Pantone to RAL Color Converter
Select a Pantone or RAL code to find the closest match in the other system, ranked by Delta-E color distance in LAB space. A Delta-E below 3 is visually close; above 6 is a noticeably different color. Nothing uploaded.
Nearest matches
Learn more: how Pantone and RAL colors are matched
Two systems built for different jobs
Wikipedia's RAL colour standard article says that in 1927 the German Imperial Committee for Delivery and Quality Assurance created a collection of forty colours called RAL 840. It now has 210 colours in the RAL Classic range, and each has a four-digit code such as RAL 5015.
The Pantone article says the Pantone Matching System lets designers match a specific color during production regardless of the equipment, and that it includes 2,161 colors as of 2019. Pantone treats its color lists as its own intellectual property. The two systems were made for different media, industrial paint for RAL and print ink for Pantone, so they do not line up one for one.
What the tool compares
Each color is stored as LAB values. The tool measures Delta-E as the straight-line distance between two colors in LAB (the CIE76 formula), then lists the three nearest in the other system. It labels a distance under 3 as a good match, 3 to 6 as approximate and anything over 6 as a different character. Those cutoffs are the tool's own.
The tool holds 33 Pantone Solid Coated colors and 173 of the RAL Classic range. With so few Pantone colors, most RAL colors have no close neighbor. For example, PMS 286 C matches RAL 5002 at a distance of 8.8, and PMS 185 C matches RAL 3024 at 14.8. Both come out as a different character. A blue like RAL 5015 sits 27 away from its nearest Pantone entry in the list.
Close colors do show up as good matches. RAL 9010 Pure white and RAL 9016 Traffic white are 1.6 apart, so each is a good match for the other.
Limits
Treat the result as a rough guide, because the values are approximations and a screen cannot show a printed or painted color exactly. For signage, paint or print work, compare against a physical swatch under the lighting where it will be seen.
FAQ
Why do many colors show "different character"?
The two systems were built separately, and the tool lists only 33 Pantone colors. When no Pantone color in the list lies within a Delta-E of 6, the tool says so and does not pretend there is a match.
Can I rely on it for a physical project?
Use it for planning only. Confirm the final color against a physical swatch under real lighting before anything goes into production.
Why are RAL 9010 and RAL 9016 so close?
Both are white-family colors with nearly the same LAB values, Pure white at 96.0 / 0.2 / 3.5 and Traffic white at 96.7 / 0.1 / 2.1. Their Delta-E of 1.6 reflects how similar they are.