You need Adobe Illustrator (CC 2020 or later) and Adobe Photoshop installed on the same machine. The plugin runs as a CEP panel inside Illustrator and uses Photoshop for pixel-level color analysis. You can open Photoshop before launching the extension, or it will open automatically when you click Analyze Artwork.

Swatch Mill analyzes artwork at the pixel level through Photoshop, which processes colors in RGB. If you load a CMYK .ASE file the plugin will warn you and the color matching will be inaccurate. To convert in Illustrator: File → Document Color Mode → RGB Color, then re-save your ASE library. In Photoshop: Image → Mode → RGB Color before exporting.

Download the signed ZXP package from your purchase confirmation. Install it using the Adobe Extension Manager (for older CC versions) or drag it into the UXP Developer Tool. Full step-by-step instructions are in the documentation.

Swatch Mill handles vector shapes, placed Photoshop files (.psd), PNG images, and JPG images — all in a single analysis pass. Select the artwork inside your artboard and click Analyze Artwork. For best coverage results, fit your artwork to the artboard bounds before analyzing.

Three output types are available, each added as a new artboard to your Photoshop document: Print Mill Sheet (color spec sheet formatted for mill submission), Graphic Mill Sheet (spec sheet with linked artwork imagery), and Presentation Fill (your artwork tiled as a repeat pattern). You can optionally add a company logo (620×125 px recommended) to the top-left cell of mill sheets.

After analysis, each matched swatch shows the percentage of your artwork it covers. The Min % slider lets you hide swatches below a coverage threshold — useful for filtering out incidental colors before you generate your mill sheet.

The Personal license covers individual use on personal or freelance projects. The Commercial license includes the same features but authorizes use on commercial and client projects, adds priority email support, and allows the license to be transferred to one other machine.

The Personal license is a single-seat license tied to one machine. The Commercial license can be transferred to one additional machine (useful if you work across a desktop and a laptop). Team licenses cover 5+ seats — contact us for pricing.

Your license is perpetual — you keep the version you purchased forever with no additional cost. After the first year, major version updates may be paid upgrades at a discounted rate for existing customers. Minor bug-fix releases are always free.