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Linds1234
Linds1234
Known Participant
February 27, 2026
Answered

CMYK to RGB/Hex via ICC profile conversion

  • February 27, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 109 views

What is the best workflow to retrieve process color mixes (RGB, Hex) from a CMYK brand color via an ICC profile conversion in Illustrator? In other words, how do I ensure the correct ICC profile is being used for the conversion?

 

Color Settings: North American General Purpose 2

RGB: sRGB IEC61966-2.1

CMYK: U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2

 

Should I change the document color mode from CMYK to RGB first, then retrieve the color mixes? (See below)

 

Proposed Workflow 1:

  • Document color mode is CMYK
  • Assign Profile to document: Working CMYK: U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2
  • Change document color mode to RGB – Changing the document workspace to the sRGB IEC61966-2.1 profile. The swatches and graphics are also converted to the sRGB color profile.
  • Open up swatch options to retrieve RGB and Hex numbers

 

Or, can I leave the workspace color mode in CMYK, and simply retrieve the RGB and Hex color mixes? Will I get conversions via what I have set in the color settings – North American General Purpose 2: sRGB? Or, will being in a CMYK assigned workspace affect the conversion negatively? (See below)

 

Proposed Workflow 2:

  • Document color mode is CMYK
  • Assign Profile to document: Working CMYK: U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2
  • Open up swatch options to retrieve RGB and Hex numbers – The conversion is based on the sRGB color profile set in the North American General Purpose 2 color settings, without changing the document color mode.

 

Any corrections or suggestions would be much appreciated!

      Correct answer Ton Frederiks

      @Linds1234 Thanks for the example.

      Yes I see the differences. It seems caused by rounding when you convert an RGB number between 0-255 to a CMYK percentage between 0-100. The problem gets bigger when you convert from RGB to CMYK (RGB does not exist in an Illustrator CMYK document) and convert it back to show an equivalent RGB number.

      Only trust RGB numbers in an RGB document and CMYK numbers in a CMYK document.

      1 reply

      Ton Frederiks
      Community Expert
      Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      February 27, 2026

      If you set up the correct working color spaces you can make a selection of swatches in the Swatches panel and use the option Create Swatch Info from the Swatches panel menu.

      Linds1234
      Linds1234Author
      Known Participant
      February 28, 2026

      Ah, yes. Right, I should just get the swatch breakdowns as you suggested! However, the color mixes vary slightly when retrieving them in the CMYK color mode (SWOP workspace) vs retrieving them after changing from CMYK to RGB color mode (or sRGB workspace).

      Ton Frederiks
      Community Expert
      Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      February 28, 2026

      When converting from RGB to CMYK many RGB colors fall outside the CMYK gamut.

      These colors can never be converted to the same RGB numbers when doing the CMYK to RGB conversion.

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