LAB to RGB Converter
Convert a CIE L*a*b* color to sRGB and a hex code, with a per-channel breakdown, a live color swatch, and an sRGB gamut check. Uses the standard D65 white point.
Input
Lightness, from 0 (black) to 100 (white).
Green (negative) to red (positive) axis.
Blue (negative) to yellow (positive) axis.
Output
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| No data yet | |
Your color will appear here.
Guides
Turn a CIE L*a*b* color into the RGB and hex values you can actually use on the web. Enter a lightness (L*) and the two chroma coordinates (a* and b*), and this converter returns the equivalent sRGB triplet, a hex code, a full per-channel breakdown, and a live swatch of the result — instantly, as you type.
L*a*b* (often just "Lab") is a device-independent color model designed so that the numerical distance between two colors matches how different they look to the human eye. That makes it excellent for describing and comparing colors, but browsers, CSS, and image files all speak RGB — so a conversion step is needed to bring a Lab color onto the screen.
How to use it
- Enter L* — the lightness — from
0(black) to100(white). - Enter a* — the green-to-red axis. Negative values lean green, positive values lean red (roughly -128 to 127).
- Enter b* — the blue-to-yellow axis. Negative values lean blue, positive values lean yellow.
- Read off the RGB, HEX, and channel table, and check the swatch to see the color.
The output updates automatically — there is no button to press.
What color model does this use?
The converter runs the standard color-science pipeline: Lab → CIE XYZ using the D65 reference white point (the 2° standard observer, the same illuminant sRGB assumes), then XYZ → linear sRGB via the standard sRGB primaries matrix, and finally the sRGB gamma curve to produce 0-255 byte values. As a sanity anchor, Lab (100, 0, 0) maps to pure white (255, 255, 255) and Lab (0, 0, 0) maps to pure black (0, 0, 0).
What does "Out of gamut (clamped)" mean?
Lab can describe far more colors than an sRGB screen can display. When a Lab value falls outside the sRGB gamut, at least one RGB channel comes out below 0 or above 255. The converter reports this in the gamut row and clamps each channel back into the 0-255 range so you still get a usable, closest-available color. If you see this warning, the on-screen result is an approximation of the true Lab color.
Why don't my RGB values match another tool exactly?
Small differences (usually ±1 per channel) are normal. They come from different reference white points, matrix rounding, or gamut-clamping strategies. This tool uses the widely adopted D65 constants (Xn 95.047, Yn 100.0, Zn 108.883) and rounds each final channel to the nearest integer.
Is L*a*b* the same as the CSS lab() function?
They share the color space, but not the exact numbers: CSS Color 4's lab() uses a D50 white point and a 0-100 lightness with unbounded a*/b*. This tool targets the classic D65 sRGB workflow used by most design software and image pipelines.
Privacy
The conversion runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded, logged, or sent to a server — the math happens locally on your device, so your color values never leave your computer.