Tkinter – colorchooser

Back to: Python Programming

---

The tkinter.colorchooser module in Python provides an interface to the native colour picker dialog of the operating system. It allows users to select a colour which is then returned to the application as both a hexadecimal string and an RGB tuple.

Key Features

• askcolor() function: This is the primary function used to display the dialog box and return the selected color information.
• Returns a tuple: The function returns a tuple containing the RGB values and the hexadecimal string of the selected color, e.g., ((255, 0, 0), '#ff0000') for red.
• Cross-Platform: The dialog box presented is typically the native OS color picker, ensuring a familiar user experience across Windows, macOS, and Linux (though Linux may use a Tkinter-drawn dialog).
• Dynamic Updates: The returned hexadecimal value can be immediately used with the config or configure method to change the color of widgets like labels, buttons, or the background of the main window.

from tkinter import *
from tkinter import colorchooser # This is a submodule so must be chosen separately 

def selectColour():
    color = colorchooser.askcolor()
    colorHex = color[1]
    window.config(bg=colorHex)

window = Tk()
window.geometry("420x420")

button = Button(text='Click here for Colour Selection',command=selectColour)
button.pack()

window.mainloop()

A more sophisticated example will complete this short module

from tkinter import *
from tkinter import colorchooser


def pick_color():
    # Opens the native color selection dialog
    color_code = colorchooser.askcolor(title="Choose Colour")

    # color_code is a tuple: ((r, g, b), hexadecimal_string)
    # If the user cancels, it returns (None, None)
    if color_code[1]:  # Check if a colour was selected
        print(f"RGB values: {color_code[0]}")
        print(f"Hex code: {color_code[1]}")
        # You can use the hex code to configure widget colours
        my_label.config(fg=color_code[1])
        root.config(bg=color_code[1])  # Example: change window background


# Main Tkinter window
root = Tk()
root.title("Colour Chooser Example")

# Label to display text and change colour
my_label = Label(root, text="Select a colour for this text!", font=("Helvetica", 16))
my_label.pack(pady=20)

# Button to trigger the color chooser dialog
color_button = Button(root, text="Pick a Colour", command=pick_color)
color_button.pack(pady=10)

# Start the Tkinter main loop
root.mainloop()

---