Reorder swatches

Last updated on Oct 27, 2025

Learn how to reorder swatches in Illustrator to better organize the color palette.

You can reorder individual Swatches in the Swatches panel as well as manually arrange Swatches inside swatch groups.

Select Window > Swatches.

In the Swatches panel, select More options and choose one of the following sorting options:

  • Sort by Name: Arranges the swatches alphabetically by their names.
  • Sort by Kind: Groups swatches by type (Example, Solid colors, Gradients, and patterns.)
Note

Sorting options applies only to individual swatches in the Swatches panel, not to swatches within Swatch groups.

Swatches menu is displayed on the screen showcasing options like New Swatch, New Swatch Group, Duplicate Swatches, and more.
Drag individual swatches in the Swatches panel to a new position to reorder them manually, even after sorting.