diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 4da87e8c..6edd9851 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -46,10 +46,10 @@ If you want to use jsQR to scan a webcam stream you'll need to extract the [`Ima
 
 ## Usage
 
-jsQR exports a method that takes in 3 arguments representing the image data you wish to decode.
+jsQR exports a method that takes in 3 arguments representing the image data you wish to decode. Additionally it can take an options object to further configure scanning behavior.
 
 ```javascript
-const code = jsQR(imageData, width, height);
+const code = jsQR(imageData, width, height, options?);
 
 if (code) {
   console.log("Found QR code", code);
@@ -61,7 +61,10 @@ if (code) {
 As such the length of this array should be `4 * width * height`.
 This data is in the same form as the [`ImageData`](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/ImageData) interface, and it's also [commonly](https://www.npmjs.com/package/jpeg-js#decoding-jpegs) [returned](https://github.com/lukeapage/pngjs/blob/master/README.md#property-data) by node modules for reading images.
 - `width` - The width of the image you wish to decode.
-- `height` The height of the image you wish to decode.
+- `height` - The height of the image you wish to decode.
+- `options` (optional) - Additional options.
+  - `attemptInverted` - (default: `true`) - Should jsQR attempt to invert the image to find QR codes with white modules on black backgrounds instead of the black modules on white background. This option defaults to true for backwards compatibility but causes a ~50% performance hit, and will probably be disabled in future versions.
+  - `retrieveColors` - (default: `false`) - Should jsQR include the colors used in the QR code in its output. This can slow down scanning as every pixel of the QR code is sampled and converted into the CIELab* color space for averaging.
 
 ### Return value
 If a QR is able to be decoded the library will return an object with the following keys.
@@ -73,6 +76,7 @@ Has points for the following locations.
   - Corners - `topRightCorner`/`topLeftCorner`/`bottomRightCorner`/`bottomLeftCorner`;
   - Finder patterns - `topRightFinderPattern`/`topLeftFinderPattern`/`bottomLeftFinderPattern`
   - May also have a point for the `bottomRightAlignmentPattern` assuming one exists and can be located.
+- `colors` (not included by default, see the `options` argument) - An object with `qr` and `background` keys containing the Uint8ClampedArray RGBA representations of the average colors used in the QR code (e.g. `[0, 0, 0, 255]` and `[255, 255, 255, 255]` respectively).
 
 Because the library is written in [typescript](http://www.typescriptlang.org/) you can also view the [type definitions](./dist/index.d.ts) to understand the API.
 
diff --git a/dist/color-retriever/index.d.ts b/dist/color-retriever/index.d.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d2bfa159
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dist/color-retriever/index.d.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { Extracted } from "../extractor";
+import { QRLocation } from "../locator";
+export interface QRColors {
+    qr: RGBColor;
+    background: RGBColor;
+}
+export interface RGBColor {
+    r: number;
+    g: number;
+    b: number;
+}
+interface CIELabColor {
+    L: number;
+    a: number;
+    b: number;
+}
+export declare function retrieveColors(location: QRLocation, extracted: Extracted, sourceData: Uint8ClampedArray, sourceWidth: number): QRColors;
+export declare function rgbToLab(rgb: RGBColor): CIELabColor;
+export declare function labToRGB(lab: CIELabColor): RGBColor;
+export {};
diff --git a/dist/decoder/decodeData/index.d.ts b/dist/decoder/decodeData/index.d.ts
index 732b0f9b..83fb8935 100644
--- a/dist/decoder/decodeData/index.d.ts
+++ b/dist/decoder/decodeData/index.d.ts
@@ -21,6 +21,6 @@ export declare enum Mode {
     Alphanumeric = "alphanumeric",
     Byte = "byte",
     Kanji = "kanji",
-    ECI = "eci",
+    ECI = "eci"
 }
 export declare function decode(data: Uint8ClampedArray, version: number): DecodedQR;
diff --git a/dist/extractor/index.d.ts b/dist/extractor/index.d.ts
index d1ee205e..e96807c3 100644
--- a/dist/extractor/index.d.ts
+++ b/dist/extractor/index.d.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,7 @@
 import { BitMatrix } from "../BitMatrix";
-import { QRLocation } from "../locator";
-export declare function extract(image: BitMatrix, location: QRLocation): {
+import { Point, QRLocation } from "../locator";
+export interface Extracted {
     matrix: BitMatrix;
-    mappingFunction: (x: number, y: number) => {
-        x: number;
-        y: number;
-    };
-};
+    mappingFunction: (x: number, y: number) => Point;
+}
+export declare function extract(image: BitMatrix, location: QRLocation): Extracted;
diff --git a/dist/index.d.ts b/dist/index.d.ts
index 4de5ec6b..d89e1fdd 100644
--- a/dist/index.d.ts
+++ b/dist/index.d.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { QRColors } from "./color-retriever";
 import { Chunks } from "./decoder/decodeData";
 import { Point } from "./locator";
 export interface QRCode {
@@ -14,6 +15,11 @@ export interface QRCode {
         bottomLeftFinderPattern: Point;
         bottomRightAlignmentPattern?: Point;
     };
+    colors?: QRColors;
 }
-declare function jsQR(data: Uint8ClampedArray, width: number, height: number): QRCode | null;
+export interface Options {
+    attemptInverted?: boolean;
+    retrieveColors?: boolean;
+}
+declare function jsQR(data: Uint8ClampedArray, width: number, height: number, options?: Options): QRCode | null;
 export default jsQR;
diff --git a/dist/jsQR.js b/dist/jsQR.js
index 429afeac..1a017891 100644
--- a/dist/jsQR.js
+++ b/dist/jsQR.js
@@ -228,6 +228,7 @@ var GenericGFPoly = /** @class */ (function () {
         return this.coefficients[this.coefficients.length - 1 - degree];
     };
     GenericGFPoly.prototype.addOrSubtract = function (other) {
+        var _a;
         if (this.isZero()) {
             return other;
         }
@@ -248,7 +249,6 @@ var GenericGFPoly = /** @class */ (function () {
             sumDiff[i] = GenericGF_1.addOrSubtractGF(smallerCoefficients[i - lengthDiff], largerCoefficients[i]);
         }
         return new GenericGFPoly(this.field, sumDiff);
-        var _a;
     };
     GenericGFPoly.prototype.multiply = function (scalar) {
         if (scalar === 0) {
@@ -328,10 +328,11 @@ exports.default = GenericGFPoly;
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var binarizer_1 = __webpack_require__(4);
-var decoder_1 = __webpack_require__(5);
-var extractor_1 = __webpack_require__(11);
-var locator_1 = __webpack_require__(12);
-function scan(matrix) {
+var color_retriever_1 = __webpack_require__(5);
+var decoder_1 = __webpack_require__(6);
+var extractor_1 = __webpack_require__(12);
+var locator_1 = __webpack_require__(13);
+function scan(matrix, sourceData, scanOptions) {
     var location = locator_1.locate(matrix);
     if (!location) {
         return null;
@@ -341,7 +342,7 @@ function scan(matrix) {
     if (!decoded) {
         return null;
     }
-    return {
+    var output = {
         binaryData: decoded.bytes,
         data: decoded.text,
         chunks: decoded.chunks,
@@ -356,12 +357,24 @@ function scan(matrix) {
             bottomRightAlignmentPattern: location.alignmentPattern,
         },
     };
+    if (scanOptions.retrieveColors) {
+        output.colors = color_retriever_1.retrieveColors(location, extracted, sourceData, matrix.width);
+    }
+    return output;
 }
-function jsQR(data, width, height) {
+var defaultOptions = {
+    attemptInverted: true,
+    retrieveColors: false,
+};
+function jsQR(data, width, height, options) {
+    var actualOpts = defaultOptions;
+    Object.keys(options || {}).forEach(function (opt) {
+        actualOpts[opt] = options[opt];
+    });
     var binarized = binarizer_1.binarize(data, width, height);
-    var result = scan(binarized);
-    if (!result) {
-        result = scan(binarized.getInverted());
+    var result = scan(binarized, data, actualOpts);
+    if (!result && actualOpts.attemptInverted) {
+        result = scan(binarized.getInverted(), data, actualOpts);
     }
     return result;
 }
@@ -483,11 +496,177 @@ exports.binarize = binarize;
 
 "use strict";
 
+Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
+/* Retrieves the colors that make up a scanned QR code. RGB (assumed to be sRGB) values are converted to the CIELab
+color space for averaging (with no regard for alpha), and then converted back to RGB. */
+function retrieveColors(location, extracted, sourceData, sourceWidth) {
+    var qrColor = { L: 0, a: 0, b: 0 };
+    var backgroundColor = { L: 0, a: 0, b: 0 };
+    var qrPixels = 0;
+    var backgroundPixels = 0;
+    for (var y = 0; y < location.dimension; y++) {
+        for (var x = 0; x < location.dimension; x++) {
+            var sourcePixel = extracted.mappingFunction(x + 0.5, y + 0.5);
+            var sourcePixelOffset = ((Math.floor(sourcePixel.y) * sourceWidth) + Math.floor(sourcePixel.x)) * 4;
+            var sourceColor = rgbToLab({ r: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset],
+                g: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 1],
+                b: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 2] });
+            if (extracted.matrix.get(x, y)) {
+                qrColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+                qrColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+                qrColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+                qrPixels++;
+            }
+            else {
+                backgroundColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+                backgroundColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+                backgroundColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+                backgroundPixels++;
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    qrColor.L /= qrPixels;
+    qrColor.a /= qrPixels;
+    qrColor.b /= qrPixels;
+    backgroundColor.L /= backgroundPixels;
+    backgroundColor.a /= backgroundPixels;
+    backgroundColor.b /= backgroundPixels;
+    return {
+        qr: labToRGB(qrColor),
+        background: labToRGB(backgroundColor),
+    };
+}
+exports.retrieveColors = retrieveColors;
+// Color space conversions from http://www.easyrgb.com/en/math.php
+// Converts an RGB color ([r, g, b] or [r, g, b, a] - a is ignored) to CIELab ([L*, a*, b*]).
+function rgbToLab(rgb) {
+    // To XYZ
+    var varR = (rgb.r / 255);
+    var varG = (rgb.g / 255);
+    var varB = (rgb.b / 255);
+    if (varR > 0.04045) {
+        varR = Math.pow(((varR + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varR = varR / 12.92;
+    }
+    if (varG > 0.04045) {
+        varG = Math.pow(((varG + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varG = varG / 12.92;
+    }
+    if (varB > 0.04045) {
+        varB = Math.pow(((varB + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varB = varB / 12.92;
+    }
+    varR = varR * 100;
+    varG = varG * 100;
+    varB = varB * 100;
+    var x = varR * 0.4124 + varG * 0.3576 + varB * 0.1805;
+    var y = varR * 0.2126 + varG * 0.7152 + varB * 0.0722;
+    var z = varR * 0.0193 + varG * 0.1192 + varB * 0.9505;
+    // To Lab
+    var varX = x / 95.047;
+    var varY = y / 100;
+    var varZ = z / 108.883;
+    if (varX > 0.008856) {
+        varX = Math.pow(varX, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varX = (7.787 * varX) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    if (varY > 0.008856) {
+        varY = Math.pow(varY, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varY = (7.787 * varY) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    if (varZ > 0.008856) {
+        varZ = Math.pow(varZ, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varZ = (7.787 * varZ) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    var l = (116 * varY) - 16;
+    var a = 500 * (varX - varY);
+    var b = 200 * (varY - varZ);
+    return { L: l, a: a, b: b };
+}
+exports.rgbToLab = rgbToLab;
+// Converts a CIELab color ([L*, a*, b*] - ignores additional values) to RGB ([r, g, b]).
+function labToRGB(lab) {
+    // To XYZ
+    var varY = (lab.L + 16) / 116;
+    var varX = lab.a / 500 + varY;
+    var varZ = varY - lab.b / 200;
+    if (Math.pow(varY, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varY = Math.pow(varY, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varY = (varY - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    if (Math.pow(varX, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varX = Math.pow(varX, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varX = (varX - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    if (Math.pow(varZ, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varZ = Math.pow(varZ, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varZ = (varZ - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    var x = varX * 95.047;
+    var y = varY * 100;
+    var z = varZ * 108.883;
+    // To RGB
+    varX = x / 100;
+    varY = y / 100;
+    varZ = z / 100;
+    var varR = varX * 3.2406 + varY * -1.5372 + varZ * -0.4986;
+    var varG = varX * -0.9689 + varY * 1.8758 + varZ * 0.0415;
+    var varB = varX * 0.0557 + varY * -0.2040 + varZ * 1.0570;
+    if (varR > 0.0031308) {
+        varR = 1.055 * Math.pow(varR, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varR = 12.92 * varR;
+    }
+    if (varG > 0.0031308) {
+        varG = 1.055 * Math.pow(varG, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varG = 12.92 * varG;
+    }
+    if (varB > 0.0031308) {
+        varB = 1.055 * Math.pow(varB, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varB = 12.92 * varB;
+    }
+    var r = varR * 255;
+    var g = varG * 255;
+    var b = varB * 255;
+    return { r: r, g: g, b: b };
+}
+exports.labToRGB = labToRGB;
+
+
+/***/ }),
+/* 6 */
+/***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
+
+"use strict";
+
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var BitMatrix_1 = __webpack_require__(0);
-var decodeData_1 = __webpack_require__(6);
-var reedsolomon_1 = __webpack_require__(9);
-var version_1 = __webpack_require__(10);
+var decodeData_1 = __webpack_require__(7);
+var reedsolomon_1 = __webpack_require__(10);
+var version_1 = __webpack_require__(11);
 // tslint:disable:no-bitwise
 function numBitsDiffering(x, y) {
     var z = x ^ y;
@@ -580,7 +759,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
     // Read columns in pairs, from right to left
     var readingUp = true;
     for (var columnIndex = dimension - 1; columnIndex > 0; columnIndex -= 2) {
-        if (columnIndex === 6) {
+        if (columnIndex === 6) { // Skip whole column with vertical alignment pattern;
             columnIndex--;
         }
         for (var i = 0; i < dimension; i++) {
@@ -594,7 +773,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
                         bit = !bit;
                     }
                     currentByte = pushBit(bit, currentByte);
-                    if (bitsRead === 8) {
+                    if (bitsRead === 8) { // Whole bytes
                         codewords.push(currentByte);
                         bitsRead = 0;
                         currentByte = 0;
@@ -609,7 +788,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
 function readVersion(matrix) {
     var dimension = matrix.height;
     var provisionalVersion = Math.floor((dimension - 17) / 4);
-    if (provisionalVersion <= 6) {
+    if (provisionalVersion <= 6) { // 6 and under dont have version info in the QR code
         return version_1.VERSIONS[provisionalVersion - 1];
     }
     var topRightVersionBits = 0;
@@ -651,21 +830,21 @@ function readVersion(matrix) {
 function readFormatInformation(matrix) {
     var topLeftFormatInfoBits = 0;
     for (var x = 0; x <= 8; x++) {
-        if (x !== 6) {
+        if (x !== 6) { // Skip timing pattern bit
             topLeftFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(x, 8), topLeftFormatInfoBits);
         }
     }
     for (var y = 7; y >= 0; y--) {
-        if (y !== 6) {
+        if (y !== 6) { // Skip timing pattern bit
             topLeftFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(8, y), topLeftFormatInfoBits);
         }
     }
     var dimension = matrix.height;
     var topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = 0;
-    for (var y = dimension - 1; y >= dimension - 7; y--) {
+    for (var y = dimension - 1; y >= dimension - 7; y--) { // bottom left
         topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(8, y), topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits);
     }
-    for (var x = dimension - 8; x < dimension; x++) {
+    for (var x = dimension - 8; x < dimension; x++) { // top right
         topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(x, 8), topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits);
     }
     var bestDifference = Infinity;
@@ -680,7 +859,7 @@ function readFormatInformation(matrix) {
             bestFormatInfo = formatInfo;
             bestDifference = difference;
         }
-        if (topLeftFormatInfoBits !== topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits) {
+        if (topLeftFormatInfoBits !== topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits) { // also try the other option
             difference = numBitsDiffering(topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits, bits);
             if (difference < bestDifference) {
                 bestFormatInfo = formatInfo;
@@ -794,15 +973,15 @@ exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 6 */
+/* 7 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 // tslint:disable:no-bitwise
-var BitStream_1 = __webpack_require__(7);
-var shiftJISTable_1 = __webpack_require__(8);
+var BitStream_1 = __webpack_require__(8);
+var shiftJISTable_1 = __webpack_require__(9);
 var Mode;
 (function (Mode) {
     Mode["Numeric"] = "numeric";
@@ -926,6 +1105,7 @@ function decodeKanji(stream, size) {
     return { bytes: bytes, text: text };
 }
 function decode(data, version) {
+    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
     var stream = new BitStream_1.BitStream(data);
     // There are 3 'sizes' based on the version. 1-9 is small (0), 10-26 is medium (1) and 27-40 is large (2).
     var size = version <= 9 ? 0 : version <= 26 ? 1 : 2;
@@ -1005,13 +1185,12 @@ function decode(data, version) {
             });
         }
     }
-    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
 }
 exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 7 */
+/* 8 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -1069,7 +1248,7 @@ exports.BitStream = BitStream;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 8 */
+/* 9 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -8117,7 +8296,7 @@ exports.shiftJISTable = {
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 9 */
+/* 10 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -8126,6 +8305,7 @@ Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var GenericGF_1 = __webpack_require__(1);
 var GenericGFPoly_1 = __webpack_require__(2);
 function runEuclideanAlgorithm(field, a, b, R) {
+    var _a;
     // Assume a's degree is >= b's
     if (a.degree() < b.degree()) {
         _a = [b, a], a = _a[0], b = _a[1];
@@ -8166,7 +8346,6 @@ function runEuclideanAlgorithm(field, a, b, R) {
     }
     var inverse = field.inverse(sigmaTildeAtZero);
     return [t.multiply(inverse), r.multiply(inverse)];
-    var _a;
 }
 function findErrorLocations(field, errorLocator) {
     // This is a direct application of Chien's search
@@ -8246,7 +8425,7 @@ exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 10 */
+/* 11 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9561,7 +9740,7 @@ exports.VERSIONS = [
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 11 */
+/* 12 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9571,7 +9750,7 @@ var BitMatrix_1 = __webpack_require__(0);
 function squareToQuadrilateral(p1, p2, p3, p4) {
     var dx3 = p1.x - p2.x + p3.x - p4.x;
     var dy3 = p1.y - p2.y + p3.y - p4.y;
-    if (dx3 === 0 && dy3 === 0) {
+    if (dx3 === 0 && dy3 === 0) { // Affine
         return {
             a11: p2.x - p1.x,
             a12: p2.y - p1.y,
@@ -9662,7 +9841,7 @@ exports.extract = extract;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 12 */
+/* 13 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9677,6 +9856,7 @@ function sum(values) {
 }
 // Takes three finder patterns and organizes them into topLeft, topRight, etc
 function reorderFinderPatterns(pattern1, pattern2, pattern3) {
+    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
     // Find distances between pattern centers
     var oneTwoDistance = distance(pattern1, pattern2);
     var twoThreeDistance = distance(pattern2, pattern3);
@@ -9701,7 +9881,6 @@ function reorderFinderPatterns(pattern1, pattern2, pattern3) {
         _d = [topRight, bottomLeft], bottomLeft = _d[0], topRight = _d[1];
     }
     return { bottomLeft: bottomLeft, topLeft: topLeft, topRight: topRight };
-    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
 }
 // Computes the dimension (number of modules on a side) of the QR Code based on the position of the finder patterns
 function computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix) {
@@ -9791,13 +9970,13 @@ function countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, end, matrix, length) {
 // along the line that intersects with the end point. Returns an array of elements, representing the pixel sizes
 // of the black white run. Takes a length which represents the number of switches from black to white to look for.
 function countBlackWhiteRun(origin, end, matrix, length) {
+    var _a;
     var rise = end.y - origin.y;
     var run = end.x - origin.x;
     var towardsEnd = countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, end, matrix, Math.ceil(length / 2));
     var awayFromEnd = countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, { x: origin.x - run, y: origin.y - rise }, matrix, Math.ceil(length / 2));
     var middleValue = towardsEnd.shift() + awayFromEnd.shift() - 1; // Substract one so we don't double count a pixel
     return (_a = awayFromEnd.concat(middleValue)).concat.apply(_a, towardsEnd);
-    var _a;
 }
 // Takes in a black white run and an array of expected ratios. Returns the average size of the run as well as the "error" -
 // that is the amount the run diverges from the expected ratio
@@ -9846,6 +10025,7 @@ function scorePattern(point, ratios, matrix) {
     }
 }
 function locate(matrix) {
+    var _a;
     var finderPatternQuads = [];
     var activeFinderPatternQuads = [];
     var alignmentPatternQuads = [];
@@ -9947,6 +10127,7 @@ function locate(matrix) {
     })
         .filter(function (q) { return !!q; }) // Filter out any rejected quads from above
         .sort(function (a, b) { return a.score - b.score; })
+        // Now take the top finder pattern options and try to find 2 other options with a similar size.
         .map(function (point, i, finderPatterns) {
         if (i > MAX_FINDERPATTERNS_TO_SEARCH) {
             return null;
@@ -9966,13 +10147,13 @@ function locate(matrix) {
     if (finderPatternGroups.length === 0) {
         return null;
     }
-    var _a = reorderFinderPatterns(finderPatternGroups[0].points[0], finderPatternGroups[0].points[1], finderPatternGroups[0].points[2]), topRight = _a.topRight, topLeft = _a.topLeft, bottomLeft = _a.bottomLeft;
+    var _b = reorderFinderPatterns(finderPatternGroups[0].points[0], finderPatternGroups[0].points[1], finderPatternGroups[0].points[2]), topRight = _b.topRight, topLeft = _b.topLeft, bottomLeft = _b.bottomLeft;
     // Now that we've found the three finder patterns we can determine the blockSize and the size of the QR code.
     // We'll use these to help find the alignment pattern but also later when we do the extraction.
     var dimension;
     var moduleSize;
     try {
-        (_b = computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix), dimension = _b.dimension, moduleSize = _b.moduleSize);
+        (_a = computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix), dimension = _a.dimension, moduleSize = _a.moduleSize);
     }
     catch (e) {
         return null;
@@ -10013,7 +10194,6 @@ function locate(matrix) {
         topLeft: { x: topLeft.x, y: topLeft.y },
         topRight: { x: topRight.x, y: topRight.y },
     };
-    var _b;
 }
 exports.locate = locate;
 
diff --git a/docs/index.html b/docs/index.html
index 50329c78..58c81355 100644
--- a/docs/index.html
+++ b/docs/index.html
@@ -99,7 +99,9 @@ <h1>jsQR Demo</h1>
         canvasElement.width = video.videoWidth;
         canvas.drawImage(video, 0, 0, canvasElement.width, canvasElement.height);
         var imageData = canvas.getImageData(0, 0, canvasElement.width, canvasElement.height);
-        var code = jsQR(imageData.data, imageData.width, imageData.height);
+        var code = jsQR(imageData.data, imageData.width, imageData.height, {
+          attemptInverted: false,
+        });
         if (code) {
           drawLine(code.location.topLeftCorner, code.location.topRightCorner, "#FF3B58");
           drawLine(code.location.topRightCorner, code.location.bottomRightCorner, "#FF3B58");
diff --git a/docs/jsQR.js b/docs/jsQR.js
index 429afeac..1a017891 100644
--- a/docs/jsQR.js
+++ b/docs/jsQR.js
@@ -228,6 +228,7 @@ var GenericGFPoly = /** @class */ (function () {
         return this.coefficients[this.coefficients.length - 1 - degree];
     };
     GenericGFPoly.prototype.addOrSubtract = function (other) {
+        var _a;
         if (this.isZero()) {
             return other;
         }
@@ -248,7 +249,6 @@ var GenericGFPoly = /** @class */ (function () {
             sumDiff[i] = GenericGF_1.addOrSubtractGF(smallerCoefficients[i - lengthDiff], largerCoefficients[i]);
         }
         return new GenericGFPoly(this.field, sumDiff);
-        var _a;
     };
     GenericGFPoly.prototype.multiply = function (scalar) {
         if (scalar === 0) {
@@ -328,10 +328,11 @@ exports.default = GenericGFPoly;
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var binarizer_1 = __webpack_require__(4);
-var decoder_1 = __webpack_require__(5);
-var extractor_1 = __webpack_require__(11);
-var locator_1 = __webpack_require__(12);
-function scan(matrix) {
+var color_retriever_1 = __webpack_require__(5);
+var decoder_1 = __webpack_require__(6);
+var extractor_1 = __webpack_require__(12);
+var locator_1 = __webpack_require__(13);
+function scan(matrix, sourceData, scanOptions) {
     var location = locator_1.locate(matrix);
     if (!location) {
         return null;
@@ -341,7 +342,7 @@ function scan(matrix) {
     if (!decoded) {
         return null;
     }
-    return {
+    var output = {
         binaryData: decoded.bytes,
         data: decoded.text,
         chunks: decoded.chunks,
@@ -356,12 +357,24 @@ function scan(matrix) {
             bottomRightAlignmentPattern: location.alignmentPattern,
         },
     };
+    if (scanOptions.retrieveColors) {
+        output.colors = color_retriever_1.retrieveColors(location, extracted, sourceData, matrix.width);
+    }
+    return output;
 }
-function jsQR(data, width, height) {
+var defaultOptions = {
+    attemptInverted: true,
+    retrieveColors: false,
+};
+function jsQR(data, width, height, options) {
+    var actualOpts = defaultOptions;
+    Object.keys(options || {}).forEach(function (opt) {
+        actualOpts[opt] = options[opt];
+    });
     var binarized = binarizer_1.binarize(data, width, height);
-    var result = scan(binarized);
-    if (!result) {
-        result = scan(binarized.getInverted());
+    var result = scan(binarized, data, actualOpts);
+    if (!result && actualOpts.attemptInverted) {
+        result = scan(binarized.getInverted(), data, actualOpts);
     }
     return result;
 }
@@ -483,11 +496,177 @@ exports.binarize = binarize;
 
 "use strict";
 
+Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
+/* Retrieves the colors that make up a scanned QR code. RGB (assumed to be sRGB) values are converted to the CIELab
+color space for averaging (with no regard for alpha), and then converted back to RGB. */
+function retrieveColors(location, extracted, sourceData, sourceWidth) {
+    var qrColor = { L: 0, a: 0, b: 0 };
+    var backgroundColor = { L: 0, a: 0, b: 0 };
+    var qrPixels = 0;
+    var backgroundPixels = 0;
+    for (var y = 0; y < location.dimension; y++) {
+        for (var x = 0; x < location.dimension; x++) {
+            var sourcePixel = extracted.mappingFunction(x + 0.5, y + 0.5);
+            var sourcePixelOffset = ((Math.floor(sourcePixel.y) * sourceWidth) + Math.floor(sourcePixel.x)) * 4;
+            var sourceColor = rgbToLab({ r: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset],
+                g: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 1],
+                b: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 2] });
+            if (extracted.matrix.get(x, y)) {
+                qrColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+                qrColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+                qrColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+                qrPixels++;
+            }
+            else {
+                backgroundColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+                backgroundColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+                backgroundColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+                backgroundPixels++;
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    qrColor.L /= qrPixels;
+    qrColor.a /= qrPixels;
+    qrColor.b /= qrPixels;
+    backgroundColor.L /= backgroundPixels;
+    backgroundColor.a /= backgroundPixels;
+    backgroundColor.b /= backgroundPixels;
+    return {
+        qr: labToRGB(qrColor),
+        background: labToRGB(backgroundColor),
+    };
+}
+exports.retrieveColors = retrieveColors;
+// Color space conversions from http://www.easyrgb.com/en/math.php
+// Converts an RGB color ([r, g, b] or [r, g, b, a] - a is ignored) to CIELab ([L*, a*, b*]).
+function rgbToLab(rgb) {
+    // To XYZ
+    var varR = (rgb.r / 255);
+    var varG = (rgb.g / 255);
+    var varB = (rgb.b / 255);
+    if (varR > 0.04045) {
+        varR = Math.pow(((varR + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varR = varR / 12.92;
+    }
+    if (varG > 0.04045) {
+        varG = Math.pow(((varG + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varG = varG / 12.92;
+    }
+    if (varB > 0.04045) {
+        varB = Math.pow(((varB + 0.055) / 1.055), 2.4);
+    }
+    else {
+        varB = varB / 12.92;
+    }
+    varR = varR * 100;
+    varG = varG * 100;
+    varB = varB * 100;
+    var x = varR * 0.4124 + varG * 0.3576 + varB * 0.1805;
+    var y = varR * 0.2126 + varG * 0.7152 + varB * 0.0722;
+    var z = varR * 0.0193 + varG * 0.1192 + varB * 0.9505;
+    // To Lab
+    var varX = x / 95.047;
+    var varY = y / 100;
+    var varZ = z / 108.883;
+    if (varX > 0.008856) {
+        varX = Math.pow(varX, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varX = (7.787 * varX) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    if (varY > 0.008856) {
+        varY = Math.pow(varY, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varY = (7.787 * varY) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    if (varZ > 0.008856) {
+        varZ = Math.pow(varZ, (1 / 3));
+    }
+    else {
+        varZ = (7.787 * varZ) + (16 / 116);
+    }
+    var l = (116 * varY) - 16;
+    var a = 500 * (varX - varY);
+    var b = 200 * (varY - varZ);
+    return { L: l, a: a, b: b };
+}
+exports.rgbToLab = rgbToLab;
+// Converts a CIELab color ([L*, a*, b*] - ignores additional values) to RGB ([r, g, b]).
+function labToRGB(lab) {
+    // To XYZ
+    var varY = (lab.L + 16) / 116;
+    var varX = lab.a / 500 + varY;
+    var varZ = varY - lab.b / 200;
+    if (Math.pow(varY, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varY = Math.pow(varY, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varY = (varY - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    if (Math.pow(varX, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varX = Math.pow(varX, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varX = (varX - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    if (Math.pow(varZ, 3) > 0.008856) {
+        varZ = Math.pow(varZ, 3);
+    }
+    else {
+        varZ = (varZ - 16 / 116) / 7.787;
+    }
+    var x = varX * 95.047;
+    var y = varY * 100;
+    var z = varZ * 108.883;
+    // To RGB
+    varX = x / 100;
+    varY = y / 100;
+    varZ = z / 100;
+    var varR = varX * 3.2406 + varY * -1.5372 + varZ * -0.4986;
+    var varG = varX * -0.9689 + varY * 1.8758 + varZ * 0.0415;
+    var varB = varX * 0.0557 + varY * -0.2040 + varZ * 1.0570;
+    if (varR > 0.0031308) {
+        varR = 1.055 * Math.pow(varR, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varR = 12.92 * varR;
+    }
+    if (varG > 0.0031308) {
+        varG = 1.055 * Math.pow(varG, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varG = 12.92 * varG;
+    }
+    if (varB > 0.0031308) {
+        varB = 1.055 * Math.pow(varB, (1 / 2.4)) - 0.055;
+    }
+    else {
+        varB = 12.92 * varB;
+    }
+    var r = varR * 255;
+    var g = varG * 255;
+    var b = varB * 255;
+    return { r: r, g: g, b: b };
+}
+exports.labToRGB = labToRGB;
+
+
+/***/ }),
+/* 6 */
+/***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
+
+"use strict";
+
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var BitMatrix_1 = __webpack_require__(0);
-var decodeData_1 = __webpack_require__(6);
-var reedsolomon_1 = __webpack_require__(9);
-var version_1 = __webpack_require__(10);
+var decodeData_1 = __webpack_require__(7);
+var reedsolomon_1 = __webpack_require__(10);
+var version_1 = __webpack_require__(11);
 // tslint:disable:no-bitwise
 function numBitsDiffering(x, y) {
     var z = x ^ y;
@@ -580,7 +759,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
     // Read columns in pairs, from right to left
     var readingUp = true;
     for (var columnIndex = dimension - 1; columnIndex > 0; columnIndex -= 2) {
-        if (columnIndex === 6) {
+        if (columnIndex === 6) { // Skip whole column with vertical alignment pattern;
             columnIndex--;
         }
         for (var i = 0; i < dimension; i++) {
@@ -594,7 +773,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
                         bit = !bit;
                     }
                     currentByte = pushBit(bit, currentByte);
-                    if (bitsRead === 8) {
+                    if (bitsRead === 8) { // Whole bytes
                         codewords.push(currentByte);
                         bitsRead = 0;
                         currentByte = 0;
@@ -609,7 +788,7 @@ function readCodewords(matrix, version, formatInfo) {
 function readVersion(matrix) {
     var dimension = matrix.height;
     var provisionalVersion = Math.floor((dimension - 17) / 4);
-    if (provisionalVersion <= 6) {
+    if (provisionalVersion <= 6) { // 6 and under dont have version info in the QR code
         return version_1.VERSIONS[provisionalVersion - 1];
     }
     var topRightVersionBits = 0;
@@ -651,21 +830,21 @@ function readVersion(matrix) {
 function readFormatInformation(matrix) {
     var topLeftFormatInfoBits = 0;
     for (var x = 0; x <= 8; x++) {
-        if (x !== 6) {
+        if (x !== 6) { // Skip timing pattern bit
             topLeftFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(x, 8), topLeftFormatInfoBits);
         }
     }
     for (var y = 7; y >= 0; y--) {
-        if (y !== 6) {
+        if (y !== 6) { // Skip timing pattern bit
             topLeftFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(8, y), topLeftFormatInfoBits);
         }
     }
     var dimension = matrix.height;
     var topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = 0;
-    for (var y = dimension - 1; y >= dimension - 7; y--) {
+    for (var y = dimension - 1; y >= dimension - 7; y--) { // bottom left
         topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(8, y), topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits);
     }
-    for (var x = dimension - 8; x < dimension; x++) {
+    for (var x = dimension - 8; x < dimension; x++) { // top right
         topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits = pushBit(matrix.get(x, 8), topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits);
     }
     var bestDifference = Infinity;
@@ -680,7 +859,7 @@ function readFormatInformation(matrix) {
             bestFormatInfo = formatInfo;
             bestDifference = difference;
         }
-        if (topLeftFormatInfoBits !== topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits) {
+        if (topLeftFormatInfoBits !== topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits) { // also try the other option
             difference = numBitsDiffering(topRightBottomRightFormatInfoBits, bits);
             if (difference < bestDifference) {
                 bestFormatInfo = formatInfo;
@@ -794,15 +973,15 @@ exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 6 */
+/* 7 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
 
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 // tslint:disable:no-bitwise
-var BitStream_1 = __webpack_require__(7);
-var shiftJISTable_1 = __webpack_require__(8);
+var BitStream_1 = __webpack_require__(8);
+var shiftJISTable_1 = __webpack_require__(9);
 var Mode;
 (function (Mode) {
     Mode["Numeric"] = "numeric";
@@ -926,6 +1105,7 @@ function decodeKanji(stream, size) {
     return { bytes: bytes, text: text };
 }
 function decode(data, version) {
+    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
     var stream = new BitStream_1.BitStream(data);
     // There are 3 'sizes' based on the version. 1-9 is small (0), 10-26 is medium (1) and 27-40 is large (2).
     var size = version <= 9 ? 0 : version <= 26 ? 1 : 2;
@@ -1005,13 +1185,12 @@ function decode(data, version) {
             });
         }
     }
-    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
 }
 exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 7 */
+/* 8 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -1069,7 +1248,7 @@ exports.BitStream = BitStream;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 8 */
+/* 9 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -8117,7 +8296,7 @@ exports.shiftJISTable = {
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 9 */
+/* 10 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -8126,6 +8305,7 @@ Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
 var GenericGF_1 = __webpack_require__(1);
 var GenericGFPoly_1 = __webpack_require__(2);
 function runEuclideanAlgorithm(field, a, b, R) {
+    var _a;
     // Assume a's degree is >= b's
     if (a.degree() < b.degree()) {
         _a = [b, a], a = _a[0], b = _a[1];
@@ -8166,7 +8346,6 @@ function runEuclideanAlgorithm(field, a, b, R) {
     }
     var inverse = field.inverse(sigmaTildeAtZero);
     return [t.multiply(inverse), r.multiply(inverse)];
-    var _a;
 }
 function findErrorLocations(field, errorLocator) {
     // This is a direct application of Chien's search
@@ -8246,7 +8425,7 @@ exports.decode = decode;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 10 */
+/* 11 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9561,7 +9740,7 @@ exports.VERSIONS = [
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 11 */
+/* 12 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9571,7 +9750,7 @@ var BitMatrix_1 = __webpack_require__(0);
 function squareToQuadrilateral(p1, p2, p3, p4) {
     var dx3 = p1.x - p2.x + p3.x - p4.x;
     var dy3 = p1.y - p2.y + p3.y - p4.y;
-    if (dx3 === 0 && dy3 === 0) {
+    if (dx3 === 0 && dy3 === 0) { // Affine
         return {
             a11: p2.x - p1.x,
             a12: p2.y - p1.y,
@@ -9662,7 +9841,7 @@ exports.extract = extract;
 
 
 /***/ }),
-/* 12 */
+/* 13 */
 /***/ (function(module, exports, __webpack_require__) {
 
 "use strict";
@@ -9677,6 +9856,7 @@ function sum(values) {
 }
 // Takes three finder patterns and organizes them into topLeft, topRight, etc
 function reorderFinderPatterns(pattern1, pattern2, pattern3) {
+    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
     // Find distances between pattern centers
     var oneTwoDistance = distance(pattern1, pattern2);
     var twoThreeDistance = distance(pattern2, pattern3);
@@ -9701,7 +9881,6 @@ function reorderFinderPatterns(pattern1, pattern2, pattern3) {
         _d = [topRight, bottomLeft], bottomLeft = _d[0], topRight = _d[1];
     }
     return { bottomLeft: bottomLeft, topLeft: topLeft, topRight: topRight };
-    var _a, _b, _c, _d;
 }
 // Computes the dimension (number of modules on a side) of the QR Code based on the position of the finder patterns
 function computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix) {
@@ -9791,13 +9970,13 @@ function countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, end, matrix, length) {
 // along the line that intersects with the end point. Returns an array of elements, representing the pixel sizes
 // of the black white run. Takes a length which represents the number of switches from black to white to look for.
 function countBlackWhiteRun(origin, end, matrix, length) {
+    var _a;
     var rise = end.y - origin.y;
     var run = end.x - origin.x;
     var towardsEnd = countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, end, matrix, Math.ceil(length / 2));
     var awayFromEnd = countBlackWhiteRunTowardsPoint(origin, { x: origin.x - run, y: origin.y - rise }, matrix, Math.ceil(length / 2));
     var middleValue = towardsEnd.shift() + awayFromEnd.shift() - 1; // Substract one so we don't double count a pixel
     return (_a = awayFromEnd.concat(middleValue)).concat.apply(_a, towardsEnd);
-    var _a;
 }
 // Takes in a black white run and an array of expected ratios. Returns the average size of the run as well as the "error" -
 // that is the amount the run diverges from the expected ratio
@@ -9846,6 +10025,7 @@ function scorePattern(point, ratios, matrix) {
     }
 }
 function locate(matrix) {
+    var _a;
     var finderPatternQuads = [];
     var activeFinderPatternQuads = [];
     var alignmentPatternQuads = [];
@@ -9947,6 +10127,7 @@ function locate(matrix) {
     })
         .filter(function (q) { return !!q; }) // Filter out any rejected quads from above
         .sort(function (a, b) { return a.score - b.score; })
+        // Now take the top finder pattern options and try to find 2 other options with a similar size.
         .map(function (point, i, finderPatterns) {
         if (i > MAX_FINDERPATTERNS_TO_SEARCH) {
             return null;
@@ -9966,13 +10147,13 @@ function locate(matrix) {
     if (finderPatternGroups.length === 0) {
         return null;
     }
-    var _a = reorderFinderPatterns(finderPatternGroups[0].points[0], finderPatternGroups[0].points[1], finderPatternGroups[0].points[2]), topRight = _a.topRight, topLeft = _a.topLeft, bottomLeft = _a.bottomLeft;
+    var _b = reorderFinderPatterns(finderPatternGroups[0].points[0], finderPatternGroups[0].points[1], finderPatternGroups[0].points[2]), topRight = _b.topRight, topLeft = _b.topLeft, bottomLeft = _b.bottomLeft;
     // Now that we've found the three finder patterns we can determine the blockSize and the size of the QR code.
     // We'll use these to help find the alignment pattern but also later when we do the extraction.
     var dimension;
     var moduleSize;
     try {
-        (_b = computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix), dimension = _b.dimension, moduleSize = _b.moduleSize);
+        (_a = computeDimension(topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, matrix), dimension = _a.dimension, moduleSize = _a.moduleSize);
     }
     catch (e) {
         return null;
@@ -10013,7 +10194,6 @@ function locate(matrix) {
         topLeft: { x: topLeft.x, y: topLeft.y },
         topRight: { x: topRight.x, y: topRight.y },
     };
-    var _b;
 }
 exports.locate = locate;
 
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/index.ts b/src/color-retriever/index.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..549ee410
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/index.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,194 @@
+import { Extracted } from "../extractor";
+import { QRLocation } from "../locator";
+
+export interface QRColors {
+  qr: RGBColor;
+  background: RGBColor;
+}
+
+export interface RGBColor {
+  r: number;
+  g: number;
+  b: number;
+}
+
+interface CIELabColor {
+  L: number;
+  a: number;
+  b: number;
+}
+
+/* Retrieves the colors that make up a scanned QR code. RGB (assumed to be sRGB) values are converted to the CIELab
+color space for averaging (with no regard for alpha), and then converted back to RGB. */
+export function retrieveColors(location: QRLocation,
+                               extracted: Extracted,
+                               sourceData: Uint8ClampedArray,
+                               sourceWidth: number): QRColors {
+
+  const qrColor: CIELabColor = {L: 0, a: 0, b: 0};
+  const backgroundColor: CIELabColor = {L: 0, a: 0, b: 0};
+  let qrPixels = 0;
+  let backgroundPixels = 0;
+
+  for (let y = 0; y < location.dimension; y++) {
+    for (let x = 0; x < location.dimension; x++) {
+      const sourcePixel = extracted.mappingFunction(x + 0.5, y + 0.5);
+      const sourcePixelOffset = ((Math.floor(sourcePixel.y) * sourceWidth) + Math.floor(sourcePixel.x)) * 4;
+      const sourceColor = rgbToLab({r: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset],
+                                          g: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 1],
+                                          b: sourceData[sourcePixelOffset + 2]});
+
+      if (extracted.matrix.get(x, y)) {
+        qrColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+        qrColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+        qrColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+        qrPixels++;
+      } else {
+        backgroundColor.L += sourceColor.L;
+        backgroundColor.a += sourceColor.a;
+        backgroundColor.b += sourceColor.b;
+        backgroundPixels++;
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  qrColor.L /= qrPixels;
+  qrColor.a /= qrPixels;
+  qrColor.b /= qrPixels;
+  backgroundColor.L /= backgroundPixels;
+  backgroundColor.a /= backgroundPixels;
+  backgroundColor.b /= backgroundPixels;
+
+  return {
+    qr: labToRGB(qrColor),
+    background: labToRGB(backgroundColor),
+  };
+}
+
+// Color space conversions from http://www.easyrgb.com/en/math.php
+
+// Converts an RGB color ([r, g, b] or [r, g, b, a] - a is ignored) to CIELab ([L*, a*, b*]).
+export function rgbToLab(rgb: RGBColor): CIELabColor {
+  // To XYZ
+  let varR = ( rgb.r / 255 );
+  let varG = ( rgb.g / 255 );
+  let varB = ( rgb.b / 255 );
+
+  if ( varR > 0.04045 ) {
+    varR = Math.pow(( ( varR + 0.055) / 1.055 ), 2.4);
+  } else {
+    varR = varR / 12.92;
+  }
+
+  if ( varG > 0.04045 ) {
+    varG = Math.pow(( ( varG + 0.055 ) / 1.055 ), 2.4);
+  } else {
+    varG = varG / 12.92;
+  }
+
+  if ( varB > 0.04045 ) {
+    varB = Math.pow(( ( varB + 0.055 ) / 1.055 ), 2.4);
+  } else {
+    varB = varB / 12.92;
+  }
+
+  varR = varR * 100;
+  varG = varG * 100;
+  varB = varB * 100;
+
+  const x = varR * 0.4124 + varG * 0.3576 + varB * 0.1805;
+  const y = varR * 0.2126 + varG * 0.7152 + varB * 0.0722;
+  const z = varR * 0.0193 + varG * 0.1192 + varB * 0.9505;
+
+  // To Lab
+  let varX = x / 95.047;
+  let varY = y / 100;
+  let varZ = z / 108.883;
+
+  if ( varX > 0.008856 ) {
+    varX = Math.pow(varX, ( 1 / 3 ));
+  } else {
+    varX = ( 7.787 * varX ) + ( 16 / 116 );
+  }
+
+  if ( varY > 0.008856 ) {
+    varY = Math.pow(varY, ( 1 / 3 ));
+  } else {
+    varY = ( 7.787 * varY ) + ( 16 / 116 );
+  }
+
+  if ( varZ > 0.008856 ) {
+    varZ = Math.pow(varZ, ( 1 / 3 ));
+  } else {
+    varZ = ( 7.787 * varZ ) + ( 16 / 116 );
+  }
+
+  const l = ( 116 * varY ) - 16;
+  const a = 500 * ( varX - varY );
+  const b = 200 * ( varY - varZ );
+
+  return {L: l, a, b};
+}
+
+// Converts a CIELab color ([L*, a*, b*] - ignores additional values) to RGB ([r, g, b]).
+export function labToRGB(lab: CIELabColor): RGBColor {
+  // To XYZ
+  let varY = ( lab.L + 16 ) / 116;
+  let varX = lab.a / 500 + varY;
+  let varZ = varY - lab.b / 200;
+
+  if ( Math.pow(varY, 3)  > 0.008856 ) {
+    varY = Math.pow(varY, 3);
+  } else {
+    varY = ( varY - 16 / 116 ) / 7.787;
+  }
+
+  if ( Math.pow(varX, 3)  > 0.008856 ) {
+    varX = Math.pow(varX, 3);
+  } else {
+    varX = ( varX - 16 / 116 ) / 7.787;
+  }
+
+  if ( Math.pow(varZ, 3)  > 0.008856 ) {
+    varZ = Math.pow(varZ,   3);
+  } else {
+    varZ = ( varZ - 16 / 116 ) / 7.787;
+  }
+
+  const x = varX * 95.047;
+  const y = varY * 100;
+  const z = varZ * 108.883;
+
+  // To RGB
+  varX = x / 100;
+  varY = y / 100;
+  varZ = z / 100;
+
+  let varR = varX *  3.2406 + varY * -1.5372 + varZ * -0.4986;
+  let varG = varX * -0.9689 + varY *  1.8758 + varZ *  0.0415;
+  let varB = varX *  0.0557 + varY * -0.2040 + varZ *  1.0570;
+
+  if ( varR > 0.0031308 ) {
+    varR = 1.055 * Math.pow(varR, ( 1 / 2.4 )) - 0.055;
+  } else {
+    varR = 12.92 * varR;
+  }
+
+  if ( varG > 0.0031308 ) {
+    varG = 1.055 * Math.pow( varG, ( 1 / 2.4 ) ) - 0.055;
+  } else {
+    varG = 12.92 * varG;
+  }
+
+  if ( varB > 0.0031308 ) {
+    varB = 1.055 * Math.pow( varB, ( 1 / 2.4 ) ) - 0.055;
+  } else {
+    varB = 12.92 * varB;
+  }
+
+  const r = varR * 255;
+  const g = varG * 255;
+  const b = varB * 255;
+
+  return {r, g, b};
+}
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/input.png b/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/input.png
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b4302bd5
Binary files /dev/null and b/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/input.png differ
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/output.json b/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/output.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..627cb5de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/test-data/1/output.json
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+{
+  "qr": {
+    "r": 30.636445436075384,
+    "g": 30.38811707727531,
+    "b": 31.040002910551998
+  },
+  "background": {
+    "r": 195.38333870401573,
+    "g": 193.32809677970184,
+    "b": 182.8805891949199
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/input.png b/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/input.png
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..75758fdf
Binary files /dev/null and b/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/input.png differ
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/output.json b/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/output.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f951ea82
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/test-data/126/output.json
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+{
+  "qr": {
+    "r": 27.89163255201946,
+    "g": 28.36055390073005,
+    "b": 28.123180671660492
+  },
+  "background": {
+    "r": 130.41197523617774,
+    "g": 131.1186418203433,
+    "b": 130.7686334472359
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/input.png b/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/input.png
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..ec1df043
Binary files /dev/null and b/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/input.png differ
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/output.json b/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/output.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4d0f739d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/test-data/174/output.json
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+{
+  "qr": {
+    "r": 38.8211776587245,
+    "g": 77.56095753301837,
+    "b": 9.00934245305286
+  },
+  "background": {
+    "r": 227.6413618588329,
+    "g": 232.5559517143786,
+    "b": 179.24733224729871
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/input.png b/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/input.png
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..d284360c
Binary files /dev/null and b/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/input.png differ
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/output.json b/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/output.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..fa5eddb3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/test-data/89/output.json
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+{
+  "qr": {
+    "r": 72.67177243927333,
+    "g": 154.69924237099963,
+    "b": 209.0959500572819
+  },
+  "background": {
+    "r": 246.18875648088195,
+    "g": 250.80005743939842,
+    "b": 252.56226569302652
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/color-retriever/test.ts b/src/color-retriever/test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d928b817
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/color-retriever/test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+import * as fs from "fs-extra";
+import * as path from "path";
+import jsQR from "../";
+import { labToRGB, rgbToLab } from './';
+import * as helpers from "../../tests/helpers";
+
+const conversionTests = [
+  {rgb: {r: 0, g: 0, b: 0}, lab: {L: 0, a: 0, b: 0}},
+  {rgb: {r: 255, g: 255, b: 255}, lab: {L: 100, a: 0, b: 0}},
+  {rgb: {r: 255, g: 0, b: 0}, lab: {L: 53.241, a: 80.092, b: 67.203}},
+  {rgb: {r: 0, g: 255, b: 0}, lab: {L: 87.735, a: -86.183, b: 83.179}},
+  {rgb: {r: 0, g: 0, b: 255}, lab: {L: 32.297, a: 79.188, b: -107.860}},
+  {rgb: {r: 0, g: 163, b: 263}, lab: {L: 64.912, a: 0.718, b: -58.915}},
+  {rgb: {r: 86, g: 0, b: 12}, lab: {L: 15.517, a: 36.676, b: 19.182}},
+  {rgb: {r: 173, g: 112, b: 0}, lab: {L: 52.370, a: 17.014, b: 59.276}},
+  {rgb: {r: 75, g: 235, b: 12}, lab: {L: 82.344, a: -73.634, b: 78.173}},
+  {rgb: {r: 233, g: 45, b: 190}, lab: {L: 47.878, a: 83.518, b: -33.258}},
+];
+
+describe('color retriever', () => {
+  it('converts from RGB to CIELab*', () => {
+    conversionTests.forEach(test => {
+      expect(roundComponents(rgbToLab(test.rgb))).toEqual(roundComponents(test.lab));
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('converts from CIELab* to RGB', () => {
+    conversionTests.forEach(test => {
+      expect(roundComponents(labToRGB(test.lab))).toEqual(roundComponents(test.rgb));
+    });
+  });
+
+  const tests = fs.readdirSync(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data")).filter((n) => !n.includes("."));
+  for (const t of tests) {
+    it(t, async () => {
+      const inputImage = await helpers.loadPng(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data", t, "input.png"));
+      const expectedOutput = JSON.parse(await fs.readFile(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data", t, "output.json"), "utf8"));
+      expect(jsQR(inputImage.data, inputImage.width, inputImage.height, {retrieveColors: true}).colors).toEqual(expectedOutput);
+    });
+  }
+});
+
+function roundComponents(color) {
+  for(var component in color) {
+    color[component] = Math.round(color[component])
+  }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/extractor/index.ts b/src/extractor/index.ts
index 71b85eae..956a19ab 100644
--- a/src/extractor/index.ts
+++ b/src/extractor/index.ts
@@ -13,6 +13,11 @@ interface PerspectiveTransform {
   a33: number;
 }
 
+export interface Extracted {
+  matrix: BitMatrix;
+  mappingFunction: (x: number, y: number) => Point;
+}
+
 function squareToQuadrilateral(p1: Point, p2: Point, p3: Point, p4: Point): PerspectiveTransform {
   const dx3 = p1.x - p2.x + p3.x - p4.x;
   const dy3 = p1.y - p2.y + p3.y - p4.y;
@@ -80,7 +85,7 @@ function times(a: PerspectiveTransform, b: PerspectiveTransform): PerspectiveTra
   };
 }
 
-export function extract(image: BitMatrix, location: QRLocation) {
+export function extract(image: BitMatrix, location: QRLocation): Extracted {
   const qToS = quadrilateralToSquare(
     {x: 3.5, y: 3.5},
     {x: location.dimension - 3.5, y: 3.5},
diff --git a/src/index.ts b/src/index.ts
index e6fd7d74..ee1eea15 100644
--- a/src/index.ts
+++ b/src/index.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,10 @@
-import {binarize} from "./binarizer";
-import {BitMatrix} from "./BitMatrix";
-import {Chunks} from "./decoder/decodeData";
-import {decode} from "./decoder/decoder";
-import {extract} from "./extractor";
-import {locate, Point} from "./locator";
+import { binarize } from "./binarizer";
+import { BitMatrix } from "./BitMatrix";
+import { QRColors, retrieveColors } from "./color-retriever";
+import { Chunks } from "./decoder/decodeData";
+import { decode } from "./decoder/decoder";
+import { extract } from "./extractor";
+import { locate, Point } from "./locator";
 
 export interface QRCode {
   binaryData: number[];
@@ -21,21 +22,22 @@ export interface QRCode {
 
     bottomRightAlignmentPattern?: Point;
   };
+  colors?: QRColors;
 }
 
-function scan(matrix: BitMatrix): QRCode | null {
+function scan(matrix: BitMatrix, sourceData: Uint8ClampedArray, scanOptions: Options): QRCode | null {
   const location = locate(matrix);
   if (!location) {
     return null;
   }
+
   const extracted = extract(matrix, location);
   const decoded = decode(extracted.matrix);
-
   if (!decoded) {
     return null;
   }
 
-  return {
+  const output: QRCode = {
     binaryData: decoded.bytes,
     data: decoded.text,
     chunks: decoded.chunks,
@@ -52,13 +54,35 @@ function scan(matrix: BitMatrix): QRCode | null {
       bottomRightAlignmentPattern: location.alignmentPattern,
     },
   };
+
+  if (scanOptions.retrieveColors) {
+    output.colors = retrieveColors(location, extracted, sourceData, matrix.width);
+  }
+
+  return output;
 }
 
-function jsQR(data: Uint8ClampedArray, width: number, height: number): QRCode | null {
+export interface Options {
+  attemptInverted?: boolean;
+  retrieveColors?: boolean;
+}
+
+const defaultOptions: Options = {
+  attemptInverted: true,
+  retrieveColors: false,
+};
+
+function jsQR(data: Uint8ClampedArray, width: number, height: number, options?: Options): QRCode | null {
+
+  const actualOpts: Options = defaultOptions;
+  Object.keys(options || {}).forEach(opt => {
+    (actualOpts as any)[opt] = (options as any)[opt];
+  });
+
   const binarized = binarize(data, width, height);
-  let result = scan(binarized);
-  if (!result) {
-    result = scan(binarized.getInverted());
+  let result = scan(binarized, data, actualOpts);
+  if (!result && actualOpts.attemptInverted) {
+    result = scan(binarized.getInverted(), data, actualOpts);
   }
   return result;
 }
diff --git a/tests/generate-test-data.ts b/tests/generate-test-data.ts
index cc459aa6..bc82ec9c 100644
--- a/tests/generate-test-data.ts
+++ b/tests/generate-test-data.ts
@@ -25,4 +25,15 @@ const report = {
   }
 
   await fs.writeFile(path.join("tests", "end-to-end", "report.json"), JSON.stringify(report, null, 2));
+
+
+
+  const colorTests = (await fs.readdir(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data"))).filter((n) => !n.includes("."));
+
+  for (const t of colorTests) {
+    const imageData = await helpers.loadPng(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data", t, "input.png"));
+    const output = jsQR(imageData.data, imageData.width, imageData.height, {retrieveColors: true});
+
+    await fs.writeFile(path.join("src", "color-retriever", "test-data", t, "output.json"), JSON.stringify(output.colors, null, 2), "utf8");
+  }
 })().then(() => process.exit(0)).catch((e) => { throw e; });