What colours are in my logo

The colors in your logo are the values assigned to its fills, strokes, gradients and effects in the source artwork. How the logo looks on a particular screen or printout is not a reliable guide. The most authoritative answer comes from the brand's guidelines or the designer's original files. Inspecting a vector file is the next best option. Sampling a raster image such as a PNG or JPG gives only approximations. This guide cannot name your logo's specific colors, because no artwork or brand documentation was supplied. It explains how to find those colors, record them and check that the record is complete.

Terms you will need

• Vector artwork: graphics defined by mathematical paths rather than pixels, so each shape stores its color as an explicit value.
• Fill: the color, gradient or pattern inside a closed shape.
• Stroke: the color applied along a path's outline.
• Hex code: a six-digit hexadecimal notation for an RGB color, written as # followed by two digits each for red, green and blue.
• RGB: an additive color model used for screens, built from red, green and blue light.
• CMYK: a subtractive model used in process printing, built from cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink.
• Spot color: a specific premixed ink, often identified by a proprietary matching system such as Pantone, rather than a mix of process inks.
• Swatch: a saved, named color in a design application's palette.

Step 1: Start with the most authoritative source

Look for a brand guideline document, a style guide or the designer's handoff notes. If these exist, they are the definitive specification. They often list a separate value for each use, such as a hex code for web, CMYK for print and a spot ink for specialist printing. Inspecting the files then confirms whether the delivered artwork matches that specification. Where the two disagree, flag the difference instead of quietly choosing one.

Step 2: Check what kind of file you actually have

A file extension does not prove the content is vector. SVG, AI, EPS and PDF files can all contain embedded pixel images, and a raster logo placed inside one of these formats is still raster. Open the file in a vector editor and select the logo. If it selects as separate paths, the colors can be read exactly. If it selects as a single image object, you are dealing with pixels and Step 5 applies. Having an editable file also does not by itself grant permission to modify or reuse a logo. Confirm usage rights separately.

Step 3: Read the colors in a vector editor

• Open the file in a vector application such as Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape or Affinity Designer.
• Show and unlock all layers, and look outside the artboard. Hidden or off-canvas objects can carry colors that will not appear in a quick visual check.
• Select each object and read both its fill and its stroke in the color or Fill and Stroke panel. Note when either is set to none.
• Use a select-same-fill or select-same-stroke command to group objects that share a color. In current versions this is under Select > Same in Illustrator and Edit > Select Same in Inkscape. Menu names can change between versions.
• In Illustrator, selecting all the artwork and opening Recolor Artwork (under Edit > Edit Colors) lists the colors used in the selection.
• For gradients, record every color stop, not just the two ends.
• Check opacity, blend modes and effects such as shadows or glows. A color at reduced opacity over white looks lighter than its stored value.
• Do not rely on the Swatches panel alone. It can contain swatches that no object in the artwork uses.

Step 4: Read an SVG file directly

An SVG is a text file, so you can open it in a plain text editor and search for color declarations. The simplified example below shows the common places colors appear. The #RRGGBB entries are placeholders, not real values.

<svg viewBox="0 0 200 100">
  <style>
    .accent { fill: #RRGGBB; }
  </style>
  <defs>
    <linearGradient id="g1">
      <stop offset="0" stop-color="#RRGGBB"/>
      <stop offset="1" stop-color="#RRGGBB"/>
    </linearGradient>
  </defs>
  <rect class="accent" width="80" height="80"/>
  <path fill="url(#g1)" d="..."/>
  <circle fill="none" stroke="#RRGGBB" stroke-width="4" r="20"/>
</svg>

Search for fill, stroke and stop-color, both as attributes and inside style blocks or style attributes. Colors may be written as hex codes, as rgb() values, as named colors such as black, or as currentColor, which inherits a color from surrounding code. A fill that points to a gradient by its id means the real colors are in that gradient's stops. Also note any fill-opacity, stroke-opacity or opacity values. An SVG stores screen-oriented color values, so it will not tell you the intended CMYK or spot equivalents.

Step 5: Sample a raster image only as a fallback

If you only have a PNG, JPG or a screenshot, use an eyedropper tool to sample the colors. Sample from the middle of large, flat areas. Edge pixels are anti-aliased, meaning they are blended with the background to smooth curves. JPEG compression and embedded or missing color profiles can also shift values. Take several samples per area and treat the results as approximations. Label them as sampled, not specified, wherever you record them.

Why one logo color can have several different values

RGB, CMYK and spot inks are different systems with different gamuts, which are the ranges of color each can reproduce. Some screen colors cannot be printed with process inks, and some spot inks cannot be matched exactly with either RGB or CMYK. Software can convert between models, but the result depends on the color profiles and settings in use. So a CMYK value produced by clicking a conversion is a conversion, not a documented specification. When you record a palette, keep values that were specified apart from values that were derived.

The document's color mode also matters. A file set up in RGB displays and stores colors differently from one set up in CMYK, and values entered in one mode may be converted when shown in the other. Check which mode the original artwork was built in before treating any displayed number as the intended one.

Black and white need particular attention. An area that looks white may be an actual white fill or may be empty, so the background shows through. These behave differently when the logo is placed on a colored background. Black may be pure black ink or a rich black built from several inks. Registration color, which prints on every printing plate, should not be used for logo artwork. If the logo is going to print, confirm the black specification with the printer.

Step 6: Record the palette

Field | What to record | Where it comes from

Role | What the color is used for, such as primary mark, wordmark or outline | Your inspection of the artwork

Hex or RGB | The screen value | Guidelines, vector file, or sampling (labeled as sampled)

CMYK | The process print value | Guidelines or print-ready file; mark it if converted

Spot ink | The named or numbered ink, if one is specified | Guidelines or designer handoff only

Source | Specified, read from file, converted or sampled | How you obtained the value

Notes | Opacity, gradient stops, stroke-only use, transparent areas | Your inspection of the artwork

Step 7: Verify the result

• Account for every object. Selecting each recorded color in turn should eventually cover every visible element of the logo.
• Run a recolor test on a duplicate file. Temporarily change each recorded color to an obvious substitute. Anything that keeps its original appearance reveals a color you missed, often in a gradient, an effect or a hidden object.
• Compare your record against the brand guidelines, if they exist, and note any mismatch.
• Place the logo on a white background and on a dark one to confirm which areas are filled and which are transparent.
• For print, request a proof from the printer. For spot colors, compare against a physical printed swatch guide, because screens cannot reliably display spot inks.

A note on color meaning

Identifying a color does not reveal what it means. Associations with particular colors vary by culture, industry and context, so any reading of what a logo's palette communicates is interpretation. The only attributable record of why a color was chosen is the designer's brief or the brand's own documentation. No such record was supplied here, so this guide makes no claim about what your logo's colors signify.

Gaps in this guide

No artwork, brand guidelines or other evidence specific to your logo was provided. This guide therefore gives no actual color values, ink references or print specifications. Menu locations in design applications are given as they appear in current versions and may differ in yours. Confirm print-specific requirements, such as the black build or spot ink choice, with your printer or the logo's designer.