Ai Color Grading with Color.io
Easily transfer the color palette, contrast and brightness from any reference image to your own with industry leading color transfer.
Online Color Grading App
Edit on Desktop, Mobile & Web.
Use Color.io to match colors with AI on all modern devices - directly in your browser or installable as a fullscreen app on macOS, Windows, iPhone, iPad and Android.
3D LUT Creator
Create your own custom 3D LUTs.
With the Pro Version of Color.io you can use your AI generated color grades everywhere. With first class 3D LUT export you can apply the exact look generated by Color.io to your videos in Resolve, Capcut, Premiere or your photos in Photoshop, Lightroom and all supported applications.
AI Powered Color Grading Tools
Pro Tools for twice the look in half the time.
Skip hours of manual grading by matching looks with AI across your entire shoot with one click. Then dig into pro color grading and film emulation tools designed to give photographers and filmmakers precision control over every aspect of the grade.
Presets and Film Looks
Apply cinematic styles using pre-made and fully custom presets. Build, duplicate, and sync your edits across devices. Ideal for achieving a consistent look across projects.
Selective Color Adjustments
Edit individual colors with powerful selective color grading tools like Refraction Wheels, Color Scattering and precise curves - with built-in analog response behaviour.
Histograms and Pro Scopes
Grade with precision using histograms, waveforms, vectorscopes, and masks. Perfect your exposure, white balance, and skin tones with real-time scopes and mask overlays.
Color Curve Controls
Shape image colors with advanced multi-point curves. Adjust brightness, exposure, saturation and vibrance across multiple dimensions using intuitive curve controls.
Crop and Rotate Images
Transform images with complete control in our online editor . From freeform crop to filmic aspect ratios, adjust with real-time previews and intuitive keyboard shortcuts.
Film Grain and Halation
Add grain and halation to your photos with best-in-class, physically accurate film emulation tools in Color.io - loved by the world's biggest brands and creators.
Start for free on Desktop, Mobile & Web.
Color.io is a powerful online RAW photo editor and 3D LUT creator that runs in your browser and as a standalone app on all modern desktop and mobile devices. Jump right in and get creative with free access to color matching and presets or upgrade to a Pro Plan when you need more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions? Answers.
What is Color Match AI in Color.io?
Color Match AI is an advanced color transfer tool inside Color.io that uses machine learning to match the color palette, tonal range, and overall mood of a reference image to your own photo. It intelligently maps highlights, midtones, shadows, and chroma without distorting image details, making it ideal for professional look development and custom 3D LUT creation.
How accurate is Color Match AI compared to manual color grading?
Color Match AI delivers highly precise results that often rival manual grading workflows - especially when time or consistency across multiple images is critical.
However, true creativity is made, not generated. This is why Color.io always leaves room for manual adjustments, so artists maintain full creative control over the final result.
How does Color Match AI work?
Color Match AI analyzes the color of a reference image and creates a 3D color mapping profile. This profile is then applied to your target image, preserving natural textures, contrasts, and depth while adapting the visual style. It’s perfect for photographers, filmmakers, and colorists who want consistent color grading without manual guesswork or just to quickly get a color grade started in the right direction.
Can Color.io match only the contrast, but not the color of an image?
Yes. Color Match AI in Color.io allows you to separate the color matching from the tone matching. Tone refers to brightness and contrast and can be matched separately from color. This allows you to match only the contrast curve or the exposure of a reference image. Similarly, when you turn off tone matching, you can match only the color characteristics while keeping brightness and contrast untouched. You can dial in the exact amount of the color components you want to match with dedicated sliders.
Is Match AI color managed?
Yes - Color Match AI is color-managed to ensure it's accurate, consistent, and compatible with HDR pipelines and ACES or DaVinci Wide Gamut workflows.
If you change the input color space (IDT) after running Color Match AI, you should re-run the match. This is because Color Match AI analyzes your image before the Output Display Transform (ODT) and generates a transfer LUT based on the image data as interpreted by the current IDT.
If the input transform changes, the image’s starting point changes, and the LUT should be updated for accurate matching.
However, you do not need to re-match if you only change the ODT. Since the Output Transform is applied after Color Match AI in the pipeline, it doesn’t affect how the match is generated - it simply affects how the final result is displayed or exported.
What file types does Color Match AI support?
Color Match AI is a tool in the Color.io App. Color.io works best with high-quality RAW image files to maintain maximum color fidelity. Supported formats include .DNG, .CR2, .NEF, .ARW, and more. It can also handle standard image files like .JPG and .PNG for faster workflows, but for professional-grade results and LUT creation, starting with RAW is recommended.
Can I use Color Match AI to create 3D LUTs?
Yes. After matching the color of your image to a reference using the app, you can export your results as a 3D LUT (.cube file) or Lightroom Profile (.xmp) directly from Color.io. These LUTs are compatible with DaVinci Resolve, Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, Photoshop, and other industry-standard software.
What are common use cases for AI color matching?
- Film Emulation: Recreate the look of classic Kodak, Fuji, or Agfa film stocks by matching real scans.
- Brand Consistency: Maintain a unified color style across a campaign or portfolio.
- Look Development: Rapidly prototype color styles for movies, commercials, or photography projects.
- Mood Matching: Transfer the lighting and emotional tone of a famous photograph or movie scene to your own image.
- Custom LUT Creation: Generate 3D LUTs from favorite reference images for efficient color grading across projects.
Does Color Match AI change my original image?
No. Like all tools in Color.io, Color Match AI is non-destructive. It applies color transformations in a virtual layer, allowing you to fine-tune or reverse changes at any point without permanently altering your original file.
Is Color Match AI only for photographers?
Not at all. Color.io is designed for both photographers and filmmakers. While it operates on still images, the 3D LUTs you create can be used across video workflows, making it a bridge between photo-based color editing and professional video color grading.
Can I customize the color match results?
Yes. After applying a match, you can adjust intensity, balance shadows, highlights, vibrancy, and selectively refine color channels. Color.io gives you granular control to customize the look before exporting or finalizing your project.
