The fastest way to swap one color for another
Photopea has a Select by Color tool that lets you pick one color and change it to another in seconds. Open your image, click the Select by Color tool (it looks like a finger pointing at colored squares), click the color you want to replace, then use the Hue-Saturation adjustment to shift it to a new color. The whole process takes under a minute for most images.
If you need more control—say, you want to change only the red in a logo but leave the red in a person's shirt alone—Photopea also has a Hue-Saturation slider that targets specific color ranges. This method is slower but gives you the precision to avoid accidents.
Key Takeaways
- The Select by Color tool finds and highlights every pixel of a color you click, so you can change them all at once without touching other colors nearby.
- After selecting a color, use Hue-Saturation (under Image > Adjustments) to shift it to a new hue, or use the Fill tool to replace it with a solid color.
- The Hue-Saturation slider lets you target a specific color range (reds, blues, greens) without selecting anything first, which is useful when colors are scattered across the image.
- If the color you want to replace has slight variations in shade, increase the Fuzziness slider in the Select by Color tool to catch them all in one click.
Using Select by Color for a quick swap
Open your image in Photopea and look for the Select by Color tool in the left toolbar. It sits near the Magic Wand and looks like a hand pointing at colored squares. Click it to set up it.
Now click anywhere on the color you want to replace. Photopea will highlight every pixel of that color (or very close to it) with marching ants—the animated dotted line that shows what is selected. If the color has slight variations—like a shirt that is darker blue in the shadows and lighter blue in the highlights—you may need to increase the Fuzziness slider at the top of the screen. Higher fuzziness catches more similar shades in one click.
Once the color is selected, you have two choices. You can fill it with a solid new color by clicking the foreground color swatch, choosing your new color, then going to Edit > Fill with Foreground Color. Or you can go to Image > Adjustments > Hue-Saturation to shift the color to a new hue while keeping the original shading and depth.
Using Hue-Saturation to target a specific color range
If the color you want to change is scattered across the image or mixed with other colors, the Hue-Saturation tool gives you more control. Go to Image > Adjustments > Hue-Saturation. A panel will open on the right side.
At the top of the Hue-Saturation panel, you will see a dropdown that says "Master." Click it and choose the color range you want to change—Reds, Yellows, Greens, Cyans, Blues, or Magentas. Photopea will now only affect pixels in that color family, leaving everything else untouched.
Drag the Hue slider left or right to shift the color. Drag Saturation to make it more or less vivid. Drag Lightness to brighten or darken it. You will see the change in real time on your image. When it looks right, click outside the panel or press Enter to explore it.
Adjusting fuzziness to catch all the shades
When you use Select by Color, the Fuzziness slider controls how similar a pixel has to be to the color you clicked in order to be selected. At 0, only pixels that are nearly identical to your click will be selected. At 100, almost everything will be selected.
If you click a blue button and only the brightest part gets selected, increase fuzziness to 20 or 30 and click again. The selection will now include the darker blue in the shadows. If you go too high and start selecting colors you did not mean to change, lower it back down. There is no penalty for trying a few times.
Filling with a solid color versus shifting the hue
After you select a color with Select by Color, you can replace it in two ways, and each one looks different.
Filling with a solid color makes the selected area one flat shade. This works well for logos, buttons, or anything with solid colors. Click your foreground color swatch (the colored square in the left toolbar), choose a new color, then go to Edit > Fill with Foreground Color. The old color becomes the new one when ready.
Using Hue-Saturation keeps the original shading and depth. If you selected a blue shirt and shift the hue to red, the shadows and highlights stay in the same places—only the color family changes. This looks more natural for photographs and objects with gradients. Go to Image > Adjustments > Hue-Saturation and drag the Hue slider.
Fixing mistakes and refining your selection
If you selected too much or too little, you do not have to start over. With the selection still active (marching ants still visible), you can add to it or subtract from it. Hold Shift and click to add more pixels to the selection. Hold Alt (or Option on Mac) and click to remove pixels from the selection.
If you filled or adjusted the color and it does not look right, press Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) to undo. Then adjust the fuzziness, try a different color, or use the other method (solid fill instead of hue shift, or vice versa). Photopea lets you undo as many steps as you need.
When to use each method
| Situation | Best Method | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Changing a logo color or solid-colored object | Select by Color + Fill | Fast and gives a clean, uniform new color |
| Changing a shirt or object in a photo | Select by Color + Hue-Saturation | Keeps shadows and highlights, looks natural |
| Changing all reds (or all blues) in an image | Hue-Saturation with color range selected | No selection needed, affects the whole color family at once |
| Fine-tuning a color that is already selected | Hue-Saturation | Lets you adjust hue, saturation, and lightness separately |
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my selection include colors I did not want to change?
The Fuzziness slider is too high. Lower it to 10 or 15 and click the color again. If the color you want to change has a wide range of shades, you may need to click multiple times—once on the bright area, once on the shadow area—and use Shift+click to add both to the selection.
Can I change a color without selecting it first?
Yes. Use Image > Adjustments > Hue-Saturation, choose the color range from the dropdown (Reds, Blues, Greens, etc.), and drag the Hue slider. This affects all pixels in that color family without any selection.
What if the color I want to change is very similar to a color I want to keep?
Use Hue-Saturation with a specific color range instead of Select by Color. It gives you finer control over which shades are affected. You can also try Select by Color with very low fuzziness and click multiple times to build up the selection carefully.
Does Photopea have a "replace color" tool like Photoshop?
Photopea does not have a dedicated Replace Color tool, but Select by Color + Hue-Saturation does the same job. Select the color, then use Hue-Saturation to shift it. The result is identical.
Can I change a color in only part of the image?
Yes. Use the Rectangle Select or Lasso tool to select just the area you want to change, then use Select by Color or Hue-Saturation inside that selection. The color change will only affect the selected area.