# Procreate gradient guide: smooth fills on iPad [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/procreate-gradient) Procreate builds gradients from its painting and adjustment tools rather than a drag across tool. Once you know the three reliable methods, smooth skies, backgrounds and lettering fills take minutes. ## The short version - The smoothest Procreate gradient comes from blocking in bands of colour and then applying a strong Gaussian Blur. - The Soft Brush from the Airbrushing set, used large and at low opacity, builds gradients gradually and gives the most control over where colour sits. - Procreate's Gradient Map adjustment recolours a layer by its tones, so a greyscale blend can become any colour gradient you choose. - Alpha Lock or a clipping mask keeps a gradient inside a shape or a piece of lettering. - A light pass of Procreate's Noise adjustment helps hide banding in subtle or dark gradients. To make a smooth **Procreate gradient**, paint two or three bands of colour on their own layer, then open Adjustments › Gaussian Blur and slide your finger across the screen until the edges melt into one blend. For more control, build the colour up with a large Soft Brush at low opacity. For colours you can change later, paint the blend in greys and recolour it with a Gradient Map. Procreate has no classic drag across gradient tool like a desktop editor, but these three methods cover everything from a sunset sky to a fill inside hand lettering. ## The blur method: fastest and smoothest This is the method most illustrators use for skies and backgrounds, because a heavy blur averages away every brush mark. It works best on a layer that holds nothing but the gradient. 1. **Add a fresh layer** Tap + in the Layers panel. Keeping the gradient alone on its layer means the blur can't smear anything else. 2. **Block in bands** Paint horizontal bands with a large hard brush, or drag colours from the colour disc onto the canvas with ColorDrop inside rough selections. Three to five bands in related colours give the richest result. 3. **Blur hard** Open Adjustments › Gaussian Blur, choose Layer, and slide right across the screen. Bands usually need a high percentage before the joins disappear. 4. **Repeat if needed** If faint steps remain, apply the blur a second time. Any colour that spreads too far can be pulled back with a large soft Eraser. 5. **Add a whisper of grain** Finish with Adjustments › Noise at a low setting so the blend feels like a surface and holds up when exported. - Night indigo: #1e1b4b - Dusk violet: #7c3aed - Afterglow pink: #f472b6 - Horizon orange: #fb923c - Last light: #fde68a Five bands for a sunset sky, painted top to bottom before the blur. Neighbours sit close on the colour wheel so the joins stay clean, never grey. Sunset sky after the blur: `linear-gradient(180deg, #1e1b4b 0%, #7c3aed 30%, #f472b6 58%, #fb923c 80%, #fde68a 100%)` What those bands become once blurred. More on the colours in [sunset gradients](https://gradiently.design/guide/sunset-gradient). ## The airbrush method: most control Choose Airbrushing › Soft Brush, push the size near its maximum and drop the opacity to around a quarter. Fill the layer with your darkest colour, then sweep lighter colours in from one edge in loose passes, letting each layer of spray build. Because nothing is blurred afterwards, you decide exactly where the light sits: a glow low in one corner, a pale band through the middle. It is slower than blurring and the best choice for the soft pools of light behind a subject. > **Keep the pressure light** Short, overlapping strokes with light pressure blend more evenly than one long heavy stroke, which leaves a visible edge where the stroke began. ## Procreate gradient maps Adjustments › Gradient Map recolours a layer by brightness: darks take the colour on the left of the bar, lights take the colour on the right. Procreate ships with a library of maps, and you can tap to create your own and add stops along the bar. Choose Layer to apply it everywhere or Pencil to brush it on where you want. The useful trick is to paint your gradient in greys first, using the blur method, then apply a map. The blend stays perfectly smooth, and you can try a dozen colour schemes on the same layer by changing the map rather than repainting. The same idea works on photos for a duotone look; [gradient maps](https://gradiently.design/guide/gradient-map) explains the theory across apps. - Painted in greys: `linear-gradient(180deg, #111111 0%, #777777 50%, #eeeeee 100%)` - Teal map: `linear-gradient(180deg, #042f2e 0%, #0d9488 50%, #ccfbf1 100%)` - Rose map: `linear-gradient(180deg, #450a0a 0%, #e11d48 50%, #fecdd3 100%)` - Amber map: `linear-gradient(180deg, #1c1917 0%, #b45309 50%, #fef3c7 100%)` One grey blend, three gradient maps. The smoothness is painted once; the colour becomes a decision you can change at any time. ## Gradients inside shapes and lettering To fill hand lettering or a shape with a gradient, put the gradient on a new layer directly above the lettering, tap that layer and choose Clipping Mask. The colour now shows only where the letters are, and you can still move or blur the gradient independently. The quicker option is Alpha Lock: swipe right with two fingers on the lettering layer, then paint the blend straight onto it with a soft brush. Alpha Lock is faster; a clipping mask keeps the lettering and the colour separate, which is safer when you might change your mind. ## Which Procreate method to use | Method | Smoothness | Control | Best for | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Bands plus Gaussian Blur | Highest | Medium | Skies, wallpapers, full backgrounds | | Soft Brush airbrushing | High | Highest | Pools of light, glows behind a subject | | Gradient Map | Inherits the layer | Colour only | Trying colour schemes, recolouring photos | | Smudge with a soft brush | Medium | High | Small blends inside an illustration | Choosing between Procreate's gradient methods. Most finished pieces combine two of them. ## Banding, canvas size and export Set the canvas to the size you will actually use before you paint, since enlarging a soft gradient later makes it look smeary. In the gallery, tap + and create a custom canvas in pixels. A phone wallpaper or story is 1080×1920; an A4 print at 300 dpi is 2480×3508, which is covered in [A4 size in pixels](https://gradiently.design/guide/a4-size-in-pixels). - Story 1080×1920: 1080 × 1920 - Post 1080×1350: 1080 × 1350 - A4 poster 2480×3508: 2480 × 3508 - Desktop 1920×1080: 1920 × 1080 Common canvas sizes for Procreate gradients. Pick the final size first, because a blend scaled up afterwards loses its softness. Dark, subtle blends are the ones that show steps. A light Noise adjustment breaks them up, and exporting PNG rather than a compressed JPEG keeps them from coming back. [Gradient banding](https://gradiently.design/guide/gradient-banding) explains why it happens, and [grainy gradients](https://gradiently.design/guide/grainy-gradients) shows how much grain is enough. If your painted gradient is going to become a run of social graphics, the resizing is where the time goes. In Gradiently the background is a Mark that renders natively at every size, so the story, the post and the banner all come from one design with the words kept readable. [One look, every size](https://gradiently.design/guide/one-look-every-size) shows how that works. ## FAQ ### Does Procreate have a gradient tool? Procreate makes gradients with its brushes and adjustments rather than a drag across gradient tool. Blurring bands of colour or airbrushing with the Soft Brush gives the smoothest results. ### How do I make a gradient background in Procreate? Paint bands of colour on a new layer, then apply Adjustments › Gaussian Blur at a high percentage until the bands blend. ### How do I fill lettering with a gradient in Procreate? Paint the gradient on a layer above the lettering and set it as a Clipping Mask, or Alpha Lock the lettering layer and paint the gradient directly onto it. ### What does Gradient Map do in Procreate? It recolours a layer by brightness, sending dark tones to one end of a colour bar and light tones to the other. ### Why does my Procreate gradient look stripy? Subtle and dark blends show banding. Add a little Noise from the Adjustments menu and export as PNG instead of a compressed JPEG.