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Private browser utility / Color & Design

Color Temperature Calculator

Runs entirely in your browser - no upload, no sign-up.

Live workspaceLocal processing

Choose a Kelvin value to preview its approximate screen color and copy practical color values.

Enter a value from 1,000 K to 40,000 K.

6,500 K
Common light sources
Screen preview6,500 KDaylight white
HEX#FFFEFA
RGBrgb(255, 254, 250)
CSScolor: #fffefa;
Mired154 MK⁻¹

This is an approximate sRGB preview. Displays, tint, brightness, and real light spectra can change the perceived color.

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color temperature / browser utility
01 / Overview

What is a color temperature calculator?

A color temperature calculator converts a Kelvin value into an approximate RGB and HEX color for screen use. Move along the spectrum or choose a common light source to compare warm candlelight, neutral daylight and cool blue light, then copy the result for a design or lighting reference.

02

How to use

  1. 01
    Set the temperature

    Enter a value from 1,000 K to 40,000 K, drag across the spectrum or choose a named light preset.

  2. 02
    Inspect the preview

    Read the live swatch, temperature description, RGB channels, HEX value and reciprocal mired value.

  3. 03
    Copy a color value

    Copy HEX, RGB, CSS or mired output for your design, code or lighting notes.

03

Who it's for

  • Photographers and videographers comparing tungsten, daylight and overcast white-balance references.
  • Lighting designers translating a fixture's Kelvin setting into an approximate screen swatch.
  • UI and web designers exploring warm and cool white colors before choosing an interface palette.
  • Smart-home users learning how common lamp settings relate to the Kelvin scale.

Color temperature describes the warm or cool appearance of white light. Lower values such as 1,800 K look orange, while daylight around 5,500 K to 6,500 K appears neutral and higher values shift toward blue. The conversion runs locally in your browser, so there is no upload or account.

The mired value is the reciprocal color temperature in micro reciprocal degrees. Lighting and photography workflows use it because equal mired changes more closely match equal visible shifts than equal Kelvin changes.

FAQ

Is the color temperature calculator free?

Yes. The calculator is free to use with no sign-up, download or usage limit. Adjust the Kelvin value and copy as many RGB, HEX, CSS or mired results as you need.

Is my color temperature data uploaded?

No. The conversion and spectrum are calculated with JavaScript and Canvas in your browser. The Kelvin values you enter are not uploaded to a server.

What range of color temperatures can I convert?

You can convert values from 1,000 K to 40,000 K. That range covers very warm flame-like colors, common indoor lamps, daylight references and much cooler blue-sky appearances.

How accurate is Kelvin to RGB?

Kelvin to RGB is an approximate screen representation, not a physical measurement. A real source can differ because of tint, spectral distribution, color rendering, brightness, surroundings and display calibration. Use a calibrated color meter for color-critical lighting work.

Why does a lower Kelvin value look warmer?

The naming follows the appearance of heated black-body radiation. Lower values look red or orange and are called warm; higher values shift toward blue and are called cool. The temperature number rises even though the visual description changes from warm to cool.

What is 6500 K in RGB and HEX?

With this approximation, 6500 K is about rgb(255, 254, 250), or #FFFEFA. It is close to the D65 daylight white point, but an RGB triplet alone cannot fully describe a calibrated illuminant or display white.

What is a mired value?

Mired means micro reciprocal degree and equals 1,000,000 divided by the Kelvin value. Photographers and lighting technicians use mired shifts because reciprocal temperature tracks visible warm-to-cool changes more evenly than simple Kelvin differences.