How to Have a System-Wide Color Picker on Windows 10/11 – Guide
Windows 10 may not include a native feature to choose colors, but you can use the tools built into PowerToys to add a system-wide color picker. The color picker included in PowerToys allows you to quickly find technical information for any color on the screen. After installing the app and activating the tool, you can use keyboard shortcuts to start the experience. You can use the mouse pointer to identify the color of a specific element in various formats (including HEX, RGB, HSL, CMYK and more) and copy it to the clipboard.
The PowerToys Color Picker tool is included in Windows 10 to help users find color information in various formats. This guide will teach you the steps to use the tool to find color information in Windows 10. ..
Get the system-wide color picker in Windows 10
If you have already installed PowerToys on your system, feel free to switch to different sections using the index tool below. Also, check out our in-depth article on PowerToys features which shows all features which you can access using this awesome add-on.
Download and install PowerToys
To use the system-wide color picker, you need to download and install PowerToys. To do this, visit the PowerToys GitHub page. In the Assets section, click on the latest .exe file to download it. After the download is complete, run the installation file to install the application on your computer. ..
Once the installation process is finished, you will be treated to the PowerToys app home page. If you want to always access the color picker, enable the ‘Run on startup’ option.
Enable PowerToys color picker
To use the color picker in the PowerToys sidebar, click on the Color Picker tab at the top of the sidebar. The color picker is located in the second option from the top and eighth option from the bottom. To activate it, click on the Enable Color Picker button. ..
To enable the color picker on your computer, use the keyboard shortcut Win + Shift + C. You can also remap this to any other shortcut you like. To change the shortcut, click on the ‘Enable color picker’ field and press the new keyboard combination.
To use the color picker, first choose an option to customize the activation behavior. These options are Color Picker with Editor Mode enabled, Editor, or Color Picker only. If you choose Color Picker with Editor Mode first, the color picker interface will open and the editor will be open when you choose a color.
Use the PowerToys color picker
To get started, press the keyboard shortcut you set in the app. As soon as you press the shortcut, a color selection interface will appear, asking you to choose the color on the screen.
When you choose a color, the color code is automatically copied to the clipboard. You can also view color codes, RGB and HSL along with your recent color choices in editor mode. ..
PowerToys also includes an option to slightly adjust the color of their chosen canvas. This should come in handy if you’re looking for a lighter or darker tone of a specific color you’ve just picked from the canvas. ..
Final note
This guide will show you how to easily add a system-wide color picker to Windows 10 or 11. This is a great way to make it easy for you to select the colors you want for your desktop and other Windows 10 or 11 applications. ..
