Color Palette Generator

Pick a seed color and harmony mode to build a palette of 3–8 swatches. Copy CSS variables or JSON — everything stays in your browser.

Adjust seed and harmony

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When do you need a harmonious color palette?



What this tool does


This color palette generator builds 3–8 coordinated swatches from a single seed color using classic color-harmony rules — complementary, analogous, triadic, tetradic, or random. Each swatch displays live in a grid with synced CSS custom properties, JSON export, and an optional PNG overview for design handoff. Regenerate for fresh variations without leaving the browser.



Why you need it


Picking colors one-by-one often produces palettes that clash — adjacent UI elements compete for attention or fail contrast requirements. Harmony rules rotate hues around the color wheel at mathematically pleasing intervals, giving you a coherent starting point for themes, landing pages, and brand explorations.


Designers use it to kick off mood boards; developers copy CSS variables straight into :root for rapid prototyping. Because generation runs locally, unreleased brand colors and client work stay private.



How to use it


    

  1. Set a seed color with the picker or HEX field.
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  2. Choose a harmony mode and how many swatches you need (3–8).
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  3. Regenerate if you want a fresh random variation within the same rule.
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  4. Copy CSS variables, JSON, or download a PNG overview for design handoff.
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Practical examples


    

  • Dashboard theme: Seed with your primary brand blue, pick analogous harmony, export five CSS variables for sidebar, cards, and accents.
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  • Landing page hero: Use complementary harmony on a warm orange seed to get a contrasting accent for CTA buttons.
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  • Design-system kickoff: Download the PNG overview and paste it into a Figma mood board for stakeholder review.
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  • JSON token pipeline: Copy the HEX array into a Style Dictionary or Tailwind color extension config.
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How it works


The generator converts your seed HEX to HSL, then applies the selected harmony rule by offsetting hue angles on the color wheel. Complementary adds 180°, analogous clusters nearby hues, triadic uses 120° spacing, and tetradic combines two complementary pairs. Random mode shuffles within harmony constraints for variety. Each resulting hue is converted back to HEX and rendered as a swatch with labeled values.


CSS output uses --color-1 through --color-n custom properties ready for var() references. All computation happens client-side — no palette data is uploaded.



Common mistakes


    

  • Ignoring contrast: Harmonious colors are not automatically accessible — check text-on-background pairs with a contrast checker.
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  • Using random for brand work: Random mode is great for exploration but brand palettes usually need deliberate harmony choices.
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  • Skipping regeneration: One seed can yield many valid palettes — click Regenerate before settling on the first result.
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  • Forgetting neutral colors: Palettes provide accents; you still need grays and whites for typography and backgrounds.
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FAQ




Which harmony modes are available?
Complementary, analogous, triadic, tetradic and random harmonious spreads from your seed color.


What can I export?
Copy CSS custom properties (--color-1 …), a JSON array of HEX values, or download a PNG overview with swatches and HEX/RGB/HSL labels.


How many swatches can I generate?
Choose between 3 and 8 colors. Regenerate for fresh random variations within the same harmony rule.


Can I use palettes in design systems?
Yes. Exported CSS variables drop directly into :root blocks. JSON works with token pipelines and Tailwind config extensions.


Is my palette uploaded?
No. Palette generation runs entirely in your browser.





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