Apply or edit a gradient

Last updated on 17 May 2021 | Also applies to Adobe Illustrator CS4, Adobe Illustrator CS5, Adobe Illustrator CS6

After you apply a gradient to an object, you can quickly and easily replace or edit the gradient.

Apply a gradient to an object

Select an object and do one of the following:
- To apply the last used gradient, click the Gradient box in the Tools panel or the Gradient Fill box in the Gradient panel.
- To apply the last used gradient to an unselected object that currently does not contain a gradient, click the object with the Gradient tool .
- To apply a preset or previously saved gradient, choose a gradient from the Gradient menu in the Gradient panel or click a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel.
  Tip: To display only gradients in the Swatches panel, click the Show Swatch Kinds button and choose Show Gradient Swatches.

Create an elliptical gradient

You can create linear, radial, or elliptical gradients. When you change the aspect ratio for a radial gradient, it becomes an elliptical gradient for which you can also change the angle and make it tilt.

In the Gradient panel, choose Radial from the Type menu.
Specify an Aspect Ratio value other than 100%.
To tilt the ellipse, specify an Angle value other than 0.

Modify the colors in a gradient

Do one of the following:
- To modify a gradient without filling an object with it, deselect all objects and double-click the Gradient tool or click the gradient box at the bottom of the Tools panel.
- To modify an object’s gradient, select the object, and open the Gradient panel.
- To modify a preset gradient, select a gradient from the Gradient menu in the Gradient panel. Or, click a gradient swatch in the Swatches panel, and then open the Gradient panel.
To change the color of a stop, do any of the following:
- Double-click a gradient stop (in either the Gradient panel or the selected object), and specify a new color in the panel that appears. You can change the panel that appears by clicking the Color or Swatches icon along the left. Click outside the panel to accept the selection.
- Drag a color from the Color panel or the Swatches panel onto the gradient stop.
Note:

If you create a gradient between spot colors, you must deselect Convert To Process in the Separation Setup dialog box to print the gradient in individual spot color separations.
To add intermediate colors to a gradient, drag a color from the Swatches panel or the Color panel onto the gradient slider in the Gradient panel. Or, click anywhere below the gradient slider, and then select a color as you would for the starting or ending color.
To delete an intermediate color, drag the square off the gradient slider or select it and click the Delete button in the Gradient panel.
To adjust the location of colors in the gradient, do any of the following:
- To adjust the midpoints of the gradient’s color stops (the point at which two color stops are 50%), drag a diamond icon located above the slider or select the icon and enter a value from 0 through 100 in the Location box.
- To adjust the endpoints of the gradient’s color stops, drag the leftmost or rightmost gradient stop below the gradient slider.
- To reverse the colors in the gradient, click Reverse Gradient in the Gradient panel.
To change the opacity of a gradient color, click a color stop in the Gradient panel, and specify a value in the Opacity box. When a gradient stop has an Opacity value less than 100%, the stop appears with a , and the color appears checkered in the gradient slider.
Click the New Swatch button in the Swatches panel to save the new or modified gradient as a swatch. Or, drag the gradient from the Gradient panel or Tools panel to the Swatches panel.

Apply a gradient across multiple objects

Fill all the objects with a gradient.
Select all of the objects that you want filled.
Using the Gradient tool, do one of the following:
- To create a gradient with one gradient slider, click in the artboard where you want the gradient to start, and drag to where you want the gradient to end.
- To create a gradient with a gradient slider for every selected object, click in the artboard where you want the gradient to start, and Alt-drag (Windows) or Option-drag (Mac OS) to where you want the gradient to end. You can then adjust the different gradient sliders for the different objects. (Multiple gradient sliders are only created for simple paths.)

Change gradient direction, radius, or origin

Once you have filled an object with a gradient, you can use the Gradient tool and the gradient annotator (slider) inside the object to modify the gradient by drawing a new fill path. This tool lets you change the direction of a gradient, the origin, and the beginning point and endpoint of a gradient.

Select the gradient-filled object.
Select the Gradient tool and do any of the following:
- To change the direction of a linear gradient, click where you want the gradient to start and drag in the direction you want it to appear. Or, position the Gradient tool on the gradient annotator in the object, and when the cursor changes to the rotation icon , drag to set the angle of the gradient.
  
  note: You can also change the direction by setting a new value in the Angle box in the Gradient panel.
- To change the radius of a radial or elliptical gradient, position the Gradient tool on the arrow of gradient annotator in the object and drag to set the radius.
- To change the origin of the gradient, position the Gradient tool on the beginning of the gradient annotator in the object and drag it to the desired location.
- To change the radius and angle at the same time, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the end point, and drag to the new location.
  
  note: If the gradient annotator (gradient slider) does not appear when you position the Gradient tool in an object that has a gradient, choose View > Show Gradient Annotator.
Changing gradient radius and angle at the same time

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