How do I get HSV values for a Pantone color?
Find a screen value for the Pantone ink and convert it to hue (an angle from 0 to 360 degrees), saturation and value (both 0 to 100%). Enter PANTONE 286 C here and the tool returns hsv(221.3, 100%, 62.7%). It works from a fixed table of 38 coated Pantone colors, each stored as a commonly published HEX approximation.
PANTONE is a trademark of Pantone LLC, which doesn't endorse this tool. Pantone's site calls its own on-screen colors "computer simulations" (pantone.com), so HSV values derived from them are approximations of the printed ink, nothing more.
Why HSV is handy for Pantone colors
HSV (also called HSB, for brightness) is the model behind the square-and-slider color picker in many design and image-editing programs. Its three numbers map to questions designers actually ask:
- Hue: which color family is this, and how far is it from that other ink?
- Saturation: how vivid is it compared with a gray of the same brightness?
- Value: how bright is the strongest channel?
That makes it a good format for comparing brand inks side by side, or for building lighter and darker screen variations of a spot color while keeping the hue fixed.
Worked example: PANTONE 286 C
The table stores 286 C as #0032A0, which is RGB 0, 50, 160. Scaled to 0 to 1 that's R = 0, G = 0.196, B = 0.627.
- Value is the largest channel: 0.627, shown as 62.7%.
- Saturation is (largest − smallest) ÷ largest = (0.627 − 0) ÷ 0.627 = 1, shown as 100%.
- Hue: blue is the largest channel, so hue = 60 × ((R − G) ÷ (max − min) + 4) = 60 × (−0.3125 + 4) = 221.25 degrees.
- Each figure is rounded to one decimal place, giving
hsv(221.3, 100%, 62.7%).
Comparing the blues by hue
Converting every blue in the table shows how the inks step around the color wheel, something that is hard to see from the Pantone numbers alone:
| Name | Hue | Saturation | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| PANTONE Process Blue C | 200.5 | 100% | 79.2% |
| PANTONE 285 C | 206.8 | 100% | 80.8% |
| PANTONE 2935 C | 211.6 | 100% | 72.2% |
| PANTONE 286 C | 221.3 | 100% | 62.7% |
| PANTONE 072 C | 231.4 | 100% | 65.9% |
Hue rises steadily from the greenish Process Blue toward the violet-leaning 072 C. Notice that saturation is 100% for all five. That happens whenever one RGB channel is zero, and many of the table's approximations of strong inks have a zero channel (all of these have red at 0). So in this table, saturation separates the muted colors from the strong ones but doesn't rank the strong ones.
Quirks worth knowing
The neutrals produce odd-looking hues. Cool Gray 1 C comes out as hsv(60, 1.4%, 85.1%) and Cool Gray 5 C as hsv(180, 1.1%, 70.2%). The hue angle is real but meaningless at that saturation; read the value figure as the useful one for grays. White returns hsv(0, 0%, 100%), with hue set to 0 because there is no dominant channel.
The two blacks differ mostly in hue: Black C is hsv(25.7, 15.6%, 17.6%) (slightly warm) and Black 6 C is hsv(345, 10.5%, 14.9%). Typing Black alone finds Black C.
Making screen tints of a Pantone color
- Convert the Pantone name here and note the hue.
- Keep the hue fixed and lower the saturation (for a paler tint) or the value (for a darker shade).
- Turn the new HSV numbers into a usable code with the HSV to HEX converter or the HSV to RGB converter.
- For CSS, paste the HEX or RGB result. The CSS Color Module Level 4 spec defines
hsl()andhwb()but nohsv(), so browsers won't accept HSV directly.
These are screen colors. A printed tint of a spot ink is made differently, by printing the ink at reduced coverage, so ask your printer how they handle tints rather than sending them HSV figures.
Input and errors
Names are matched without regard to case or extra spaces, with an optional PANTONE or PMS prefix and optional trailing C: 286, 286C, PMS 286 and pantone 286 c all work, 72 finds 072 C, and Cool Grey 9 finds Cool Gray 9 C. A different library suffix such as 286 U gets "Only coated (C) references are in this tool's table, so uncoated (U) colors can't be looked up." with a pointer to 286 C, and a color outside the 38 entries shows "Enter a known PANTONE name or number, e.g. PANTONE 286 C." The full list of supported names with their HEX values is on the Pantone to HEX lookup. If you start from an RGB color rather than a Pantone name, the RGB to HSV converter uses the same formula.
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