Color Banding Test Online
Are your gradients smooth, or striped? This color banding test displays full-screen gradients so you can spot banding, stepping, and 8-bit vs 10-bit color-depth issues on any monitor — free, in your browser.
Current gradient
Black → White 1/6
Click to start the banding test
Fullscreen · ← → arrows or swipe to change gradient
How to Read the Banding Test
A perfect display renders each gradient as a perfectly smooth fade. Visible steps or stripes are banding — a sign of limited color depth or poor calibration.
Smooth fade
No visible steps. Typical of a true 10-bit panel, or an 8-bit panel with good dithering.
Visible stripes
Banding — distinct horizontal bands instead of a continuous ramp. Common on 6-bit + FRC or poorly calibrated 8-bit panels.
Worst near black
Banding shows most in dark, near-black ramps where 8-bit color has the fewest distinct levels.
What Causes Color Banding
- 8-bit color depth. An 8-bit panel shows 16.7M colors — not always enough for subtle gradients, so steps appear. 10-bit (1.07 billion) eliminates most banding.
- Wrong color-depth setting. Your OS or GPU may be outputting 8-bit even on a 10-bit panel. Set the highest color depth available.
- Cable or port limits. Older HDMI at high resolution may limit bandwidth, dropping color depth. Use DisplayPort 1.4 / HDMI 2.1.
- Compression & dithering. Heavily compressed images or disabled dithering make banding worse. Test with the native gradient, not a photo.
How to Reduce Banding
- Enable 10-bit / deep color. In your GPU control panel and monitor OSD, turn on 10-bit color or "deep color" if the panel supports it.
- Use the right cable. DisplayPort 1.4 or HDMI 2.1 carry enough bandwidth for 10-bit at high resolution.
- Set native resolution. Non-native resolution forces scaling that can introduce banding. Always run at the panel's native resolution.
- Disable aggressive enhancements. Turn off dynamic contrast and extreme "vivid" modes — they crush subtle shades and worsen banding.
Related Tests
Banding overlaps with greyscale tint and pixel defects. Run these next for a full color-and-uniformity check.
Color Banding Test FAQ
Is a little banding normal?
On a standard 8-bit panel, faint banding in dark gradients is normal — it's a hardware limit, not a defect. True 10-bit panels, or 8-bit + good FRC dithering, render smooth gradients.
8-bit vs 10-bit — how do I tell?
If you see clear, evenly spaced stripes across the black-to-white ramp, you're likely on 6-bit or a poorly dithered 8-bit panel. A near-invisible or smooth ramp suggests 8-bit + FRC or true 10-bit. Check your GPU control panel for the actual output depth.
Why does banding show up in games but not this test?
Game banding is often from color compression in the game's rendering or a limited color space, not your monitor. If this gradient test is smooth but games band, the monitor is fine.
Will calibration remove banding?
Calibration fixes color accuracy and tint, not the number of distinct shades the panel can show. Banding from low bit depth can only be reduced by enabling 10-bit output, not by calibration.