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For screen color picking on Linux, choose a tool based on your display server and compositor: xcolor targets X11, while hyprpicker is for wlroots-compatible Wayland compositors. On Wayland, the GTK4 Wayland Color Picker documents different routes for GNOME, KDE, Hyprland, and Sway/wlroots, so check its project documentation for your setup. For palette editing, Gpick is a stronger fit; pastel is a terminal color toolkit whose pick command delegates screen sampling to an external picker.
This is a guide to documented options, not a ranked list of 25 verified tools. The research does not establish current features, maintenance, or packaging for 25 distinct candidates, and compatibility statements below reflect project documentation rather than independent testing.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best fit | Interface and sampling | Compatibility notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| xcolor | X11 screen sampling from a terminal | CLI; samples visible desktop colors and prints output by default | Project documentation targets X11 |
| hyprpicker | Direct picking on wlroots-compatible Wayland | CLI; select a screen pixel | Project documents wlroots compatibility and says displays freeze during selection |
| wl-color-picker | Wayland shell workflows | Script combining selection, capture, conversion, and optional clipboard/dialog steps | Depends on external utilities including grim, slurp, ImageMagick, Zenity, and wl-copy |
| Wayland Color Picker (GTK4) | GUI picking with clipboard and history features | GUI; project documents compositor-specific backends | Documents portals for GNOME/KDE, hyprpicker for Hyprland, and grim/slurp for Sway and other wlroots compositors |
| Gpick | Palette editing and color schemes | GUI; includes sampling and palette-oriented features | Do not assume X11-oriented screen sampling works natively on Wayland |
| KColorChooser | KDE users seeking a GUI color chooser | GUI | Check screen-sampling behavior in your current session, especially on Wayland |
| GNOME Eyedropper | GNOME users seeking a GUI option | GUI | Verify screen-picking behavior in your desktop session |
| Ypsilon Picker GNOME | GNOME Shell users | GNOME Shell extension; project says it can display RGB/HEX output in a terminal | Compatibility is a project claim; confirm current availability and behavior |
| PixelKit | Users interested in a newer picker and screen ruler | Native Linux project; repository describes screen picking and clipboard actions | Check maturity and current package availability |
| pastel | Terminal color conversion and manipulation | CLI toolkit; its pick command uses an external picker | Choose and configure a supported external picker for screen sampling |
Choose by display server and compositor
On X11, xcolor is a documented CLI-oriented option: its README says it samples visible desktop colors, prints to standard output by default, supports multiple output formats, and can write to X11 selections. Its repository identifies an MIT license. Check the project README for current build and usage details.
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Wayland capture varies by compositor and method. The projects below describe distinct routes; a project’s documentation is not a guarantee that every version or desktop setup will behave identically.
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- Hyprland or another wlroots-compatible compositor: hyprpicker is a direct picker documented for wlroots. Its repository notes that displays freeze while picking.
- Sway or other wlroots compositors: wl-color-picker combines slurp selection with grim capture. Its dependencies include other tools for pixel conversion and optional dialog and clipboard handling.
- GNOME or KDE: the GTK4 Wayland Color Picker project documents use of xdg-desktop-portal. Verify its current instructions and your portal backend.
- GNOME Shell: Ypsilon Picker GNOME describes support for GNOME Wayland and X11. Treat this as the project’s claim and check current availability before relying on it.
Options by workflow
Direct screen pickers
xcolor is suitable when you use X11 and want a command-line tool that returns a sampled value. Review its README for supported output formats and X11 selection behavior.
hyprpicker is a direct Wayland option for wlroots-compatible compositors. The project documents an Arch installation command and a CMake source build, with dependencies including Pango, Cairo, Wayland protocols, hyprutils, and xkbcommon. Consult the repository for current installation steps. Remember that the project says displays freeze during selection.
wl-color-picker is a script that composes existing Wayland utilities rather than providing its own full capture stack. Its README describes using slurp to select a position and grim to capture; ImageMagick or GraphicsMagick can handle pixel conversion, Zenity can present a dialog, and wl-copy can transfer the result to the clipboard. See its README for dependencies and setup.
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Wayland Color Picker (GTK4) offers a GUI approach. Its project documentation describes clipboard copying and history, with separate paths for portals on GNOME/KDE, hyprpicker on Hyprland, and grim/slurp on Sway and other wlroots compositors. These are documented routes, not independent test results; check the project README for current support.
GNOME Eyedropper and KColorChooser are GUI candidates listed by their respective desktop projects. Confirm that screen sampling works in your particular session before choosing either as a system-wide picker. Their project pages are GNOME Eyedropper and KColorChooser.
Ypsilon Picker GNOME is a GNOME Shell extension project that says it works under GNOME Wayland and X11 and can display RGB/HEX output in a terminal. Check its project page for current availability and requirements.
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PixelKit describes itself as a native Linux picker and screen ruler for Wayland and X11, with click actions and clipboard behavior. As a newer project, check its repository for maturity, current support, and packages before making it your only picker.
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Gpick is for more than capturing one pixel. Its project describes palette editing, image-to-palette features, color naming, scheme generation, and import/export. It is a good fit when you want to organize or develop a scheme, but its palette features do not establish native Wayland screen-sampling support. See the Gpick README and check your display session.
Terminal color tools
pastel generates, analyzes, converts, and manipulates colors in terminal workflows. It is useful for scripts and color conversion, but it is not itself an independent screen-capture backend: its pick command delegates to a supported external picker. The project documents integrations including Gpick, xcolor, hyprpicker, KColorChooser, and Zenity. Choose an integration that suits your session, then consult the pastel README and the Debian pastel-pick manual.
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How to choose and install safely
- Identify your session and compositor. Distinguish X11 from Wayland, then identify whether you use GNOME, KDE Plasma, Hyprland, Sway, or another compositor.
- Check the project’s documented capture method. Look for direct sampling, portal integration, compositor-specific tools, or screenshot-based capture.
- Confirm output and clipboard behavior. Check whether the tool prints or copies HEX/RGB, supports other formats, and requires a separate clipboard utility.
- Review dependencies and packages. Script-based tools may depend on several external utilities. Verify current package availability and instructions for your distribution.
- Test in your actual session. Check monitor selection, scaling, clipboard transfer, and whether picking freezes or otherwise changes the display.
There are no verified comparative performance figures or installation counts in the research for this guide. Choose based on documented fit and verify behavior locally rather than relying on an overall ranking.
FAQ
Which Linux color picker works on Wayland?
It depends on the compositor. The projects document hyprpicker for wlroots-compatible Wayland, portal integration for GNOME and KDE in the GTK4 Wayland Color Picker, and grim/slurp workflows for Sway and other wlroots compositors. Check the project instructions for your current setup.
Is pastel a screen color picker?
Pastel is a terminal color toolkit, and its pick command delegates screen sampling to a supported external picker. It is useful for terminal workflows, but the actual capture depends on the configured integration.
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What should I use for X11?
xcolor is a documented X11-targeted CLI option that samples visible desktop colors and prints output by default. Check its README for formats and selection behavior.
Does hyprpicker work on GNOME Wayland?
The dossier identifies hyprpicker as wlroots-compatible, not as a universal Wayland picker. Do not assume it works on GNOME; choose a project-documented GNOME route and verify it in your session.
Why does a Wayland picker need several dependencies?
Some tools compose existing utilities instead of implementing capture, selection, conversion, dialogs, and clipboard transfer themselves. For example, wl-color-picker documents use of grim, slurp, image-conversion utilities, Zenity, and wl-copy.
Quick Recap
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