ArgyllCMS vs ColourSpace

ArgyllCMS is a free, open-source ICC-compatible color management system for creating profiles and calibrating devices. Its command-line tools support scanners, cameras, film recorders, displays, and RGB, CMY and CMYK printers. It can create device-link profiles with options such as video calibration standards and 3D LUTs, and work with spectral samples, selectable illuminants and observer types, and paper fluorescent-whitener compensation. Color conversion tools handle 8-bit raster data and fully accurate 16-bit conversion. Documentation lists direct support for measurement instruments from JETI, Klein, X-Rite and Calibrite, DataColor and other manufacturers; some chart results can be converted into Argyll CGATS format. ArgyllCMS runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, but does not include a graphical interface. DisplayCAL, The Little Argyll GUI and CoCa are listed as front ends that use it. The package is licensed under AGPLv3; commercial licensing is available for code copyrighted by Graeme Gill through ArgyllPRO. On Linux, native display calibration and profiling under Wayland are not currently supported; the maker recommends X11 for color-managed displays.

ColourSpace is display calibration and colour management software for professional film, post-production, broadcast, medical, Pro AV, and home cinema work. It profiles display performance and uses those measurements to generate calibration LUTs. Interactive volumetric 3D graphs help assess measured colour points and their errors; higher license levels support native LUT generation at 1024³ and beyond. The maker lists integrations with displays and video systems including ASUS ProArt, EIZO, BenQ, LG TVs, AJA ColorBox, Lumagen Radiance, and madVR Envy. ColourSpace is a native Windows x64 application. The maker says Mac use is possible through full Windows emulation and describes a native macOS version as in development. ColourSpace ZRO is free for manual calibration and verification, but has no LUT capability, volumetric graphs, or calibration reports. Standard licenses cover one PC, require internet access for activation and periodic checks, and can be moved through up to five deactivation and activation cycles. Pricing is listed from £125.