How to Manage Color Swatches in CorelDRAW

Managing color swatches and custom palettes in CorelDRAW ensures brand consistency, speeds up design production, and simplifies project handoffs. This guide covers how to access color management dockers, create custom color palettes, add and edit individual swatches, maintain the dynamic Document Palette, and share palettes across projects.

Accessing the Palettes Docker

All swatch and palette management centers around the Palettes docker. To open it:

  1. Navigate to the top menu and select Window.
  2. Hover over Dockers (or Inspectors on macOS).
  3. Select Palettes.

The Palettes docker lists all default libraries (such as PANTONE®, standard RGB, and CMYK) and any custom palettes you create.

Creating a Custom Color Palette

Creating a dedicated palette keeps project-specific colors organized in one place:

  1. In the Palettes docker, click the Add new palette icon (plus sign) at the bottom.
  2. Choose New empty color palette.
  3. Name your palette and choose a save location on your drive (CorelDRAW saves custom palettes as .xml files).
  4. Click Save.

Your new palette will now appear in the docker and can be docked along the edge of your workspace by dragging its tab.

Adding Swatches to Your Palette

You can populate your palette with swatches using several methods:

  • From Workspace Objects: Drag any colored object directly onto your open palette window or palette docker.
  • From the Eyedropper Tool: Select the Color Eyedropper tool from the toolbox, sample a color on your canvas, hold Shift, and drag the sampled color directly into your custom palette.
  • From a Selection: Select multiple objects on your canvas, go to Palette Editor or click the palette options flyout, and select Add colors from selection.

Editing and Deleting Color Swatches

Fine-tuning colors ensures precise print and digital outputs:

  1. Open the Palette Editor by clicking the flyout arrow on your custom palette and selecting Palette Editor (or double-click the palette in the Palettes docker).
  2. Select the specific swatch from the list.
  3. Click Edit Color to adjust values using the color wheel, sliders, or exact numerical values (HEX, RGB, or CMYK).
  4. Assign a recognizable name to the swatch in the Color name field.
  5. To remove a swatch, highlight it in the list and click Delete Color.
  6. Click OK to save changes.

Using and Managing the Document Palette

CorelDRAW automatically generates a Document Palette that records every color applied to objects within the active project:

  • Visibility: Toggle the Document Palette on or off via Window > Color Palettes > Document Palette.
  • Automatic Updates: New colors added to fills or outlines automatically appear here.
  • Clean Up Unused Colors: To remove swatches that are no longer present in your artwork, click the flyout arrow on the Document Palette and select Palette > Reset Palette.

Exporting and Sharing Palettes

To share custom swatches with team members or use them in other installations of CorelDRAW:

  1. In the Palettes docker, right-click the custom palette you want to export.
  2. Select Palette > Save As.
  3. Save the palette file (.xml) to a shared drive, USB drive, or email attachment.
  4. On the destination computer, open the Palettes docker, click the folder icon (Open a palette), browse to the file, and click Open.