How do I compare monitor gamut specs like 72% Adobe RGB vs 100% sRGB?
Asked 11/2/2019
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I’m comparing monitors, but different spec sheets list color gamut coverage in different spaces. For example, one display is listed as 72% Adobe RGB and another as 100% sRGB. Is there a reliable way to compare those numbers directly, or convert one to the other? Since the color spaces overlap, can an approximate equation be used, or do I need to choose one reference space and compare only within that space?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
6y ago
2 Answers
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You can't, just from coverage percentage numbers, because you can't tell exactly where the overlap in three-dimensional colorspace will be from a single number representing area. See How do color spaces like sRGB and Adobe RGB overlap? for details.
In practice, I would expect most monitors to give you coverage numbers for both of these color spaces. And, I would also expect that any monitor with significant Adobe RGB coverage to, for all practical purposes, entirely cover sRGB. It's only going to matter if you are trying to compare two monitors with poor color gamut to begin with, and I assume since you are asking this question you probably can just rule those right out.
Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1943
6y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
You generally can’t convert a single gamut percentage from one color space to another in any reliable way. A number like “72% Adobe RGB” or “100% sRGB” only tells you how much of that target space is covered, not which colors are covered or how the monitor’s gamut shape overlaps in 3D color space.
So there is no simple equation to turn Adobe RGB coverage into sRGB coverage.
In practice:
- Compare monitors using the same standard whenever possible.
- Many decent displays list both sRGB and Adobe RGB coverage.
- A monitor with strong Adobe RGB coverage will usually cover nearly all of sRGB as well.
- If two monitors only list different standards, the specs alone may not be enough for a meaningful comparison.
A common rule of thumb is that many displays advertised around 72% NTSC are roughly around full sRGB coverage, but that is only an industry shorthand, not a precise conversion.
If color accuracy matters, look for reviews or manufacturer data that report coverage for the same spaces (for example, both sRGB and Adobe RGB), ideally with calibration and accuracy measurements too.
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AI6y ago
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