Pantone to HEX Converter
Select any Pantone Solid Coated color to see its HEX approximation, RGB channels, CMYK print values, and LAB coordinates. All 2,371 Solid Coated colors are included. Free, no login, no ads.
What is Pantone to HEX conversion?
Pantone is a print specification system. Its Solid Coated colors are physical ink mixes applied to paper, and each Pantone code refers to a numbered ink that printers order ready-made. HEX is a digital notation for sRGB screen colors, used throughout web design because browsers, CSS, and design tools all understand it natively. A HEX code like #E4002B encodes three 8-bit channels (red, green, blue) as a seven-character string.
Converting Pantone to HEX means translating from a physical print standard to a screen color notation. The HEX value you get is the closest digital approximation of the physical Pantone swatch. It is not an exact equivalent because Pantone inks reflect light while screens emit light, and the Pantone print gamut and the sRGB screen gamut are different volumes of color space. For most brand colors, the HEX approximation is close enough for digital representation; for the few colors that fall outside the sRGB gamut, the HEX value is muted compared to the physical ink.
Designers use this conversion whenever a brand color was defined in Pantone (as most brand guidelines do for print) but needs to appear on the web. The brand manual specifies 485 C for the logo. The website needs to render that red. This converter gives the closest HEX value to close the gap.
How to use this converter
- Open the dropdown above and search or scroll to find any Pantone Solid Coated color by name or code number.
- The selected Pantone color is displayed as a swatch with its HEX, RGB, CMYK, and LAB values below.
- Click Copy next to any value to copy the exact format for pasting into your design tool, CSS file, or brand guidelines.
- Click the View full page link to open the Pantone color page with closest neighbors and cross-system references.
The HEX value shown is what you would paste into CSS or a design tool. The RGB triplet and CMYK values are useful when the target format expects them separately. The LAB coordinates are useful for color science work, color-managed print workflows, and Delta E comparisons.
How the conversion works technically
The Pantone catalog stores each color as RGB values derived from the most widely published approximations of the corresponding ink. Converting to HEX is a direct base-16 encoding of those RGB values. Converting to CMYK follows the standard print approximation formula. Converting to LAB runs RGB through the sRGB gamma curve to linear light, then multiplies by the standard sRGB to XYZ matrix, then applies the CIE D65 white point transformation to LAB.
Each of these derived values (HEX, RGB, CMYK, LAB) describes the same underlying RGB triplet in a different notation or color model. None of them is authoritative on its own: they are all approximations of the same physical Pantone ink. The Pantone catalog on this site uses the most commonly published approximations, cross-referenced across multiple sources and physical chip photography where available.
Accuracy and limitations
Every HEX value on this page is an approximation. Pantone does not publish official HEX values for its Solid Coated colors, because those colors are physical inks. The values here are the most commonly cited digital translations, and different sources disagree by 1 to 3 percent for the same code. For most design and branding work, that level of precision is fine. For print production, no HEX value can substitute for a physical Pantone chip.
Two caveats matter. First, wide-gamut colors (very saturated greens, electric cyans, vivid magentas) often fall outside the sRGB gamut. The HEX value shown for these Pantone colors is the closest sRGB approximation, which will be visibly less saturated than the physical ink. Second, the HEX value assumes the Solid Coated (C) version of the Pantone code. If your print job uses Solid Uncoated (U), the physical printed color will be lighter and warmer than the HEX value suggests.
Use cases
- Brand web implementation. Brand guidelines that specify Pantone codes for print also need HEX values for the web. This converter provides the digital side of a print-first brand system.
- CSS and design tool integration. When a Pantone code needs to be entered into Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, or a CSS file, HEX is the fastest format to paste. This converter turns a Pantone reference into a copyable HEX string.
- Cross-media brand systems. A brand that spans print and digital has a Pantone specification for print and a HEX specification for web. This converter keeps the two in sync by providing the closest digital equivalent of each print Pantone.
- Digital mockups and prototypes. Designers mocking up a print product in Figma or Sketch need HEX values to render the colors correctly on screen before the print job runs.
- Design system documentation. Modern design systems include both HEX and Pantone values for each brand color token. Converting Pantone to HEX fills in the digital side of the documentation.
Common mistakes
- Assuming the HEX value is exact. HEX is the closest digital approximation of a physical Pantone ink, not the Pantone itself. The physical ink and the digital HEX will never match exactly because the media are different.
- Using HEX for print production. Never hand a HEX value to a printer as a print specification. Print requires a Pantone code, CMYK build, or ICC profile. HEX is a screen format; it is not a print format.
- Mixing coated and uncoated HEX values. The HEX for Pantone 485 C and the HEX for Pantone 485 U are different. If your print job uses uncoated paper but you use the coated HEX on the web, the two versions of the brand will drift apart.
- Ignoring the sRGB gamut. Very saturated Pantone colors (especially blues and greens) exist partly or entirely outside sRGB. Their HEX value is muted compared to the physical ink. If digital brand representation must match print exactly, consider a wider color space like Display P3.
- Forgetting monitor calibration. The HEX value is correct regardless of monitor, but what you see depends on your display. Two designers on two machines will see slightly different versions of the same HEX. For brand-critical digital work, calibrate the display and verify against a physical Pantone chip.
Pantone vs HEX vs RGB vs CMYK
| Attribute | Pantone C | HEX | RGB | CMYK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medium | Print ink | Screen | Screen | Print ink |
| Format | Number C | #RRGGBB | 0-255 each | 0-100 each |
| Channels | 1 spot ink | 3 encoded | 3 (R, G, B) | 4 (C, M, Y, K) |
| Color space | Physical ink | sRGB | sRGB | Print process |
| Best for | Web CSS | Code, canvas | Print collateral |
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert Pantone to HEX?+
Select a Pantone Solid Coated color from the dropdown above. The converter shows the HEX approximation of that Pantone color, alongside its RGB, CMYK, and LAB values. HEX values can be copied directly into CSS, design tools, or any code that accepts web color codes.
Is Pantone to HEX conversion exact?+
No. Pantone colors are physical inks printed on paper; HEX is a screen color notation. There is no exact digital equivalent for any Pantone ink, because the Pantone print gamut and the sRGB screen gamut are different. The HEX value shown is the most commonly published approximation, matched as closely as possible to the physical Pantone swatch, but it is not an exact conversion.
What does the HEX value represent?+
The HEX value is a six-character hexadecimal notation for a specific sRGB color. It encodes three channels (red, green, blue) as two hex digits each. When you use this HEX value in CSS or a design tool, you get the closest screen color to the corresponding physical Pantone swatch. What you see on screen may differ slightly from what prints from a Pantone ink, because screens emit light and printed ink reflects it.
Which Pantone colors are included?+
This converter covers the full Solid Coated (C) library, which is 2,371 colors in this catalog. Solid Uncoated (U), Fashion Home + Interiors (TCX), and Plastics are separate Pantone libraries with separate codes, and their HEX approximations differ from the coated values shown here.
Why is the coated HEX different from the uncoated HEX for the same code?+
Because the same Pantone code number produces a physically different color on coated versus uncoated paper. Coated paper has a sealed surface so ink sits on top and reflects more light, producing a more saturated color. Uncoated paper absorbs ink into the fibers, producing a lighter, warmer, less saturated result. Pantone 485 C and Pantone 485 U are visibly different colors when printed, and their HEX approximations differ accordingly.
Can I use the HEX value for web development?+
Yes, that is the primary use case. The HEX values on this site are formatted for direct use in CSS, HTML, SVG, and most design tools. For critical brand colors on the web, however, note that browsers and displays vary in how they render HEX colors. A HEX value that looks correct on one monitor may appear slightly different on another. Use a physical Pantone chip as the reference and the HEX as the digital approximation.
What is the difference between Pantone to HEX and Pantone to RGB?+
HEX and RGB represent the same color in different notations. HEX is a compact base-16 string like #E4002B; RGB is three decimal integers like 228, 0, 43. Both encode the same sRGB color. Use HEX when the target format expects it (CSS, design tool color pickers), and RGB when the format expects separate channel values (JavaScript, canvas, image processing, data analysis). The underlying color is identical.
Does this converter work for Pantone Fashion, Home + Interiors codes?+
No. This converter covers Solid Coated (C) only. Pantone Fashion, Home + Interiors (TCX) codes are a separate library with their own numbering system (like 19-4052 for Classic Blue), and they have their own HEX approximations. We have a separate TCX reference on the Pantone Textile page for the 50 most important TCX codes including all Color of the Year picks.
Related converters
- HEX to Pantone converter - the reverse: pick a HEX color, get the closest Pantone.
- Pantone to RGB converter - the same lookup but with separate RGB channel output.
- Pantone to CMYK converter - print-side conversion.
- Pantone to HSL converter - CSS-native HSL output.
- Pantone to LAB converter - perceptual LAB values.
- Browse all Pantone colors by family - 12 family pages and 14 base color hubs.