Pixel Art Generator

Built on giventofly/pixelit
Overview

Pixel art generator converts photos into retro 8-bit style pixel images by mapping each region to a grid of colored blocks. Upload an image, adjust the pixel block size, toggle grayscale, or apply a limited color palette — the result downloads as PNG. All processing happens in the browser; no file is uploaded.

How Pixel Size Affects the Result

Pixel block size (range 2–25) is the most impactful parameter:

  • 2–4: subtle grid effect, original content still clearly recognizable — good for avatars or thumbnails
  • 5–8 (default 7): classic pixel art look, balances detail and blockiness — works well for portraits and landscapes
  • 9–15: pronounced retro game console style, suitable for themed graphics and meme creation
  • 16–25: heavily abstracted, original content barely recognizable — closer to mosaic

Larger values also reduce the output file size. Smaller values preserve more detail but produce heavier PNG files.

Grayscale and Palette Together

Enabling grayscale converts all colors to luminance values after pixelation, producing a black-and-white pixel image. When both grayscale and a palette are active, the palette mapping happens first, then the result is desaturated — yielding a monochrome pixel art effect similar to early handhelds.

Choosing a Palette

Each palette maps image colors to a fixed set of 8–32 colors, giving the image a specific retro aesthetic. The dropdown shows a color swatch preview for each palette before you select it.

Console-style palettes

  • Simulate Game Boy, NES, or SNES color constraints
  • 4–16 colors with high contrast
  • Best for game-style sprites and icons

Natural color palettes

  • More colors, smoother tone transitions
  • Better at preserving photo color information
  • Combined with grayscale gives a vintage film look

Getting the Best Result

  • Portraits: pixel size 6–8, no grayscale, a palette with richer colors
  • Game sprites: pixel size 8–12, choose the classic console palette matching the target hardware
  • Abstract art: pixel size 15–25, grayscale on, palette off

Adjusting the slider and releasing it re-renders automatically — no confirm button needed. Uploading a new image also triggers a fresh render using current settings.