Screen Ruler

Product Introduction

1. Screen Ruler is a Chrome extension designed as a comprehensive inspection suite for web developers and designers, enabling precise measurement of web elements and validation of design implementations. It provides tools to measure pixel dimensions, distances, margins, and paddings while displaying HTML/CSS properties and accessibility metrics. The extension integrates directly into the browser, allowing real-time analysis without leaving the workflow.
2. The core value of Screen Ruler lies in its ability to bridge the gap between design mockups and functional web implementations by offering pixel-perfect measurement and validation tools. It streamlines debugging and quality assurance by consolidating measurement, accessibility checks, color extraction, and CSS inspection into a single toolset. This reduces reliance on fragmented developer tools or external software, improving efficiency for technical users.

Main Features

1. Screen Ruler measures pixel dimensions and distances between elements using horizontal and vertical rulers with crosshair guides, enabling precise alignment validation. Users hover over elements to view real-time size, margin, padding, and structural HTML details like tag names, IDs, and classes. Selected elements lock measurements for comparative analysis, with responsive resizing to adapt to dynamic layouts.
2. The extension inspects computed CSS properties through a dedicated side panel, displaying values like font size, color, and positioning for the selected element. Users copy full CSS configurations to their clipboard for rapid code integration or debugging. This feature eliminates manual code tracing in browser developer tools.
3. Screen Ruler includes a color picker tool to sample and export hex, RGB, or HSL values from any on-screen element, aiding design consistency. PRO tier users unlock advanced tools like accessibility issue detection (WCAG contrast checks), asset extraction for images/SVGs, and box shadow visualization with layer breakdowns.

Problems Solved

1. Screen Ruler addresses the challenge of verifying design accuracy during web development, particularly for pixel-perfect alignment and spacing between elements. Developers often struggle to manually calculate margins or identify layout shifts across viewports, which this tool automates.
2. The primary target users are web developers and UI/UX designers who require precision in implementing and auditing web layouts. It also benefits QA engineers conducting accessibility audits or extracting design assets from live pages.
3. Typical use cases include validating responsive design breakpoints, debugging unexpected element spacing, extracting color palettes from client websites, and identifying accessibility violations like insufficient text-background contrast.

Unique Advantages

1. Unlike basic measurement extensions, Screen Ruler combines rulers, CSS inspection, accessibility auditing, and asset extraction in one tool, reducing context switching. Competing tools often focus solely on measurement or color picking, lacking integrated accessibility checks.
2. The PRO tier introduces innovative features like X-Ray Mode (outlining all page elements), animation timing analysis, and device viewport emulation for responsive testing. These go beyond standard measurement tools by addressing complex design-to-code translation challenges.
3. Competitive advantages include Chrome-specific optimizations like Offscreen API support for stable performance, keyboard shortcuts (Alt/Option + Shift + R) for quick activation, and direct integration with Chrome’s side panel for persistent CSS inspection during page interactions.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. How do I activate Screen Ruler? Screen Ruler can be toggled via the extension icon, right-click context menu, or keyboard shortcut (Alt/Option + Shift + R). The tool remains active until manually disabled, allowing continuous measurement across page navigations.
2. Is Screen Ruler compatible with all browsers? It is optimized for Google Chrome 116+ and Chromium browsers supporting Side Panel and Offscreen APIs. Firefox or Safari compatibility is untested, and some PRO features may require Chrome-specific APIs.
3. What distinguishes the PRO version? PRO adds Floating Inspector (detailed element metrics), WCAG contrast checks with fix recommendations, asset extraction for images/SVGs, and layout grid overlays. These features target professional workflows requiring advanced design-system validation.
4. Can Screen Ruler detect accessibility issues? The PRO version automatically flags WCAG 2.1 contrast failures in selected elements, providing hex code alternatives to resolve issues. It does not replace full accessibility audits but highlights common visibility problems.
5. Are keyboard shortcuts customizable? Yes, users modify shortcuts via Chrome’s extension settings (chrome://extensions/shortcuts). Default shortcuts include Alt/Option + Up/Down for parent/child element navigation and Escape to clear selections.