Visual color and contrast check

Find clipping, banding, and obvious color problems.

Inspect smooth gradients, near-black and near-white steps, grayscale neutrality, color bars, and fine grids at native resolution.

FreeAbout 4 minutesRuns locally
No sign-up · Nothing uploaded

How to run this test

  1. Use native resolution

    Confirm the display is using its recommended resolution and scaling. Reset unusual picture enhancements if you want a neutral baseline.

  2. Start with grayscale

    Look for a color tint in neutral gray and check whether dark and bright steps remain distinguishable.

  3. Inspect gradients

    A smooth gradient should not break into obvious stripes. Compare color and grayscale gradients and note where banding appears.

  4. Check fine detail

    Use the grid and alternating-pixel pattern to reveal scaling, sharpening halos, chroma subsampling, or focus problems.

How to interpret what you see

Crushed blacks

Several darkest steps merge into black. Check brightness, black level, RGB range, room light, and dynamic contrast.

Clipped whites

The brightest steps merge into one white patch. Check contrast, white level, HDR/SDR mode, and picture enhancement settings.

Gradient banding

Visible stripes may come from source bit depth, compression, GPU output, browser rendering, or the panel. Compare another browser and reference file.

Color cast

Neutral gray appears noticeably pink, green, blue, or yellow. Disable night modes and compare under neutral room lighting.

Visual check versus calibration

Use this test to catch setup errors and obvious display behavior. If you edit photos or video, design for print, or require color-critical accuracy, use a hardware measurement device and establish a documented target for white point, luminance, gamma, and color space.

Important limitation

ScreenVitals provides a controlled visual aid. Results depend on your panel, brightness, viewing angle, room lighting, browser, and—when photos are used—camera exposure. It does not replace manufacturer testing or calibrated measurement equipment.

Questions about this test

Know what the pattern can—and cannot—tell you.

Can an online test calibrate my monitor?

No. A browser can show useful reference patterns, but accurate calibration requires a colorimeter or spectrophotometer, suitable software, and controlled conditions. ScreenVitals helps reveal clipping, banding, tint, and obvious setup problems.

Why can I not see every dark box?

Black-level settings, limited-versus-full RGB range, dynamic contrast, room light, panel type, and browser color management can hide near-black steps. Reset aggressive picture enhancements and verify the source range before adjusting brightness.

What causes color banding?

Banding can come from limited bit depth, compression, gradients in the source, GPU output settings, display processing, or panel behavior. Compare several browsers and a local reference image before blaming the panel.

Should gray look perfectly neutral?

Gray should not have an obvious color cast, but your eyes adapt to surrounding light and many uncalibrated displays lean warm or cool. Use neutral room lighting and compare with a calibrated reference only if accuracy matters.

Does HDR affect the result?

Yes. HDR tone mapping, browser support, the operating system, and display mode can alter test output. Run the standard check in SDR first, then test HDR using trusted HDR-specific material and tools.