Attempts to develop a universal color preference model have failed to explain individual differences or incorporate physiological factors. Here we propose a new color preference model in which an individual's color preference may be described as the weighted sum of 4 fundamental color-coding components (luminance, red-green, blue-yellow and saturation), all universal across populations. Meanwhile, each individual accords a different set of weights to these components, representing his/her individual color preference. We tested the model with a series of psychophysical experiments. The results reveal that the model explains most of the individual variance in color preference and may therefore be used as a good descriptor for individual as well as group differences. By translating complex color preference results into 4 easily interpreted weights, we also find that the main characteristics of individual color preference do not vary significantly across different color samples and experimental methods, thus allowing us to employ only a small sample of stimuli to reveal color preference across the entire color space. The model's simple format allows easy statistical and quantitative analysis, and provides a reliable platform for future studies on color preference.