API Differences

Overview

This page documents the output differences between modern_colorthief and the original color-thief (JavaScript/Python) library.

Comparison with color-thief

The difference between color-thief and modern_colorthief is very negligible. Both use the same Median Cut algorithm, so results are nearly identical.

Example Comparison

Using the following test code:

Comparison test

from modern_colorthief import get_color, get_palette
from colorthief import ColorThief
from pathlib import Path
import os

BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).resolve().parent
path = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, "test.jpg")

print(path)

x = get_color(path)
y = ColorThief(path).get_color()

print(x)
print(y)

m = get_palette(path)
n = ColorThief(path).get_palette()

print(m)
print(n)

The output is:

Output comparison

# modern_colorthief dominant color
(201, 160, 118)

# colorthief dominant color
(202, 160, 118)

# modern_colorthief palette
[(30, 169, 166), (179, 51, 55), (219, 176, 127), (248, 233, 225),
 (160, 98, 87), (63, 47, 42), (131, 163, 107), (179, 119, 52),
 (237, 220, 155)]

# colorthief palette
[(31, 167, 164), (179, 51, 55), (219, 176, 127), (248, 233, 225),
 (160, 98, 87), (62, 44, 38), (131, 162, 106), (178, 118, 51),
 (242, 220, 157)]

Analysis

As you can see, the differences are minimal – typically within 1-3 units per channel. This is expected because both implementations use the same algorithm, but minor floating-point rounding differences and image decoding variations cause slight deviations.

Note

For most practical purposes (UI theming, color analysis, design tools), these differences are imperceptible.

See also

Differences – Broader comparison with other libraries.