Inspiring

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Ridiculous Gradient Process inDesign

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The process to make a color gradient is so ridiculous in inDesign that it is not even funny. I don't think I am stupid, but nothing seems to be intuitive and it does not work.

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Steve WernerCorrect answer

Community Expert

I would not use the adjectives you're using to describe creating gradients in InDesign. It's neither ridiculous nor funny.

Compared to lllustrator's gradients, it's just very simple-minded. Illustrator has very powerful gradient features.

It's more accurate to start by creating swatch colors for the colors your want to include in the gradient. I created swatches which are Green, Purple and a Purple Tint (using New Tint Swatch):

When you choose New Gradient, you're applying color swatches to the Color Stops on the Gradient slider at the bottom:

I changed the Purple tint to 30%:

Result:

campbellm67900741

Participant

Gradients in InDesign is notoriously frustrating. Its rigid dependency on the Swatches panel, lack of interactive eyedropper mixing, and tendency to "band" or look muddy are massive pain points compared to Illustrator

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Office31227788gd5a

Participant

It's 2025, 2 years since you asked that question, and it's still a problem in Adobe INDD 2025. Why did Adobe make it so hard to create a simple color to transparent gradient? I've been working on making a simple color to transparent rectangle and it won't allow me to use transparency or any color other than black or white. SOOOO frusturated. If anyone has any ideas, I'd appreciate it! I'm going to go try to do it in Canva. Maybe that's the answer.

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Mike Witherell

Community Expert

Did you pick up the "other" gradient tool: The Gradient Feather tool? And drag it over a filled shape?

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Mike Witherell

O

Office31227788gd5a

Participant

I did, and it puts the gradient there, but it won't use the swatch, it will only do black and it has thick bands instead of smooth gradient. I tried adjusting the settings, making sure it was on the CMYK Print setting and it was. I tried doing a color overlay but then it goes to single color and the gradient disappears. The layer mask looked awful. I used the Gradient Feather tool but I was hoping for a cleaner result. I downloaded someone else's free eps file to see how they did it and that helped. I had to duplicate the gradient layer several times and overlay them at various points until the banding disappeared and it looked smooth. I finally got the intended effect, but that increased the file size, which is undesireable. I didn't have to do that before PS2025.

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Mike Witherell

Community Expert

BTW, in case it hasn't been said: If you have an Object selected and you want to fill it with a freely-made one-off gradient, click the Gradient panel ramp to start it up (with the last-used settings) (or click on the Apply Gradient button or tap the period key) and then click on the "Stop" of the gradient ramp, and then Opt/Alt-click a Swatch to apply the swatch to just that stop on the ramp. Clicking a Swatch without Opt/Alt replaces the whole gradient with a solid Swatch color, so the trick is Opt/Alt click that Swatch. Or in the Color panel (seldom-used in InDesign) set any color model and click anywhere in the spectrum field for any color.

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Mike Witherell

Community Expert

Not that I wouldn't like a refinement or two and see possibly a harmonized gradient panel, but bear in mind the point-of-view of a page layout software: its purpose is to manage a workflow that ultimately goes to prepress involving ink on paper. Unlike PS and AI, a basic premise of laying out pages is choosing ink colors.

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Mike Witherell

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unique_person4993

Known Participant

I think "a harmonized gradient panel" is a great way to put it, really my main issue is the fact that there's two different areas to edit the gradient vs it all being available in one spot.

I definitely get what you mean, but I don't think that contridicts My wishes for how it would work at least. I don't think anything should work differently from how it is now on a functional standpoint, I just think the UI of it could be more straightforward. I believe you're saying that the stops in your gradient should be set swatches for the sake of ink colour? But as it is, you can edit the stops into non-swatched colours via the gradient options panel anyway. So my confusion and criticism of the system comes from "why can't I just do that in the normal gradient panel as well?", especially when other adobe programs work that way, it creates a disconnect.

Maybe I'm just a bit too tired to think today, but I ended up finding this thread because I could Not figure out why I couldn't edit the colours of the gradient I was using, and the answer ended up being "you can do exactly that, but you have to do it through the options panel instead". Or I could alternatively make the new colour stops as swatches, and then drag them into the gradient panel, but why would I assume I can add a swatch if I can't edit the existing colours? What's the difference between the two methods in the end, other than adding an extra step to changing the colour?

I just personally think it's a confusing system that could be streamlined without really changing the main functionality much at all.

(And I'll admit that I'm not an expert on how ink colours work to be honest! So the way I do things is probably not the best, but my point is as it is now I CAN achieve exactly what I set out to do, I just have to go through extra steps vs doing it how I expected to, which would be in line with how the other programs work.)

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Dave Creamer of IDEAS

Community Expert

If you want a quick and easy gradient,

create an Illustrator document in CMYK mode,
create a frame in Illustrator,
fill with a gradient swatch from the libraries,
copy the frame/frames with the Selection tool,
switch to your InDesign document,
paste.

The gradients will show up in the Swatches panel, albiet without their fancy name.

Note: this won't work with gradients that have transparency applied to them in Illustrator.

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David Creamer: Community Expert (ACI and ACE 1995-2023)

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unique_person4993

Known Participant

"a quick and easy gradient" involves opening an entire other program...? I'm not sure that's the definition of the words quick or easy?

And what if I decide I want to edit that gradient after moving it into indesign? It then has the same issue, where I have to open the gradient swatch options rather than just using the gradient panel.

I'm not saying it's impossible or even very hard to make a gradient in indesign as it is, and it'd likely be a lot quicker than that process even, I'm just saying that the system in indesign is illogical and unintuitive from a user interface standpoint, as it contridicts how the same panel functions in the other programs, and splits all of the gradient settings into two different areas, which is rather confusing in my opinion.

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Dave Creamer of IDEAS

Community Expert

Opening another program is an issue? I guess it would depend on one's system.

My AI opens in 8 seconds and I tend to leave open after that.

I do agree it would be nice to have similar/identical tools between ID and AI.

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David Creamer: Community Expert (ACI and ACE 1995-2023)

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unique_person4993

Known Participant

I see this has a "Correct answer" marked, which explains how to do things, but i actually completely agree with the original post here. Why in the world can I not edit the gradient via the gradient panel? Every single other adobe program lets you double click the stops and change the colours via the gradient panel, it is incredibly confusing that that is not how it works here as well, especially because you can still add additional stops and move those around...?? And why is the angle only able to be set via the gradient panel and not when editing the gradient swatch? It really feels like the two different gradient editors need to be combined into one, how the settings are split apart at the moment is really confusing and uninuitive.

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Phil24304175ro3v

Participating Frequently

It is pretty frustrating to go between InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator and have to re-remember how each system's gradient panels work. And it is truly odd that one could only use a color from the swatch pallete to create a gradient. When experimenting and testing gradient colors, this process certainly slows the designer down. If this process must be used for InDesign, the least the developers can do is make it so that the user can use various tints of the swatch color without having to make a specific swatch tint. I'm actually surprised that this is not a bigger issue for more designers.

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Steve Werner

Correct answer

Community Expert

I would not use the adjectives you're using to describe creating gradients in InDesign. It's neither ridiculous nor funny.

Compared to lllustrator's gradients, it's just very simple-minded. Illustrator has very powerful gradient features.

It's more accurate to start by creating swatch colors for the colors your want to include in the gradient. I created swatches which are Green, Purple and a Purple Tint (using New Tint Swatch):

When you choose New Gradient, you're applying color swatches to the Color Stops on the Gradient slider at the bottom:

I changed the Purple tint to 30%:

Result:

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Steve Werner

Community Expert

In addition, you can click the bottom of the gradient slider to add additional color stops

This is a linear gradient. You can also create a radial gradient.

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Lukas Engqvist

Community Expert

I think InDesign assumes that you want to make a design system, and in that way is different in how other applications have done the gradient tool. Building a style guide you will for colours use Swatches which are in effect "Colour Styles", though they are not called that. The idea is you drag from your working palette of colours (in your swatches) to your gradient panel. (yes if you are used to Illsutrator where you can click on the gradient you are dissapointed)

An alternative way is to create a gradient swatch… then once you edit a Gradient Swatch you will see that you can add colour stops from any colour model as well as change their, Swatch, RGB, CMYK, LAB, Spot colour… (Unlike Illustrator or Photoshop there is not the option to define transparency on a colour stop, but there is a special type of gradient called the gradient feather.)

I understand that you may be frustrated by these limitations if you are expecting the flexibility of Photoshop or Illustrator gradients. I hope this helps you manage what you have.

If you want to formulate what you want there is a User Voice or Feature request that you can share your comments on https://indesign.uservoice.com/forums/601021-adobe-indesign-feature-requests/suggestions/36080107-indesign-gradient-tool

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richardb62236718Author

Inspiring

Thanks. I just wanted a simple one-time gradient, but Adobe must assume no one just needs that. I appreciate your comments.

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kglad

Community Expert

in the future, to find the best place to post your message, use the list here, https://community.adobe.com/

p.s. i don't think the adobe website, and forums in particular, are easy to navigate, so don't spend a lot of time searching that forum list. do your best and we'll move the post (like this one has already been moved) if it helps you get responses.

<"moved from cc desktop">

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