Question 1

What is TrueColours?

Accepted Answer

TrueColours helps you find pens for colour-by-number books. Choose a page and your pen sets to see the closest pen for each colour. You can change any suggestion, save your matches and add a photo of your page.

Question 2

Will TrueColours become a paid app?

Accepted Answer

Right now, we’re focused on making TrueColours as good as we can before we consider paid plans. In the meantime, we’ve added affiliate links to bookshops. We earn a commission on qualifying purchases through these links.

Question 3

What are pen matches?

Accepted Answer

Pen matches tell you which pen to use for each number, letter or symbol in the book’s colour key. TrueColours suggests matches from your selected sets. If the book’s colours are unavailable, choose Pick colours from a photo to select them from a photo of the printed key. You can also choose pens yourself.

Question 4

Which pen sets can I use?

Accepted Answer

See all available sets in Pen sets. The list has pen sets and pencil sets. If yours is missing, request it below. Automatic matching uses standard pens. In Settings → Pen matching, you can let it also use neon, glitter or metallic pens. You can always choose these pens yourself, but a flat colour preview cannot show their effects.

Question 5

Is my colouring book available?

Accepted Answer

Search Books for your book and edition. Check the cover, language, year and ISBN, because editions can have different pages and printed colour keys. If your edition is missing, request it below. Include the title, publisher, illustrator and edition or ISBN, if you know them. If a book has more than one edition, open it and choose the line with the year and ISBN (Change book version). Then choose the cover that matches your copy. If a drawing, page number or printed colour key differs from your copy, choose Report an edition mismatch in Book options.

Question 6

How do I get started?

Accepted Answer

Select your book, page and pen sets. TrueColours finds the closest pens for the book’s colours. If those colours are unavailable, add them from a photo of the printed colour key or choose pens yourself. You can also browse the Gallery and use someone else’s shared matches. Pens outside your active sets may be unavailable.

Question 7

How do I join the beta?

Accepted Answer

When signup is open, create an account. Before beta opens, join the waitlist. If signup is paused, beta users can still sign in.

Question 8

Do I need a password to sign in?

Accepted Answer

No. TrueColours does not use passwords. Choose Sign in, then Continue with email. Enter your email address, then enter the 6 digits from the email we send you. You cannot add a password to your account.

Question 9

How do I add my pens or pencils?

Accepted Answer

Add your pens and pencils as sets. Open Pen sets, choose All pen sets, then choose your set to add it. The set now shows in My pen sets. TrueColours compares the saved colours of your sets with the colours in your book or photo. You can change any suggested match. If your set is missing, request it below. Tell us the brand, the set name or model, and how many pens or pencils it has.

Question 10

What can I do if my pens or pencils have no numbers?

Accepted Answer

Give each pen your own label. Open Pen sets, choose your set in My pen sets, and open Edit labels. Type a label of up to 6 characters for each pen, then choose Save labels. To label many pens at once, choose Paste labels and type one label per line. Your labels show on your own pen cards. Only you see them. A label changes only the name. It does not change the saved colour that TrueColours uses for matching. Some colour squares in Edit pens are only a rough preview, not the exact shade.

Question 11

Where do I find my saved and completed pages?

Accepted Answer

Open Collection, then Books, and choose My books. Open a book to see its pages. The book shows how many pages you completed. Completed pages have a check mark and offer View pen matches. To go back to your last page, choose Colour Now, then Continue colouring. If you saved a page photo, choose My photos in the book to see it. Your photos are also on your Profile. A page counts as completed when you finish it or save a page photo.

Question 12

How do I change pen matches?

Accepted Answer

Select a page to match your pens. When the book’s colours are available, TrueColours fills in the rows and suggests pens. You can change each pen. Printed labels from the book stay fixed. If the book’s colours are unavailable, choose Pick colours from a photo in the notice above the pen list, or choose a pen in each empty row. You can combine both methods. Printed labels stay fixed. On an unfinished page with an editable starter key, you can change, add or remove your own rows.

Question 13

Can I use more than one pen set on a page?

Accepted Answer

Yes. On the page, open Choose pen sets. Turn on every set you want to use for this page. TrueColours then suggests pens from all of those sets. Sets of pens and sets of pencils can work together. Neon, glitter and metallic pens are off for automatic matching. To turn them on, go to Settings → Pen matching. You can always choose these pens yourself. To add a set you do not have yet, choose All pen sets in the same menu.

Question 14

Why does TrueColours not choose pens for some pages?

Accepted Answer

TrueColours fills an empty row when it has a usable colour for that row, or when enough qualified community choices exist for it. Some pages have no colours yet, or only approximate colours. These pages can still get pens from community choices. When some pens are still missing, the notice above the pen list can say These pen matches use community pen choices. When every pen is filled, this notice stays hidden. When a row has no usable colour and no community choice, the notice says You can choose pens or pick colours from a photo. or These colours may not be fully accurate. To get colours, choose Pick colours from a photo, then Take photo or Upload photo of your printed colour key. Pick from the Gallery shows only when the Gallery has photos of this page. You can also choose a pen for each number yourself. A row can also stay empty when your selected sets have no pen that fits. Add sets with Choose pen sets. Neon, glitter and metallic pens stay off until you turn them on in Settings → Pen matching.

Question 15

Why is a saved pen marked unavailable?

Accepted Answer

A saved pen can be unavailable for these reasons: Set not owned, Pen switched off, Set restricted or Set unavailable. TrueColours keeps your saved choice. It does not replace the pen for you. The notice on the page shows how many saved pens need attention. Choose Add this set to add a missing set. Or choose Find other pens to look for other pens in the sets you chose for this page. If no pen fits, the saved pen stays. Finding other pens also changes pens you locked. You can undo a replacement, but undo does not bring back a deleted page photo. Finding other pens is not available on a completed page. Make the page unfinished first. TrueColours then asks Mark this page unfinished? If the page has a page photo, this deletes the photo for good. To switch a pen on again, open Collection → Pen sets, choose the pencil button (Edit pens) on your set, and use the Availability tab.

Question 16

How do I save and share a page?

Accepted Answer

Save your pen matches, then add a photo of your page whenever you like. When you add a photo, Show photo in the Gallery is selected. Clear it before saving to keep the photo private. You can change this later. TrueColours may ask whether the photo uses your saved pen matches.

Question 17

How does matching learn from the community?

Accepted Answer

TrueColours first looks at the pen sets you selected. For each colour, it prefers a favourite from the community. A pen is a favourite when at least five different people chose it on purpose and confirmed it on a completed page. If a colour has no favourite, TrueColours uses the closest colour match. For a pure-black colour, you can use any black pen. These rules keep matching fair. One person counts once, even when they use a pen many times. An unchanged suggestion does not count, unless the person chose or locked the pen. A blend of pens does not count. A choice applies to the same reviewed colour in the same book. Some reviewed books share an exact colour, so a choice can apply to both. Matching never changes a pen you already saved. It can fill an empty row. A photo keeps its confirmed pen list while you try other pen matches. Confirm a new list to update the photo. If a list is not accurate, its pens stay hidden and do not count as community choices. Your saved choices stay available to restore.

Question 18

How do I report a wrong colour or label?

Accepted Answer

Open the page. Choose More page actions, then More options, then Report a problem with this page. This works for book pages. Help & feedback opens with the page name filled in. Tell us the book and edition, the page, the number or symbol, the colour or pen you expected, and what you see. In the meantime, you can change any pen yourself.

Question 19

Can I block someone?

Accepted Answer

Open their profile menu and choose Block user. While signed in, you will no longer see each other’s profiles, photos, pen matches or interactions. Existing follows, likes, bookmarks and direct social notifications are removed. Unblocking does not restore them. Public content may still be visible while signed out. Manage blocks in Settings → Blocked users.

Question 20

Can I get a refund?

Accepted Answer

Each payment has a 30-day money-back guarantee, including renewals. Request a refund below. You do not need to give a reason. See the Refund policy for details.

Question 21

How do I cancel my subscription?

Accepted Answer

Go to Settings → Billing and choose Cancel subscription. Review the changes, then confirm. Your full access continues until the end of the period you have paid for.

Question 22

Can I use TrueColours on my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Use a modern browser on your phone, tablet or computer. You can also install TrueColours from your browser, without an app-store download. The installation help shows the steps for your browser and device, with pictures. If your browser cannot install apps, open TrueColours in Safari, Chrome or Edge. An internet connection is still required.

Question 23

Does TrueColours work offline?

Accepted Answer

TrueColours needs internet access to open pages and save matches, even when installed. If your connection drops, keep the page open and reconnect. Check that your changes have saved before leaving. Closing or reloading the page may lose unsaved changes.

Question 24

How are pen colours sourced and matched?

Accepted Answer

For colour matching, TrueColours uses reviewed community colours first. If these are unavailable, it uses saved colours derived from scans. If neither source is available, it uses reviewed manufacturer chart colours. We record the source of each reference colour. Community colours and chart colours are not physical colour measurements. TrueColours compares the book’s colour, or the colour you select in a photo, with these stored references. It does not compare the colour squares on your screen. By default, automatic matching uses standard pens only. Paper, how you apply colour, the age of your pens, production batches and light can change how colours look on paper. Charts and book images can also differ from the actual colours. Test your pen on the paper before filling a large area.

Question 25

Why does a colour look different on screen?

Accepted Answer

A screen cannot show every colour accurately. Your display settings, light, paper and how you apply colour also affect what you see. TrueColours uses stored colour references to find matches. The square on screen is only a preview. Follow the pen label and test your pen on your paper.

Question 26

How can I contact you?

Accepted Answer

Send us a message through Help or email help@truecolours.app. We read every message and reply as soon as we can.

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