What is the difference between analogous and triadic palettes?

Analogous colors sit next to each other on the wheel and feel harmonious and calm; this tool places them 30 and 60 degrees either side of the base. Triadic colors are evenly spaced 120 degrees apart, giving a vibrant but balanced scheme with more contrast.

What are shades and tints?

A shade is a color mixed toward black (lower lightness) and a tint is a color mixed toward white (higher lightness). A shades-and-tints palette keeps the same hue and varies lightness, which is how UI colour scales like 100 to 900 are built.

Can I generate a color palette specifically for a wedding theme?

Yes, as long as you start from a color you already like, because there are no wedding presets or curated palettes. Take a color from the flowers, the invitations or a fabric swatch, enter its HEX code, and try each harmony: sage green #9caf88 with Complementary gives a dusty lavender #9b88af, and Analogous gives five muted tans and greens. Screen colors shift in print, so test a printed proof before ordering stationery.

Is there a pastel color palette generator with adjustable lightness?

There is no lightness slider; the lightness comes from the base color you enter. Pick a pale, softly saturated base such as #a7c7e7 and Analogous, Triadic and Tetradic keep that lightness on every swatch, so the whole set stays pastel. Shades & Tints and Monochromatic move lightness up and down on purpose, so they add darker colors, down to #0d1f30 for that blue.

Why does the palette turn blue while I type a HEX code?

Until the text field holds a valid HEX code, the generator falls back to the default #4466ee, so a half-typed value shows the blue palette. It accepts 3 or 6 hex digits, with or without the #. Colors are also rounded to whole HSL numbers, so the base swatch can come back one step off, for example #c08081 shows as #c18182.

How do I create a color palette for a website?

Start from your brand color, generate a monochromatic or analogous scheme for a cohesive look, and export it as CSS custom properties. Use the darkest and lightest steps for text and backgrounds and a contrasting hue for accents and buttons.

What is a monochromatic color palette?

A monochromatic palette uses a single hue with variations in saturation and lightness. It is the safest, most cohesive scheme because every color shares the same hue, making it ideal for clean, minimal interfaces.

Does this color palette generator send my data anywhere?

No. All palette generation happens entirely in your browser with JavaScript. Nothing is uploaded or stored, and the tool keeps working with no network connection once the page has loaded.

How many colours does each palette give me?

That depends on the harmony rather than on a maximum we set. Complementary returns the pair on opposite sides of the wheel, triadic the three points of its triangle, and the analogous, shades and monochromatic modes a longer run of related swatches. Every swatch carries its HEX code, and the CSS variables export writes out whatever the current palette holds, however many that is.

Color Palette Generator

Generate harmonious color palettes from any base color - shades and tints, complementary, analogous, triadic, and monochromatic - with HEX codes you can copy and a CSS variables export.

Base color

CSS variables

:root {
  --color-100: #d0d9fb;
  --color-200: #8aa0f4;
  --color-300: #4466ee;
  --color-400: #0f2da3;
  --color-500: #0a1c67;
  --color-600: #050f38;
}

What is the Color Palette Generator?

The Color Palette Generator turns a single base color into a coordinated set of colors using colour-wheel harmony rules. Pick a starting color and choose a mode - shades and tints, monochromatic, complementary, analogous, triadic, or tetradic - and the tool calculates a balanced palette with the HEX code for each swatch.

Good color combinations follow predictable relationships on the HSL colour wheel: complementary colors sit opposite each other, analogous colors sit next to each other, and triadic colors are evenly spaced. Working these out by hand means juggling hue angles and lightness values. This tool does the math instantly and shows the result so you can pick a scheme that works.

Everything runs client-side. Adjust the base color, switch modes, click any swatch to copy its HEX code, or use Copy CSS to export the whole palette as CSS custom properties. No account, no uploads, and it keeps working offline once the page has loaded.

A worked example shows how it works as a wedding color palette generator, with one condition: there are no wedding presets, so you bring the color. Type a sage green, #9caf88, as the Base color and pick Complementary. The four swatches are #c2ceb6, #9caf88, a dusty lavender #9b88af and a deeper #755e8d, and Copy CSS returns them as --color-100 to --color-400. For a pastel color palette generator result, start from a pale base such as #a7c7e7: Analogous, Triadic and Tetradic keep its lightness and saturation, so every swatch stays soft.

The harmony modes come from colour-wheel relationships, rotating hue by fixed amounts around the circle: 180 degrees for complementary, 120 for triadic, and small steps for analogous. That maths is done in HSL, which is convenient and not perceptually uniform. HSL lightness treats yellow and blue at the same value as equally light, and to the eye they are not, which is why a triadic set can look balanced on paper and unbalanced on screen. Check any palette you plan to use for text against a contrast checker rather than trusting the numbers. Shades and tints are produced by moving lightness while holding hue and saturation, which keeps a family recognisably related and is what makes them useful as a set of CSS variables.

How to use the Color Palette Generator?

Choose a base color
Use the color picker or type a HEX value to set the color your palette is built around.
Pick a harmony mode
Switch between shades and tints, monochromatic, complementary, analogous, triadic, and tetradic to see different coordinated schemes.
Copy the colors you need
Each swatch shows its HEX code. Click a swatch to copy it, or click Copy CSS to copy the whole palette as CSS custom properties.
Apply the palette
Use the generated colors for backgrounds, accents, and text in your design or stylesheet, keeping the harmony consistent across your UI.

Key Features

Six Harmony Modes
Shades and tints, monochromatic, complementary, analogous, triadic, and tetradic schemes cover every common colour relationship
HEX Codes on Every Swatch
Every swatch shows its HEX code, and a click copies it, so you can drop the value straight into CSS, design tools, or code
CSS Variables Export
Export the whole palette as :root custom properties, ready to paste into your stylesheet as a design token scale
Accurate Colour-Wheel Math
Harmonies are computed in HSL, so hues sit at exact angles around the wheel. HSL is not perceptually uniform, so check contrast before using a pair for text

Frequently Asked Questions

A complementary scheme uses two colors that sit directly opposite each other on the colour wheel, 180 degrees apart. The high contrast makes them great for accents and calls to action, though large areas of both can feel intense.

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Read the full Color Palette Generator guide

Command Palette

Color Palette Generator

What is the Color Palette Generator?

How to use the Color Palette Generator?

Choose a base color

Pick a harmony mode

Copy the colors you need

Apply the palette

Key Features

Six Harmony Modes

HEX Codes on Every Swatch

CSS Variables Export

Accurate Colour-Wheel Math

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Tools

Color Contrast Checker

Color Mixer

Color Picker & Converter

Color Shades Generator

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