How to Use Photoshop Tool Presets

Using tool presets in Photoshop CC 2019 for Windows and Mac can speed up your workflow and help you maintain consistency in your work. Presets allow you to save your favorite fills, text effects, brush sizes, and even eraser settings.

How to Use Default Tool Presets in Photoshop

Select Window > Tool Presets to open the Tool Presets palette. Depending on the current tool you have selected, you'll see a list of presets or a message that no presets exist for the current tool. Some Photoshop tools come with built-in presets, and others do not.

For example, if you select the crop tool from the toolbar, you'll notice a list of default presets including standard photo crop sizes. When you select one of the presets, the values will automatically populate the height, width and resolution fields in the tool options bar.

How to Create Your Own Tool Presets

After selecting a tool and adjusting the settings in the tool options bar, save the settings as a preset by clicking the Create new tool preset icon at the bottom of the Tool Presets palette (next to the trashcan). Provide a name for the preset and select OK to add it to the list.

Tool Presets Palette Options

Select the Menu icon in the top-right of the Tool Presets palette to see a list of options. From here, you can change how the palette looks, reset your presets, or even import new presets. Select Preset Manager to view all of your Photoshop presets.

Since you might not want to display all of your presets at once, you could use the save and load options to create preset groups for specific projects or styles. Using tool presets consistently can save you a great deal of time by avoiding the need to enter detailed variables each time you select a tool.