Swatches panel options
Last updated on
Oct 27, 2025
Learn more about the Swatches panel in Illustrator to manage colors, gradients, and patterns.
Swatches panel
Select Window > Swatches to access the Swatches panel, where you can easily manage the document colors, gradients, and patterns. When an object’s Fill or Stroke uses a color, gradient, pattern, or tint from the Swatches panel, the corresponding swatch is automatically highlighted.
A. Fill/Stroke selector B. None C. Swatch Libraries menu D. Add selected Swatches and Swatch Groups to my current Library E. Show Swatch Kinds menu
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Function |
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Fill/Stroke selector |
Toggles between applying swatches to the object's Fill or Stroke. |
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None |
Removes the Fill or Stroke from the selected object. |
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Swatch Libraries menu |
Opens a list of built-in and custom swatch libraries. |
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Add selected Swatches and Swatch Groups to my current Library |
Adds selected swatches or groups to your current Creative Cloud Library. |
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Show Swatch Kinds menu |
Filters the panel view to show only a specific swatch type: colors, gradients, or patterns. |
A. Swatch Options B. New Swatch Group C. New Swatch D. Delete Swatch
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Swatches panel options |
Function |
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Swatch Options |
Opens the properties dialog to edit a selected swatch's name, color mode, and attributes. |
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New Swatch Group |
Creates a named folder (color group) to organize selected swatches together. |
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New Swatch |
Adds a new color, gradient, or pattern swatch to the panel. |
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Delete Swatch |
Deletes the selected swatch or group from the Swatches panel. |
Swatches panel menu options
In the Swatches panel, select More options to access additional menu options.
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Swatches panel menu options |
Function |
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New Swatch |
Opens a dialog box to create and name a new color swatch. |
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New Swatch Group |
Creates a new Swatch group folder to group and organize selected swatches. |
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Duplicate Swatch |
Creates a copy of the selected swatch. |
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Merge Swatches |
Combines selected swatches of the same color into one. |
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Delete Swatch |
Removes the selected swatch or swatch group from the panel. |
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Sort By Name |
Arranges Swatches alphabetically by their names in the panel. |
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Sort By Kind |
Organizes Swatches by their type, such as colors, gradients, or patterns. |
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Show Find Field |
Displays a search bar to find swatches by name. |
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Swatch Options |
Edits properties (name, color mode, etc.) of a selected swatch. |
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Open Swatch Library |
Opens built-in or saved swatch libraries. |
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Save Swatch Library as ASE |
Saves swatches as an Adobe Swatch Exchange (.ase) file for use in other Adobe applications. |
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Save Swatch Library as AI |
Saves swatches as an Illustrator (.ai) file that can be loaded later. |
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