Orbit: Pixel Inspector
Loupe, colour picker & ruler
Only for Mac
$1.99
Mac
See every pixel. Orbit follows your mouse cursor with a live Retina loupe, exact colour values and a pixel ruler. No clicks, no screenshots, just point.
Orbit is a pixel inspector that lives around your pointer.
Move the mouse and a small cluster of chips follows it. Together they show you exactly what is on screen at the true device-pixel resolution of your Retina display. There's nothing to click, nothing to capture and nothing to paste. Just point.
THE LOUPE
• A live, magnified view of the real pixels under the pointer. No smoothing, no guessing.
• The centre pixel is outlined so you always know which one you're reading.
• Turn on a pixel grid to count pixels and check alignment.
• Zoom from a wide 99 × 99 pixel view right down to 7 × 7.
COLOUR
• The exact sRGB colour of the pixel under the pointer, as hex (#1E90FF) and RGB (30 144 255).
• The chip fills with that colour, so you can compare shades at a glance.
RULER
• Measures how far the colour under the pointer runs horizontally and vertically, in device pixels.
• Instantly check the thickness of a line, the height of a divider or the width of a gap.
PIXEL-PERFECT CONTROL
• Step the inspected pixel one device pixel at a time with the arrow keys. That's finer than the pointer itself can move on a Retina display.
• Or move the pointer one point at a time.
DESIGNED TO STAY OUT OF THE WAY
• The chips glide after the pointer on a gentle spring and reposition themselves near the edges of the screen.
• Works across all your displays.
• Show or hide Orbit from anywhere with one shortcut, which you can change in Settings. It spirals in and out of view. Clicking Orbit in the Dock brings it back too.
• Resize the chips to suit your display.
KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
Every shortcut uses ⌃⌥⌘, and adding ⇧ gives the alternative. Show or hide works everywhere; the others work while Orbit is showing.
• ⌃⌥⌘Space: Show or hide Orbit (change it in Orbit › Settings)
• ⌃⌥⌘G: Pixel grid on or off
• ⌃⌥⌘H: Show the shortcuts overlay
• ⌃⌥⌘+ / ⌃⌥⌘−: Zoom the loupe in or out
• ⇧⌃⌥⌘+ / ⇧⌃⌥⌘−: Make the chips larger or smaller
• ⌃⌥⌘0: Reset size and zoom
• ⌃⌥⌘ Arrow keys: Move the inspected pixel by one device pixel
• ⇧⌃⌥⌘ Arrow keys: Move the pointer by one point
• ⌃⌥⌘Q: Quit Orbit
All of these are also in the menus.
PERFECT FOR
• Designers checking colours, spacing and alignment in real apps
• Developers verifying layouts pixel by pixel
• QA and accessibility reviewers checking contrast and sizing
• Anyone who has ever wondered "what colour is that?"
PRIVATE BY DESIGN
Orbit reads screen pixels only to show them to you, live. Nothing is recorded, saved or sent anywhere, and Orbit never connects to the internet. The only permission it needs is Screen Recording, so it can see the pixels.
Ratings & Reviews
- This app hasn’t received enough ratings or reviews to display an overview.
The developer, Gavin Matthews, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- Gavin Matthews
- Size
- 428.6 KB
- Category
- Developer Tools
- Compatibility
Requires macOS 15.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
- Mac
Requires macOS 15.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
- Mac
- Languages
- English
- Age Rating
4+
- 4+
- Copyright
- © 2026 Gavin Matthews

