Color Blindness Simulator
The Color Blindness Simulator shows how a chosen color appears with protanopia, deuteranopia, tritanopia and achromatopsia, with the simulated hex value for each type.
About this tool
The Color Blindness Simulator shows how a chosen color appears with protanopia, deuteranopia, tritanopia and achromatopsia, with the simulated hex value for each type.
How to use it
- Pick the color you want to test.
- Compare the normal-vision swatch with the four simulated swatches.
- Note the simulated hex codes to check whether important colors stay distinguishable.
Good to know
- Red–green color vision deficiency affects roughly 8% of men and about 0.5% of women of Northern European descent.
- Protanopia is missing red (L) cone function; deuteranopia is missing green (M) cone function.
- Tritanopia, a blue–yellow deficiency, is rare.
- Achromatopsia, total color blindness, is very rare; people see only shades of gray.
- Simulations are approximations based on transformation matrices and cannot reproduce every individual’s vision.
Runs entirely in your browser — nothing you enter is uploaded or stored.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common type of color blindness?
Deuteranomaly, a reduced sensitivity to green, is the most common. Together, red–green deficiencies account for the large majority of cases.
How do I design for color-blind users?
Never rely on color alone: add labels, icons, patterns or position. Check that key color pairs keep enough lightness contrast, which survives all types of color blindness.
Which colors are hard to tell apart with red–green color blindness?
Red and green, green and brown, and blue and purple are common problem pairs, especially when they have similar lightness.
Is this simulator accurate?
It uses standard transformation matrices that give a good approximation for design checks. Real perception varies between people and severities.