from your brand color to build a full lightness ramp for backgrounds, borders, and hover states.
• Keep the count modest — three to five colors is usually enough; reserve the higher counts for full design-system ramps.
• Pair the exported colors with a contrast checker to make sure text and background combinations remain readable.
• Hit Random Color a few times to break out of a creative rut, then fine-tune the base HEX once you find a direction you like.

Features

• Eight harmony types — Monochromatic, Complementary, Analogous, Triadic, Tetradic, Split Complementary, Shades, and Tints.
• Adjustable count — Generate between 3 and 12 coordinated colors from a single base.
• HEX and HSL readouts — Every swatch shows both its HEX code and its hsl() values.
• One-click export — Copy the palette as CSS custom properties or as JSON, or click any swatch to copy its HEX.
• Random color generator — Jump to a fresh, well-balanced base color instantly.
• 100% client-side — your data never leaves your browser.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I choose a good color palette?

Start with your brand's primary color as the base, then pick a harmony that matches the mood you want — Monochromatic or Analogous for an elegant, calm look, and Complementary or Triadic when you need vibrant contrast. Keep the count small for most projects and adjust the base HEX until the generated swatches feel right.

What color model does this tool use?

The generator converts your HEX base color into the HSL (hue, saturation, lightness) model internally. This lets it rotate the hue by exact angles for harmonies like triadic and complementary, and adjust lightness for shades and tints, before converting each result back to a HEX value.

Can I export the palette?

Yes. Use Copy as CSS to get a :root block of custom properties such as --color-1: #2563eb;, use Copy as JSON to get a plain array of HEX strings, or click any individual swatch to copy just that color's HEX value to your clipboard.

How many colors can a palette have?

You can generate between 3 and 12 colors using the Colors field. Three to five is ideal for most brand and UI work, while higher counts are useful when you need a longer ramp, such as a full set of tints or shades for a design system.

What is the difference between shades and tints?

Shades are progressively darker versions of your base color (moving toward black by lowering lightness), while tints are progressively lighter versions (moving toward white by raising lightness). Both keep the original hue, making them ideal for building consistent light-and-dark ramps.

Is this color palette generator free and private?

Yes. The tool is completely free to use and runs entirely in your browser using client-side JavaScript. Your chosen colors and generated palettes are never uploaded or sent to any server, so nothing leaves your device.