What Color is This

What this tool does

You have a colour, maybe a hex code from a file or one you have picked, and you want to know what to call it. A raw value like a string of characters tells you nothing you can say out loud, whereas a name like Cornflower Blue does.

That is what this does. You give it a colour as a hex code or by picking one, and it tells you the closest named colour, showing that matched colour beside yours along with its hex, and whether the match is exact or just the nearest. It turns an unnamed value into a word you can use, which is often all you need to describe or note down a colour.

How to use it

1. Enter a colour. Type a hex code, pick one with the colour picker, or use the random button.
2. Read the name. The tool shows the closest colour name, with your colour and the matched colour side by side.
3. Note the match. Check whether it says Confirmed or Approx, and take the name and hex you need.

Give it a colour by hex or the picker, read the closest name it returns, and note whether the match is exact or the nearest.

How it works

When you give it a colour, the tool compares it against a large catalogue of named colours and finds the one nearest to it, using Name That Color, a well-known naming library. It then shows you that closest name, the matched colour as a swatch with its hex, and your own colour beside it, so you can see how close the two are.

It also tells you whether the match is exact or approximate. If your colour is itself a named colour, it says Confirmed; if not, it returns the nearest name and marks it Approx, since most exact colours do not have a name of their own. The focus throughout is on naming the colour and showing the match, rather than converting it into other formats.

What it tells you about a colour

The answer comes in a few parts. First is the name, a word like Teal or Coral that you can say, write in a note, or use to explain the colour to someone else. It is the part that turns a colour into something you can talk about rather than just point at.

Alongside the name, you see the matched colour and its hex next to your own colour, so you can judge how close the nearest name really is. And the Confirmed or Approx label tells you whether that name is an exact fit or the closest available. What the tool does not do is list the colour in RGB, HSL, and other formats; it is built to name a colour and show the match, not to convert it.

Confirmed and Approx explained

The Confirmed or Approx label is worth understanding, because it tells you how much to trust the name. Confirmed means your colour is exactly one of the named colours in the catalogue, so the name fits it precisely, with nothing lost.

Approx means your colour sits between named colours, and what you are given is the nearest one. This is the common case, because there are far more possible colours than there are names, so most colours land close to a name rather than on it. An Approx result is still useful, since it tells you roughly what the colour is, but it is a neighbour rather than an exact label, which is helpful to know when you lean on the name.

Why name a colour

Naming a colour is mostly about being able to talk about it. A word carries a meaning that a code does not: telling a colleague a section is Teal lands at once, where a hex code has to be looked up before it means anything. Names make colours easier to discuss, remember, and describe.

It also helps you get a grip on colours you did not choose. When you meet an unfamiliar value in a file, a screenshot, or someone else's design and want a quick sense of what it is, a name answers at once. People reach for this to label colours for notes and documents, to describe a colour to someone else, and to make sense of values they have been handed.

Naming, not converting

It is worth being clear about what this tool is for. Its job is to name a colour: to take a value and tell you the closest colour name, show you that matched colour, and say how close it is. What it gives you in numbers is the hex of your colour and of the match, which is enough to see and reuse the exact shades.

What it does not do is convert your colour into every format. If you need the colour as RGB, HSL, HSV, or CMYK, that is a job for a converter rather than this tool, which stays focused on naming. Keeping that split clear saves confusion: come here to find out what a colour is called, and reach for a converter when you need it written in another form.

Questions people ask

What does it tell me?

The closest colour name, the matched colour and its hex beside your colour and its hex, and whether the match is exact (Confirmed) or the nearest (Approx).

What can I enter?

A hex code, a colour chosen with the picker, or a random colour from the button. The tool then finds the closest named colour to it.

What do Confirmed and Approx mean?

Confirmed means your colour is exactly a named colour. Approx means it is the nearest name, since your exact colour has none of its own, which is the common case.

Does it give RGB or HSL codes?

No. It names the colour and shows the hex of your colour and the match. For the colour in other formats, use a converter instead.

References

1. Name That Color (Chirag Mehta), the colour-naming library. https://chir.ag/projects/ntc/
2. World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), CSS Color Module Level 4. https://www.w3.org/TR/css-color-4/
3. Color term, how colours are named. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_term