Color Banding Test Online: Check Screen Gradients, Bands & Posterization
Use this browser-based color banding test to inspect smooth gradients, spot visible color bands, and compare whether posterization or compression artifacts are coming from the display, content, or current settings.
Gradient inspection
Color banding preview
Switch gradient direction, palette, and banding intensity to compare smooth transitions against visible steps.
Gradient direction
Useful for spotting stripes across wide fades and skies.
Palette
Usually the clearest way to notice subtle banding in shadows.
Banding intensity
Continuous gradient for checking your real display path.
Compare the same palette before and after changing HDR, cable path, or GPU color settings.
- Start with grayscale if you want the fastest read on subtle banding in shadows and fades.
- If a video looks worse than the smooth reference here, compression or source quality becomes a stronger suspect.
- Retest after changing HDR, color depth, night mode, monitor presets, browser zoom, or streaming quality.
Live gradient preview
Left-to-right gradient preview for wide fades and sky-like scenes
This preview is designed to make visible banding easier to inspect. It does not measure true panel bit depth, color accuracy, or HDR calibration.
Why run a color banding test online
This color banding test is built for the practical display problems people actually notice: a sky gradient that breaks into stripes, dark scenes with ugly steps instead of smooth fades, streaming video that looks compressed, or a monitor that seems to show rough transitions between shades. It helps you inspect those issues quickly in the browser without installing calibration software.
How the test works
The preview shows full-screen friendly gradients in different directions, palettes, and intensity levels. You can switch between horizontal, vertical, diagonal, and radial gradients, compare grayscale with colored ramps, and use split view to place a smooth reference next to a deliberately stepped version. That makes it easier to judge whether your screen is showing natural transitions or obvious banding.
How to interpret what you see
If the smooth view still looks like it breaks into hard stripes, the issue may come from the panel, current display settings, compression, low bit depth, or the content itself. If only the simulated stepped preview looks banded while the smooth reference stays clean, your screen is probably handling that gradient reasonably well. Repeat the same check after changing HDR, color depth, browser zoom, cable path, GPU settings, night mode, or streaming quality.
- Grayscale is usually the fastest way to spot subtle banding in shadows and fades.
- Colored ramps help reveal whether one channel looks worse than the others.
- Split mode is useful when you want a clean reference next to a visibly stepped example.
- Full screen makes faint banding easier to notice on larger monitors and TVs.
- This is a visual browser-based check, not a professional panel calibration or bit-depth measurement.
The tool does not read monitor firmware, confirm true panel bit depth, or store personal data. It only gives you controlled gradients to inspect with your own eyes.