What Is My Screen Resolution

Color Depth Checker

Detect color depth, color-gamut and HDR/dynamic-range capabilities in the browser.

This tool reads what the browser and OS report about color depth and related features. Results are best-effort — some platforms expose limited information to browsers.

Reported Color Depth
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Pixel Depth: —
screen.colorDepth
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screen.pixelDepth
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CSS color-gamut
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Dynamic range (HDR)
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Accuracy note
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Suggested color profile
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How it works: we read screen.colorDepth and screen.pixelDepth, test CSS media features like color-gamut and dynamic-range, and perform a small canvas sample to detect whether the display appears to support >8-bit channels. This provides a best-effort estimate — completely accurate detection of native panel bit-depth is not always available to browsers.

What Is Color Depth?

Color depth (also known as bit depth) refers to the number of bits used to represent the color of a single pixel. Higher color depth allows a device to display more colors with better accuracy, smoother gradients, and less banding.

Common color depths include:

  • 8-bit — 16.7 million colors (standard displays)
  • 10-bit — 1.07 billion colors (HDR displays)
  • 12-bit — Up to 68 billion colors (professional monitors)

Most modern screens support at least 24-bit color (8 bits per channel), while high-end HDR displays support 30-bit or more.

Why Color Depth Matters

Color depth affects how realistic and smooth images appear. It influences:

  • Smoother gradients with fewer visible bands
  • More accurate color reproduction
  • Better support for HDR content
  • Professional photo and video editing quality
  • Overall display vibrancy and realism

Higher color depth is especially important for designers, photographers, gamers, and anyone viewing HDR content.

What a Color Depth Checker Detects

Our Color Depth Checker typically identifies:

  • Your display’s color depth (bits per pixel)
  • Whether your display supports 24-bit, 30-bit, or higher
  • Browser-reported color capabilities
  • Compatibility with HDR displays

Because browsers report color depth differently, a Color Depth Checker helps verify real-world support for modern color standards.

Why Use a Color Depth Checker?

You may want to check your color depth to:

  • Verify HDR compatibility
  • Ensure accurate colors for design or editing
  • Check monitor capabilities before upgrade
  • Test browser and system color support
  • Diagnose issues like color banding

Bit depth and how many colors it produces

Color depth (also called bit depth) is the number of bits used to store the color of a single pixel. More bits mean more distinct shades and smoother gradients with less visible banding. The value is per channel (red, green, blue), so “8-bit color” means 8 bits each for R, G and B — 24 bits total.

Bit depthBits per channelTotal colorsTypical use
6-bit6 (+ dithering)262,144Budget TN laptop panels
8-bit816.7 millionMost monitors, phones, sRGB content
10-bit101.07 billionHDR, professional photo/video editing
12-bit1268.7 billionCinema, Dolby Vision mastering

Most everyday displays are 8-bit, which is plenty for standard (SDR) content. Jumping to 10-bit matters most for HDR video and gradient-heavy work like sky photography, where 8-bit can show visible “stepping” between shades.

Color gamut: sRGB vs DCI-P3 vs Rec.2020

Bit depth controls how many shades you get; color gamut controls how saturated and wide the range of colors can be. A display can be “8-bit” but cover a narrow or wide gamut:

  • sRGB — the web standard; what most content is authored for.
  • DCI-P3 — about 25% wider than sRGB; used by modern phones, MacBooks and HDR displays.
  • Rec.2020 — an ultra-wide gamut targeted by HDR video; no consumer display fully covers it yet.

The checker above reports your display’s color depth, pixel depth, and (where the browser exposes it) the widest gamut and HDR/dynamic-range support it advertises.

Frequently asked questions

What color depth should I use?

For everyday use, 8-bit is standard and looks great with SDR content. Choose a 10-bit display if you edit HDR video, work with wide-gamut photography, or want the smoothest possible gradients.

What is the difference between 8-bit and 10-bit color?

8-bit produces 16.7 million colors; 10-bit produces 1.07 billion. The extra shades reduce banding in gradients and are required for proper HDR playback.

Is my monitor 8-bit or 10-bit?

Check the spec sheet, or your OS display settings — Windows HDR settings and macOS Displays often show the active bit depth. Many “10-bit” panels are actually 8-bit + FRC dithering, which approximates 10-bit visually.

What is HDR color depth?

HDR content is mastered in 10-bit or 12-bit to preserve detail across a much wider brightness range. A true HDR experience needs a 10-bit-capable display plus high peak brightness and wide gamut.

Does higher color depth affect performance?

Slightly — 10-bit output uses more bandwidth and memory than 8-bit, which can matter at high resolutions and refresh rates. For most desktop use the difference is negligible.