sRGB vs Adobe RGB vs Display P3: Why Your Colours Change When You Upload

You export a vivid photo, upload it, and it comes back dull and grey. That is a colour profile problem, and it has a simple fix. Here is what profiles are, which to use, and how to stop the shift.

Short answer: sRGB is the standard for the web and almost every screen. Adobe RGB (1998) adds greens and cyans for print work. Display P3 (the same primaries as cinema DCI-P3) adds reds, oranges and greens that modern phones and Macs can show. ProPhoto RGB is far larger again and is only for editing masters. For anything you upload or email, convert to sRGB.

What a colour profile is

An image stores numbers, not colours. A pixel might be recorded as 220, 40, 40. A colour profile is the note attached to the file saying "in this file, 220, 40, 40 means this particular red". Change the profile and the same numbers describe a different red.

When software ignores or discards that note, it guesses — usually assuming sRGB — and your carefully graded image shifts.

The three profiles that matter

sRGB vs Adobe RGB vs DCI-P3 vs Display P3 vs ProPhoto: the specs

Every RGB space is defined by three primaries (the reddest red, greenest green and bluest blue it can describe), a white point and a tone curve. The chromaticity coordinates below are from each space's standard, so you can see exactly where they differ.

Three things fall straight out of that table:

• Adobe RGB vs sRGB: the red and blue are identical; only the green moves, which is why Adobe RGB's extra range is greens and cyans.
• P3 vs Adobe RGB: P3 has the redder red, Adobe RGB the greener green. Neither gamut contains the other, so "100% DCI-P3" and "100% Adobe RGB" on a monitor box describe different strengths, not a ranking.
• DCI-P3 vs Display P3: same primaries, different white point and curve. Display P3 is the version iPhones, Macs and many recent Android phones use.

Which one should you use?

The rule that solves 90% of problems

Convert to sRGB before you publish anything on the internet. Not "assign" — convert. Assigning keeps the numbers and swaps the note, which changes the appearance. Converting recalculates the numbers so the appearance stays the same in the new space.

Keep your master edit in Adobe RGB or ProPhoto if you want the headroom, then export a separate sRGB copy for the web.

Why the washed-out look happens

A file tagged Adobe RGB, opened by software that ignores profiles, gets treated as sRGB. Because Adobe RGB packs a wider range into the same 0–255 numbers, every colour ends up less saturated than intended. Greens go grey, reds go brick.

The reverse happens with Display P3 photos from iPhones viewed on older monitors: colours can look oddly neon or, more often, flat.

Where profiles get stripped

• Social platforms — most re-encode and assume sRGB. Upload sRGB and nothing changes.
• CMS image optimisers — many strip the profile to save bytes. Ship sRGB and it does not matter.
• Browser-based converters — canvas processing generally outputs sRGB, which is exactly what you want for web delivery.
• Email clients — inconsistent and unmanaged. sRGB is the only safe choice.

That last point is a quiet advantage of converting through your browser: our WEBP to JPG converter and compress to size tool hand you a clean, predictable file with no exotic profile attached.

Printing is the exception

Printers use CMYK inks, and some printable colours — deep cyans and rich greens especially — sit outside sRGB. If you are sending files to a professional lab, ask what they want. Many now accept sRGB happily; high-end labs prefer Adobe RGB. Never guess, and never convert twice.

For resolution and sizing on the print side, see our printing preparation guide and the DPI and print size calculator.

Checking a file's profile

• macOS — open in Preview, then Tools → Show Inspector → the "i" tab.
• Windows — right-click, Properties, Details, look for "Colour representation".
• Photoshop — the document title bar and Edit → Convert to Profile.
• Lightroom — set the export colour space explicitly in the export dialog.

A simple, safe workflow

1. Shoot RAW and edit in a wide space if your workflow benefits from it.
2. Keep the master untouched.
3. Export web copies converted to sRGB, 8-bit.
4. Resize and compress after the conversion, not before.
5. Spot-check one exported file on a phone before publishing a batch.

For the resize and compress steps, use the image resizer and read the compression guide.

Need a web-safe copy now? Convert with the WEBP to JPG converter or the PNG to JPG converter, and check which format to deliver in the best image formats for 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Gear we recommend for this workflow

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