Japan's colors, one swipe at a time. Nearly 1,000 traditional shades in your pocket.

JapanColors is an iPhone app featuring nearly 1,000 traditional Japanese colors — from Sakurairo (cherry blossom pink) and Aiiro (indigo) to Ruriiro (lapis lazuli blue) and beyond. Sixty-plus base colors span eight hue families, each expanded into eleven tonal variations: light, deep, pale, dark, gray, ancient, rusted, washed, vivid, scorched, and Kyoto-style. Swipe to discover a new color, read its kanji name and romanized reading, note the hex code for your design work, and save any color as a full-screen wallpaper with a single tap.

Download on the App Store

Get it on the App Store

Download on the App Store

~1,000 Traditional Colors

More than 60 hand-curated base colors spanning reds, yellows, greens, blues, purples, browns, and neutrals — each expanded into 11 tonal variants including light, deep, rusted, ancient, and Kyoto-style — for a palette of nearly 1,000 colors in total.

Swipe to Discover

Colors are presented in random order so every session feels fresh. Swipe sideways to move from one color to the next. Each card shows the kanji name, romanized reading, hex code, and a short description — no scrolling needed.

Save as Wallpaper

Tap "Save Image" on any color card to save that color as a full-screen image to your Photos library. Set it as your home screen wallpaper directly from the Photos app.

Hex Code Always Visible

The hex code for each color is displayed on its card at all times. Copy it straight into your design tool, illustration software, or code.

60+ Base Colors, 11 Tonal Variants, ~1,000 Shades Total

The base palette covers eight color families — red, yellow-orange, green, blue, purple, brown, and achromatic — drawn from Japan's classical color vocabulary. Each base color generates eleven derivatives: Usu- (light), Ko- (deep), Shiro- (pale), Kuro- (dark), Hai- (gray), Kodai- (ancient), Sabi- (rusted), Arai- (washed), Tsuya- (vivid), Kogare- (scorched), and Kyo- (Kyoto-style). Colors are displayed in a randomized order, so opening the app always brings a new encounter.

COLORS
CARD

Full-Screen Color Cards with Auto Text Contrast

Each color fills the entire screen as a background, with an information panel at the bottom showing the kanji name in a serif font, the romanized reading, the hex code, and a short description. Text color — white or black — is calculated automatically based on the background's luminance, so every card remains easy to read regardless of the color. Derivative colors are marked with a palette icon so you can identify them at a glance.

One-Tap Wallpaper Save

Tapping "Save Image" renders the current color at screen resolution and writes it to your Photos library. An alert confirms the save and reminds you to set it as your wallpaper from the home screen settings. If the app hasn't been granted Photos access yet, the alert guides you to the Settings app to enable it.

WALLPAPER
KNOWLEDGE

Short Descriptions to Learn as You Browse

Every color comes with a concise description grounding it in nature, botany, or history — "pale crimson like cherry blossom petals," "deep blue like lapis lazuli gemstone," and so on. Browsing the app is a gentle way to absorb Japan's rich color culture without any study required.

Swipe.
Discover. Save.

3 Steps to Get Started

1
Swipe to browse the colors

Open the app and a random traditional color fills the screen. Swipe sideways to move to the next color. Each card shows the kanji name, romanized reading, hex code, and a short description.

2
Use the hex code in your designs

The hex code on each card can be used directly in any design tool, illustration app, or stylesheet. Traditional Japanese colors make distinctive and culturally rich palette choices.

3
Save your favorite color as wallpaper

Tap "Save Image" to save the current color as a full-screen image to your Photos library. Open your home screen wallpaper settings and select it to bring a touch of Japan into your everyday life.

Get it on the App Store

Download on the App Store

What Users Are Saying

"I downloaded this because I've always been drawn to traditional Japanese color names. I keep swiping without getting bored — nearly 1,000 colors is no joke. The hex codes are immediately useful for color references in my illustration work."

— illustrator_yuki

"Seeing the kanji name and the romanized reading together is a lovely touch. It feels educational as well as beautiful — "so this is Ruriiro." I've been saving my favorites as wallpapers. The app is clean and simple to use."

— japan_culture_fan_hana

"I use this at work whenever I need a Japanese-inspired palette. The eleven tonal variants per color — light, rusted, Kyoto-style, and the rest — give me a lot of nuanced options to compare without having to do any manual color mixing."

— designer_ryo

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions below.

QHow many colors does the app include?
AThe app features more than 60 base colors, each expanded into 11 tonal variants, for a total of nearly 1,000 colors. Colors are displayed in a randomized order, so each session shows them in a different sequence.
QWhat are derivative colors?
ADerivative colors are generated automatically from each base color using tonal adjustments — light (Usu-), deep (Ko-), pale (Shiro-), dark (Kuro-), gray (Hai-), ancient (Kodai-), rusted (Sabi-), washed (Arai-), vivid (Tsuya-), scorched (Kogare-), and Kyoto-style (Kyo-). They are marked with a palette icon on their card.
QHow do I save a color as a wallpaper?
ATap the "Save Image" button on any color card. The color is saved as a full-screen image to your Photos library. The first time you do this, the app will ask for permission to access your Photos.
QWhere can I find the hex code for a color?
AThe hex code is displayed on every color card in #XXXXXX format, just below the color name.
QHow much does the app cost?
APlease check the App Store listing for current pricing information.

Get it on the App Store

Download on the App Store
App Gallery
日本語 | English