Overview
Color Palette works by generating color palettes based on color theory principles. It returns harmonious colors with multiple format outputs (HEX, RGB, HSL), accessibility metrics, ready-to-use CSS variables, and downloadable palette images.
Live Test Generate Color Palettes Source →
Formula
One function covers the whole catalog: the first argument names the source, the rest are its inputs, and the "field" pair says which single value lands in the cell. Formulas covers the grammar that applies to all of them.
=VERVE("colorpalette", A2, "field", "source")=VERVE.CALL("colorpalette", A2, "field", "source")A2 holds the color you are looking up. Drag the formula down and each row resolves on its own.
With literal values
Nothing has to come from a cell — typed values work the same way.
=VERVE("colorpalette", "FF5733", "field", "source")=VERVE.CALL("colorpalette", "FF5733", "field", "source")Inputs
Required inputs are positional, in the order below. Everything else is passed as a "name", value pair after them — the same shape as SUMIFS. Premium inputs are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them.
| Input | Type | Where it goes | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
colorRequired | string | argument 2 (A2) | The base color to generate the palette from (HEX format without #) hexColor |
schemeOptional | string | "scheme", value | The color scheme typemonocontrasttriadetetradeanalogicdefault triade |
variationOptional | string | "variation", value | The color variationdefaultsoftpastellighthardpaledefault default |
countOptionalPremium | integer | "count", value | Caps how many colors are returned (1-16). Each scheme has its own ceiling and count cannot raise it - mono yields 4, contrast 8, triade and analogic 12, tetrade 16. The colorCount field reports how many were actually returned. Free tier limited to 5 colors default 5 · range 1–16 |
distanceOptionalPremium | number | "distance", value | Color spacing distance (0-1). Affects triade, tetrade, and analogic schemes default 0.5 · range 0–1 |
addComplementOptionalPremium | boolean | "addComplement", value | Add complement color to analogic scheme |
webSafeOptional | boolean | "webSafe", value | Return web-safe colors only |
Passing an option
=VERVE("colorpalette", A2, "scheme", "triade")=VERVE.CALL("colorpalette", A2, "scheme", "triade")What lands in your sheet
The "field" pair is what makes the formula resolve to one cell. Its value is a dot-path from the table below, so swapping it is how you pull a different value — one formula per column.
Seeing everything at once
Drop the "field" pair and the formula returns the whole response instead: two columns, field name on the left and value on the right, spilling from the cell you typed in.
=VERVE("colorpalette", A2)=VERVE.CALL("colorpalette", A2)The second row's table would land on top of the first's, and every cell after the first reads #REF! (#SPILL! in Excel). Keep one per sheet, or name a field, and leave the cells below and to the right empty.
Response fields
Paths are relative to data. Each one is exactly what the "field" pair accepts, so swapping it is how you pull a different value into a cell. On a plan without a Premium field the cell reads #PREMIUM(field) rather than a value, so a locked field never looks like a real answer.
| Use as "field" | Type | Example cell value | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
source | string | #FF5733 | The normalized base color the palette was generated from, in HEX format with a leading # |
sourceName | string | Outrageous Orange | The human-readable color name closest to the base color |
hue | number | 11 | The base color's position on the HSL color wheel, in degrees from 0 to 360 |
scheme | string | triade | The color scheme type that was used to generate the palette |
variation | string | soft | The color variation that was applied to the palette |
distance | number | 0.5 | The color spacing distance that was applied when generating the palette |
colorCount | number | 5 | The number of colors included in the palette |
colorPalette | array[5] | The generated palette, one entry per color with format conversions and accessibility data | |
colorPalette.0.hex | string | #CC988F | HEX values for each color in palette |
colorPalette.0.name | string | Oriental Pink | The human-readable color name closest to this palette color |
colorPalette.0.rgb | object | {…} | RGB values for each color |
colorPalette.0.rgb.r | number | 204 | |
colorPalette.0.rgb.g | number | 152 | |
colorPalette.0.rgb.b | number | 143 | |
colorPalette.0.hslPremium | object | {…} | HSL values for each color |
colorPalette.0.hsl.hPremium | number | 9 | |
colorPalette.0.hsl.sPremium | number | 37 | |
colorPalette.0.hsl.lPremium | number | 68 | |
colorPalette.0.luminancePremium | number | 0.373 | The relative luminance (WCAG) of the color, from 0 (black) to 1 (white) |
colorPalette.0.isDark | boolean | true | Whether the color is perceptually dark (relative luminance below 0.5) |
colorPalette.0.textColor | string | #FFFFFF | The recommended HEX text color (white or black) to overlay on this color for legibility |
colorPalette.0.accessibilityPremium | object | {…} | WCAG contrast ratios and compliance |
colorPalette.0.accessibility.contrastWithWhitePremium | number | 2.48 | |
colorPalette.0.accessibility.contrastWithBlackPremium | number | 8.46 | |
colorPalette.0.accessibility.wcagAANormalPremium | boolean | false | |
colorPalette.0.accessibility.wcagAALargePremium | boolean | false | |
colorPalette.0.accessibility.wcagAAAPremium | boolean | false | |
colorPaletteRaw | array | ["cc988f","805f59","e6d2cf"] | The palette colors as plain lowercase HEX strings without the # prefix, in the same order as colorPalette |
cssPremium | string | :root {
--primary: #CC988F;
--primary-rgb: 204, 152, 143;
--secondary: #805F59;
--secondary-rgb: 128, 95, 89;
--tertiary: #E6D2CF;
--tertiary-rgb: 230, 210, 207;
--quaternary: #BF6E60;
--quaternary-rgb: 191, 110, 96;
--quinary: #A2CC8F;
--quinary-rgb: 162, 204, 143;
} | Ready-to-use CSS variables |
imagePremium | object | {…} | Generated palette image file details |
image.imageNamePremium | string | 6ee29826-a52f-4c87-86f5-bef3b49f0dbb_palette.png | Filename of the generated palette image |
image.formatPremium | string | .png | Image file format (e.g. .png) |
image.downloadURLPremium | string | https://storage.googleapis.com/apiverve/APIData/colorpalette/6ee29826-a52f-4c87-86f5-bef3b49f0dbb_palette.png?GoogleAccessId=635500398038-compute%40developer.gserviceaccount.com&Expires=1766010083&Signature=Boef5OapaNmcyp0F8bGmf%2BVfQk3zQkiWcw1THBfbsevtYGZnOuzr7xKDRlk9FYiHidSoMz6wjody2ymL7GzUoHkDvA8PEdSERhAq2z9St5yWlaX1c87KoNh%2FtCQEJqHixYk039NuYyb%2FhJu18JFY1RNrOfo8OPZEn9a3ICQdTDL0fYQEZEBxnDuc%2B7wvn4q9UFWhCJcf302HcoZoCw76AzrgVRu%2FazuahqHdVWMR1K5QTV3U51lSoqC23ERHjRZ6uZB8W0bCO65qBFrRNzWEPSVCC%2F8oafvvitZwB1YCG674q3MbtRhWXIhX2zdoPCT%2BgxL7E4fgIyXDtDLm5%2Bm%2Fsg%3D%3D | URL to download the generated palette image |
image.expiresPremium | number | 1766010083748 | Unix timestamp in milliseconds when the generated palette image download URL expires |
Filling a whole column
Both platforms make one batched call for a column rather than one request per cell, and both cost the same — 2 credits per row looked up. How you write it differs, because the two runtimes batch at different points.
=VERVE("colorpalette", A2:A100, "field", "source")In Google Sheets, give the arguments ranges and the answers spill down from the cell you typed in. Custom functions there run synchronously and in isolation, so dragged cells cannot be coalesced — the range form is how a column becomes one call. The "field" pair is required here: a per-row two-column table has nowhere to spill. Use a full column per input (A2:A100, not A2) — a single-cell reference is read as row 1 only and the rest of the column comes back blank.
In Excel, type the formula once and fill down — no range form and none needed, because its runtime is asynchronous and the add-in coalesces the calls a fill produces into a single batched request. Do not hand VERVE.CALL a range: Excel flattens it into positional arguments, so A2:A100 arrives as a hundred separate arguments and the cell reads #ERR rather than filling.
Either way, column A holds your color values and the answers land beside them, one row each, blank rows skipped.
When a cell doesn't fill
A failed lookup returns readable text starting with #ERR rather than a spreadsheet error, because Excel cannot show a custom message on a real error — you would get a bare #VALUE! with no reason. The trade-off is that IFERROR() will not catch it; test with LEFT(cell, 4) = "#ERR" instead. Error handling covers the rest.
| Cell reads | What happened |
|---|---|
#ERR Not connected | No API key saved. Open the side panel and connect your account. |
#ERR Replace <name> with a cell or value | A preview formula was copied as-is. Swap the placeholder for a cell reference. |
#ERR No "x" in colorpalette | An option name this source does not take. The message lists the ones it does. |
#ERR No data point "…" | The "field" path is not in the response. Check it against the table above. |
#PREMIUM(field) | The field exists but your plan does not include it. |
#ERR Out of credits | The cycle's credits are spent. Usage resets on your billing date. |
Before the formula works
The add-in reads the API key you saved once in the side panel — the key never goes in the formula, so a shared sheet does not leak it and a collaborator without access simply sees the last calculated values.
- Install the add-in for Google Sheets or Excel.
- Open the side panel and sign in, or paste a key from your dashboard.
- Type the formula above into any cell.
Use cases
- Dynamic Theme Generation
- White-label SaaS dashboards build branded interface themes instantly by supplying a customer's primary brand HEX to retrieve complementary UI shades and legible text colors.
- Website Builder Customization
- When site owners select a key accent color, CMS site editors generate matching color sets to style page headers, background sections, and button borders.
- E-Commerce Product Showcases
- Match catalog item tones to surrounding promotional banners by creating monochromatic or contrasting palettes directly from product hero image colors.
- Design Tool Integrations
- Digital illustration software presents automated analogic or triadic color swatches to artists based on their current active brush color.
Other ways to use Generate Color Palettes
Set up Generate Color Palettes on VerveSheets, or reach the same source a different way. Your VerveSheets account and credits work on all of them — one key, one balance.
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