Open the Swatches panel (Window > Color > Swatches).
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Create and organize pages
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Arrange and order pages
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Layout and grid tools
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Grids
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Add and manage text
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Format and style text
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Text styles
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Tabs, indents, and spacing
- About kerning and tracking
- Adjust kerning between characters
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Text styles
- Fonts
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Language and proofing
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Arabic and Hebrew
- Set up World-Ready composers for Arabic and Hebrew
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Chinese, Japanese, and Korean
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Glyphs, characters, and expressions
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- Find and replace with text patterns (GREP)
- Save and manage find and replace queries
- Manage language dictionaries
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Indexes and references
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Add graphics and media
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Add and edit graphics
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- Apply effects to text and shapes
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- Create contact sheets
- Manage frames and objects
- Object libraries and snippets
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Transform and arrange objects
- Move, scale, rotate, shear, and flip objects
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- Object transformation settings and options
- About anchored objects
- Transform anchored objects
- Create and position anchored objects
- Manage and update anchored objects
- Group and lock objects
- Create hidden and nonprinting objects
- Align or distribute objects
- Manage links
- Manage object styles
- Movies and sound
- Animation
- Page transitions
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Add and edit graphics
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Add tables and data
- Create tables
- Format tables
- Table and cell styles
- Strokes and fills
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Interactive elements and forms
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- Hyperlinks
- QR Codes
- Forms and PDFs
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Create lines and shapes
- Drawing tools
- Draw lines and shapes
- Edit and style paths
- Combine and convert paths
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Apply color
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Define and manage color assets
- Apply color to text, objects, and backgrounds
- Mix and define custom colors
- Organize and reuse color swatches
- Add and manage colors from CC libraries
- Sample colors from placed graphics
- Apply colors to grayscale images
- Find and replace colors
- Swatch types
- Create and define new swatches
- Modify and delete swatches
- Import and share swatch libraries
- Create and edit tints
- Create mixed ink swatches and groups
- Edit and convert mixed ink swatches
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Advanced color techniques
- Apply opacity and transparency effects
- Transparency effects options and settings
- Change transparency display settings
- Apply blending modes
- Blending mode options
- Control blending with isolation and knockouts
- Create and name gradient swatches
- Modify and adjust gradients
- Transparency flattening overview
- Apply flattener presets for output
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- Fix transparency flattener preview
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Define and manage color assets
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Collaborate and review
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Share and collaborate
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- Edit InDesign documents with InCopy on the web (beta)
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Edit with InCopy
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- Set user identification
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- Save managed layout changes
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Save, export, and publish
- Save and export
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Export to EPUB
- Export to EPUB
- EPUB export options in InDesign
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- Accessibility enhancements for indexes
- Adjust text resizing for accessibility
- Add ARIA role while exporting to EPUB
- Add ARIA labels to objects
- EPUB export support and limitations
- Create accessible glossaries
- Export to HTML and web
- Publish work online
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Print
- Page setup and printer marks
- Ink and color management
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Color output and separations
- About color separations
- Prepare documents for color separation
- Create color separations
- Save and print color separations
- Print gradients as separations
- About ink trapping
- Trap a document or a book
- Trap preset options
- Set the trap width for colors next to black
- Print a composite
- Use color management when printing
- Color output options
- Print objects on all color plates
- About overprinting
- Overprint strokes and fills
- Overprint paragraph and footnote rules
- Simulate spot ink overprinting
- Change the black overprint setting
- Preview color separations and ink coverage
- Preflight
- Print booklets
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Automation and scripting
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App integrations
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Troubleshoot
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Launch and crash issues
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File and output issues
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Settings, interface, and feature issues
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Create and define new swatches
Last updated on
Jun 2, 2026
Learn how to use the Swatches panel to create custom color swatches for consistent color management across your Adobe InDesign project.
Use the Swatches panel to create and store colors, gradients, and tints for consistent use. Apply colors quickly and update them across the document with a single edit. Create new swatches as needed, and use default colors or define process, spot, RGB, LAB, and mixed ink swatches.
Create a new color swatch
Select the panel menu icon, then choose New Color Swatch.
To rename the swatch, clear the Name with Color Value field, then enter a name.
Choose Process or Spot from the Color Type drop-down menu.
Select a color mode.
Adjust the color using the sliders or by entering a percentage, then select OK.
Create a swatch from an existing object
Open the document that contains the object.
Use the Selection tool to select the object with the fill or stroke color you want to save as a swatch.
Open the Swatches panel (Window > Color > Swatches).
Select the Fill icon or the Stroke to specify the attribute to capture.
Select the New Swatch icon.
Double-click the new swatch to rename or adjust settings, then select OK.
Manage unnamed colors
Colors applied from the Color panel without saving them as swatches are treated as unnamed colors. They work normally but must be updated individually.
Open the Swatches panel (Window > Color > Swatches).
Select the panel menu icon, then choose Add Unnamed Colors.
Double-click a swatch to rename it or adjust its color values. Unnamed colors are added to the Swatches panel.
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