How is the colour of beer measured?

In a laboratory, by light absorbance at 430 nm through a standard cell. The American Society of Brewing Chemists method reports that as SRM and the European Brewery Convention method as EBC, and because the two cells and scales differ, EBC is about 1.97 times SRM. At home nobody measures absorbance: you either estimate from the grain bill with the Morey equation, as this calculator does, or hold a glass against a printed SRM colour chart in daylight, which is good to within a few SRM.

What is the beer colour scale from light to dark?

Roughly: 2 to 3 SRM (4 to 6 EBC) pale straw for light lagers, 4 to 6 SRM gold for pale ales and helles, 9 to 15 SRM (18 to 30 EBC) amber for IPAs, amber ales and bocks, 18 to 24 SRM (35 to 47 EBC) brown for brown ales and porters, and 30 to 40+ SRM (60 to 80 EBC) deep brown to black for stouts. The chart above lists each step with the styles that usually sit there.

How accurate is a calculated SRM?

Good enough to tell an amber from a brown, and not much better. Morey is a fit to observed data, and real colour also depends on boil length, mash pH and how much caramelisation happens in the kettle. Treat the number as a design target rather than a prediction of what you will pour.

What is the difference between SRM and EBC?

They are two scales measuring the same thing, used in different places. EBC is roughly twice SRM, and the conversion here uses the published factor of 1.97. American recipes usually quote SRM and European ones EBC, so converting matters mainly when you are reading a recipe from somewhere else.

Why does a little dark malt change so much?

Because colour contribution scales with both weight and the malt colour rating, and roasted malts carry ratings hundreds of times higher than base malt. Half a pound of a 500 Lovibond roasted barley contributes more colour than eight pounds of a 2 Lovibond pale malt. That is why dark beers are built with small quantities of very dark grain.

Calculator

Beer Colour Calculator and EBC Chart (SRM to EBC)

Updated 2026-10-07 · BrewGearCalc

Quick answer

Beer colour is measured in SRM (American) or EBC (European), both from light absorbance at 430 nm; EBC is SRM x 1.97. A pale lager sits near 2 to 4 SRM (4 to 8 EBC), an amber ale 10 to 15 SRM (20 to 30 EBC), a porter 20 to 30 SRM (40 to 60 EBC) and a stout 30 to 40+ SRM (60 to 80 EBC). Enter your grain bill below and the Morey equation estimates where your beer lands.

The formula

MCU = sum(lb x degrees Lovibond) / gallonsSRM = 1.4922 x MCU^0.6859EBC = SRM x 1.97

Morey is a published empirical fit, not a physical law, and it loses meaning past roughly SRM 50. Beyond that point the calculator says so rather than reporting a precise looking number for a beer that is simply black. A small amount of a very dark malt moves colour far more than a large amount of a pale one, which is why the weighting matters.

Beer colour chart: SRM, EBC and the colour you see
SRM	EBC	Colour	Typical styles
2	4	Pale straw	Light lager, pilsner
3	6	Straw	Blonde ale, witbier
4	8	Pale gold	Helles, cream ale
6	12	Deep gold	Pale ale, saison
9	18	Pale amber	IPA, ESB
12	24	Medium amber	Amber ale, Vienna lager
15	30	Deep amber	Red ale, bock
18	35	Amber brown	Brown ale, dunkel
20	39	Brown	Porter
24	47	Ruby brown	Robust porter, doppelbock
30	59	Deep brown	Stout, schwarzbier
40	79	Black	Imperial stout

What rests on a standard and what rests on convention

Standard The Morey equation and the SRM to EBC conversion are published.

A standard is a published equation, a published constant or a manufacturer specification. A convention is widely repeated brewing practice with no governing document behind it. Both are useful. Confusing one for the other is how a habit ends up being quoted as a fact.

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Frequently asked questions

How is the colour of beer measured?: In a laboratory, by light absorbance at 430 nm through a standard cell. The American Society of Brewing Chemists method reports that as SRM and the European Brewery Convention method as EBC, and because the two cells and scales differ, EBC is about 1.97 times SRM. At home nobody measures absorbance: you either estimate from the grain bill with the Morey equation, as this calculator does, or hold a glass against a printed SRM colour chart in daylight, which is good to within a few SRM.
What is the beer colour scale from light to dark?: Roughly: 2 to 3 SRM (4 to 6 EBC) pale straw for light lagers, 4 to 6 SRM gold for pale ales and helles, 9 to 15 SRM (18 to 30 EBC) amber for IPAs, amber ales and bocks, 18 to 24 SRM (35 to 47 EBC) brown for brown ales and porters, and 30 to 40+ SRM (60 to 80 EBC) deep brown to black for stouts. The chart above lists each step with the styles that usually sit there.
How accurate is a calculated SRM?: Good enough to tell an amber from a brown, and not much better. Morey is a fit to observed data, and real colour also depends on boil length, mash pH and how much caramelisation happens in the kettle. Treat the number as a design target rather than a prediction of what you will pour.
What is the difference between SRM and EBC?: They are two scales measuring the same thing, used in different places. EBC is roughly twice SRM, and the conversion here uses the published factor of 1.97. American recipes usually quote SRM and European ones EBC, so converting matters mainly when you are reading a recipe from somewhere else.
Why does a little dark malt change so much?: Because colour contribution scales with both weight and the malt colour rating, and roasted malts carry ratings hundreds of times higher than base malt. Half a pound of a 500 Lovibond roasted barley contributes more colour than eight pounds of a 2 Lovibond pale malt. That is why dark beers are built with small quantities of very dark grain.

Researched from published brewing formulas, manufacturer specifications and verified owner reviews. This is general guidance, not professional advice.