Create, import, and apply object styles

Last updated on Jun 2, 2026

Learn how to create, apply, and import object styles in Adobe InDesign to format frames and graphics consistently across your document.

Use the Object Styles panel to create, edit, and apply object styles. For each new document, the panel initially lists a default set of object styles. Object styles are saved with a document and display in the panel each time you open that document. The Text Frame marks the default style for text frames. The Graphics Frame marks the default style for graphics frames and drawn shapes.

Create a new object style

Select the object or text frame with the settings you want to include in the object style.

Select Window > Styles > Object Styles.

Select the panel menu icon, then select New Object Style.

Type a name for the style in the Style Name field.

Select a style from the Based On drop-down menu to base the style on another style. The Based On option links styles together, so changes to one style are reflected in the others. If you change the formatting of a child style and want to start over, select Reset To Base to restore it to its base style.

Select the Shortcut field, then select the desired keys together to assign the shortcut. You'll view a message under the Shortcut field if the selected key combination is currently assigned to any other function in InDesign.

Review each category under Basic Attributes and select the option for the categories you want to include.

Select each category and adjust its settings, such as stroke weight, fill color, or transparency.

Review the Export Options section if you plan to export to EPUB, HTML, or accessible PDF formats, and configure Alt text or tagging settings if needed.

Explore object styles to apply consistent formatting across objects.

Select OK to create the style.

Import Object Styles

You can import styles from other documents. InDesign also imports any swatches, custom strokes, character styles, or paragraph styles used by those styles. If an imported swatch, stroke, or paragraph style has the same name as an existing one but different values, InDesign renames it. If the imported object styles include named grids, InDesign imports those grids as well.

Select Window > Styles > Object Styles.

Select the panel menu icon, then select Load Object Styles.

Choose and open the file from which you want to import object styles.

Select the styles you want to import, then select Open.

If a style name conflict exists, in the Load Styles dialog box, select a resolution option under Conflict with Existing Style:

Use Incoming Definition to replace the existing style with the loaded style and apply the new attributes to all objects that used the old style. The Load Styles dialog box shows the incoming and existing style definitions for comparison.
Auto-Rename to rename the loaded style.

Select OK. You can view the object styles in the Object Styles panel.

Apply an object style

If you apply an object style to a group of objects, the object style is applied to each object in the group. To apply an object style to a group of objects, nest the objects within a frame.

Select an object, frame, or group.

Select Window > Styles > Object Styles.

Choose the style you want to apply. You can also drag an object style onto an object to apply it without selecting the object first.

Create print and digital materials with InDesign
Design impactful ads, magazine and book layouts, and more.

Open the app

About object styles

Remove overrides or break object style links

Learn

Learn with step-by-step video tutorials and hands-on guidance right in the app.

Community

Join discussions, find answers, learn from experts, and share your knowledge.

Adobe Home

Access your favorite Creative Cloud apps, services, file management, and more.