Hexadecimal to CMYK Converter

Enter the hexadecimal color value

Table of Contents

• How does the Hexadecimal to CMYK conversion work?
• Conversion Process
• Complete Example of Hexadecimal to CMYK Conversion
• Hexadecimal to CMYK Conversion Formula

How does the Hexadecimal to CMYK conversion work?

Converting a hexadecimal color to CMYK involves a two-step process. First, the hexadecimal color is converted to its RGB (Red, Green, Blue) representation, which is an additive color model used in digital displays. Then, that RGB value is converted to the CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) format, which is a subtractive color model used in printing.

For more information, you can refer to:

• Hexadecimal Colors
• CMYK Colors

Conversion Process

The process of converting hexadecimal to CMYK is carried out in two stages:

1. Hexadecimal to RGB Conversion:
   A hexadecimal color is made up of three pairs of characters, representing the values for Red, Green, and Blue in the RGB format. The first pair corresponds to the red value, the second to the green, and the third to the blue. These values are in base 16 (hexadecimal) and are converted to decimal values between 0 and 255.
2. RGB to CMYK Conversion:
   Once the RGB values are obtained, they are normalized by dividing them by 255 to get values between 0 and 1. Then, the cyan, magenta, yellow, and black values are calculated using specific formulas for CMYK.

Complete Example of Hexadecimal to CMYK Conversion

Let's take the hexadecimal color #FF5733 as an example.

1. Convert the Hexadecimal to RGB:
   • The hexadecimal value #FF5733 breaks down as:
     • Red (R): FF = 255
     • Green (G): 57 = 87
     • Blue (B): 33 = 51
2. Convert RGB to CMYK:
   • Normalize the RGB values by dividing by 255:
     • Red (R): 255 / 255 = 1
     • Green (G): 87 / 255 ≈ 0.341
     • Blue (B): 51 / 255 ≈ 0.2
   • Calculate the black value (K):
     K = 1 - max(R, G, B) = 1 - 1 = 0
   • With K = 0, calculate the values of cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y):
     C = (1 - R - K) / (1 - K) = (1 - 1 - 0) / (1 - 0) = 0
M = (1 - G - K) / (1 - K) = (1 - 0.341 - 0) / (1 - 0) ≈ 0.659
Y = (1 - B - K) / (1 - K) = (1 - 0.2 - 0) / (1 - 0) ≈ 0.8
   So, the corresponding CMYK value is:
   • C: 0, M: 65.9, Y: 80, K: 0

Hexadecimal to CMYK Conversion Formula

The conversion follows these formulas:

1. From Hexadecimal to RGB:
   • R (decimal) = hexToDecimal(first pair)
   • G (decimal) = hexToDecimal(second pair)
   • B (decimal) = hexToDecimal(third pair)
2. From RGB to CMYK:
   • K = 1 - max(R, G, B)
   • C = (1 - R - K) / (1 - K)
   • M = (1 - G - K) / (1 - K)
   • Y = (1 - B - K) / (1 - K)

Where R,G,B are normalized by dividing them by 255, and the values of C, M, Y, and K are multiplied by 100 to get the percentage.