Convert Pantone, HEX, RGB, and CMYK colors
Free conversion between Pantone (PMS), HEX, RGB, and CMYK. No login required. No watermark on results. Built for promotional products distributors and buyers who need a quick, reliable color-system translation without paying $90/year for Pantone Connect.
Pantone, HEX, RGB, CMYK - the conversion you actually use
Adobe pulled the free Pantone library out of Illustrator in November 2022. Pantone Connect is $89.99 a year for what is basically a lookup table. So here’s the lookup table. 10 a day for free, unlimited if you sign up.
Two directions
- Pantone to everything else. Type the code (
185) or the name (Warm Red). We give you HEX, RGB, CMYK for both Coated and Uncoated guides. - Everything else to Pantone. Paste an RGB triplet, a HEX, or CMYK percentages. We return the closest Coated PMS colors sorted by ฮE.
Every value has a Copy button. Hit it and the formatted string lands on your clipboard.
One thing worth knowing
About 30% of the Pantone solid library can’t be reproduced cleanly in CMYK. The four-color process can’t mix the same gamut as a single pre-mixed ink. Pantone publishes Color Bridge values for the closest CMYK approximation; we use those where they exist. For brand-critical work, treat the result as a starting point and confirm against the actual Pantone guide.
Bigger jobs
Free account drops the rate limit, lets you paste a whole list of codes and get a CSV back, and saves palettes against a customer or project so you don’t look them up twice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert HEX to Pantone for free?
Type or paste your HEX value (with or without the leading #) and we return the closest Pantone Coated colors sorted by visual distance. Free, no login, 10 per day per visitor. Approximate match - always confirm a brand-critical color against an official Pantone Color Guide.
What are the CMYK values for PMS 186?
Type 186 in the Pantone search and we return its HEX, RGB, and CMYK values across both Coated and Uncoated guides. PMS 186 C and PMS 186 U have different CMYK breakdowns because the substrate changes how the ink looks.
Why do my Pantone-to-CMYK conversions look duller than the swatch?
About 30% of the Pantone solid library can't be reproduced in CMYK because the four-color process can't mix the same gamut as a single pre-mixed ink. Pantone publishes "Color Bridge" guides showing the closest CMYK approximation for each PMS color, but it's always a compromise. Our converter uses the official Color Bridge values where they exist.
Can I batch-convert a whole list of Pantone codes?
Yes - sign up free and paste a list of codes (one per line). We return a CSV with HEX, RGB, and CMYK for every entry. Useful for prepping brand standards docs.
Is this an official Pantone tool?
No. We're not affiliated with Pantone LLC. Our conversions are informational approximations based on publicly available reference data, suitable for spec-and-quote work but not a substitute for an official Pantone Color Guide for production approval.
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