Three steps,
no guessing.
Upload a reference
Drop in any photo — a portrait, a landscape, a master study. Mahl reads it pixel by pixel.
Eyedrop the hue
Click the exact colour you want to match. Mahl names the family and reads the temperature in plain English.
Get the recipe
Honest ratios from the tubes on your shelf — ranked by ΔE, so you know the best match before you squeeze.
Everything other colour apps
don't do.
Mahl isn't just an eyedropper. It's the four tools you keep wishing existed, wired together around the paints you actually own.
Eyedrop any pixel.
Get the exact recipe.
Upload a reference, drop the eyedropper on the colour you want, and Mahl returns the best mixes from your inventory — ranked by ΔE accuracy and ready to mix on the palette.
- Pixel-perfect eyedropperPinch to zoom on iPad; works on any photo.
- Top 5 mixes, ranked by ΔEYou see the math; you trust the match.
- Plain-English colour familyWarm earth, cool grey, neutral green — named.
Extract a limited palette the way the masters did.
Drop in any reference and Mahl distills it down to a cohesive 4–8 tube palette, pulled straight from your inventory. The way Sargent, Sorolla and the Russians worked — now in two taps.
- Cohesive 4–8 tube palettesFrom your real shelf, not generic colours.
- Saved per projectPick up exactly where you left off.
- Locked colour storyEvery shadow and highlight stays in family.
Plan a whole painting before you squeeze a tube.
Mahl breaks your reference into zones, suggests the mix for each, and stacks them into a session you can actually finish in 90 minutes. No more mid-painting panic mixing.
- Zone-by-zone planningSky, midground, foreground — each with its mix.
- Time-boxedTell Mahl your session length; it sequences the work.
- Auto-saves every recipeRe-open the project, re-mix instantly.
Snap your WIP.
Get studio-grade feedback.
Photograph your work-in-progress and Mahl gives you style-aware critique grounded in colour theory — and your actual paints. Not generic praise; actionable, painterly notes.
- Style-aware notesKnows the difference between Sargent and Schmid.
- Tied to your inventorySuggestions you can mix tonight, not next month.
- Value, hue, edges, compositionFour lenses, every critique.
Never re-mix the
same grey twice.
Every mix you save lives in a searchable library. The neutral grey you fought for last Tuesday is one tap away today — with the exact ratios and tubes that got you there.
- Unlimited saved mixesOrganised by project, hue, or tag.
- Tag and filterBrowse by project, hue family, or name.
- Export to PDFPrint a checklist with mixes and shopping list.
Mahl is the colour
teacher you wish
you had on day one.
You don't need a colour-theory degree to mix a believable shadow. Mahl explains why each suggested mix works — in plain English — so the theory clicks while you're actually painting.
Start free — five paints, no cardNo credit card · No fancy supply list · Built for beginners
See why a colour works
Every match returns a plain-English colour family, a temperature read, and the pigment bias driving it. You stop memorising and start understanding.
Start with five paints
No need to splash out on a 24-tube set. Mahl shows what's actually possible from the paints you have — and what one or two new tubes would unlock.
Mix tips inline, not in a textbook
Warm vs. cool red, why your green looks muddy, how to lift a value without turning it chalky — bite-sized notes appear next to the recipe.
Other apps match colours.
Mahl runs your studio.
"I'm self-taught. Mahl is the colour theory tutor I couldn't afford — and it's plugged into my actual paints."
Start free.
Go Pro when you're ready.
Five paints, free forever. Upgrade for the whole studio — every recipe, every critique, every tool.
Enough to play with and see how Mahl thinks.
Create free account- Up to 5 paints in your inventory
- Best mixing recipe for any target colour
- Eyedrop matching from your reference photos
- Basic project tracking
Try every Pro feature free for 7 days. Cancel any time before day 8 to avoid being charged.
Start 7-day free trialCard required. Then A$9/month unless cancelled.
- Unlimited paints in your inventory
- Every mixing recipe & alternative ratios, not just the best one
- Mother Palette extraction from any reference
- Full Mix Studio with palette folders & project references
- AI progress critique with style-aware feedback
- Glazing & technique guidance grounded in your paints
- Paint gap suggestions (what to buy next)
- Recipe PDF export
- Unlimited wishlist
About A$6.67/month, billed once a year.
Start with yearly- Unlimited paints in your inventory
- Every mixing recipe & alternative ratios, not just the best one
- Mother Palette extraction from any reference
- Full Mix Studio with palette folders & project references
- AI progress critique with style-aware feedback
- Glazing & technique guidance grounded in your paints
- Paint gap suggestions (what to buy next)
- Recipe PDF export
- Unlimited wishlist
Prices shown in Australian dollars (AUD). The 7-day free trial is available on Mahl Pro Monthly only and requires a valid payment method — if you don't cancel before day 8, your card is charged A$9 and your subscription continues monthly. Mahl Pro web subscriptions are billed by Paddle, the merchant of record — Paddle will convert at checkout if your card is in another currency. 14-day money-back guarantee from your first charge. Cancel any time from your profile. See our Refund Policy and Terms.
Stop mixing
by memory.
Start with one brand and grow from there. Your collection follows you on every device.