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Gradient Test

Smooth ramps for banding and 8-bit vs 10-bit checks.

Press F for fullscreen
Controls
Gradient mode

About Gradient Test

Smooth gradients reveal banding on cheap panels. A true 8-bit panel shows visible bands on a black-to-white ramp; 10-bit panels render the gradient cleanly. Switch between grayscale and RGB modes to inspect color reproduction across the gamut.

8-Bit vs 10-Bit Panel Banding Check

A smooth black-to-white gradient reveals the bit depth of your panel. True 8-bit panels show visible banding — distinct horizontal lines where one shade transitions to the next — because they can only render 256 levels per channel. Native 10-bit panels render 1024 levels and produce a visibly smoother ramp. Many monitors marketed as 10-bit actually use 8-bit plus Frame Rate Control dithering, which produces intermediate results. This gradient test exposes the real panel capability regardless of marketing claims. Photographers and video editors who need smooth tonal transitions should verify their panel's actual bit depth before color-critical work.

Color Accuracy and Gamut Evaluation

Switch to the RGB gradient mode to inspect how your panel handles color transitions across the full gamut. Hue-shift artifacts — unexpected color tints appearing within a single-color gradient — indicate inaccurate color mapping or limited gamut coverage. Professional-grade panels render each primary gradient smoothly from black to full saturation without visible color contamination. Graphic designers, print professionals, and photographers use this test to evaluate whether their panel covers the required color space and renders transitions accurately enough for production work.

Monitor Calibration Verification

After calibrating your monitor with a hardware colorimeter, run the gradient test to verify the calibration result. A properly calibrated panel renders the grayscale ramp as a neutral progression without color cast. If you see a green, magenta, or amber tint creeping into the gray gradient, the white point calibration needs adjustment. The RGB mode helps verify that individual color channels track correctly from black to full saturation. This quick visual check complements instrument-based calibration and catches issues that profiling software may not flag.

How to use it

  1. 01

    Press F to fullscreen

    A small gradient on a 27" panel masks banding the same way a 200×60 thumbnail does. Filling the panel is the whole point.

  2. 02

    Toggle Grayscale vs RGB

    The two buttons in the controls panel switch modes. Grayscale exposes bit-depth banding; the RGB strip exposes hue-shift artifacts and incorrect gamut mapping.

  3. 03

    Inspect at glancing angle

    Some banding only appears off-axis on IPS and VA panels — tilt your head to confirm.

  4. 04

    Download the current view as a PNG

    Click the download icon in the top-right toolbar — it sits between the settings gear and the fullscreen button. We detect your display's physical pixel count (screen resolution × device pixel ratio) and rasterize the current configuration into a Retina-sharp PNG. The file lands in your browser's default downloads folder; to save straight to the Desktop, enable 'Ask where to save each file' in your browser settings. The filename includes the resolution so you can keep multiple variants side by side.

Frequently asked

The shortest path between you and the answer.

Is this tool free?

Yes. Every ScreenTools.co tool is free, with no account, no paywall, and no install.

Does it work on mobile?

Yes. Layouts adapt to phone and tablet screens. Mobile Safari restricts true fullscreen, but the page fills the viewport and you can add the page to your Home Screen for an app-like experience.

Does it work offline?

Once a tool's page has loaded once, the runtime is local. A few tools that fetch fonts or icons need the first hit online; after that, refresh works offline.

Does this collect my data?

No personal data leaves your browser. The site has lightweight, privacy-respecting analytics for aggregate counts (which tool was opened) and nothing else.

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