---
title: UI element colors
framework: appkit
role: collectionGroup
role_heading: API Collection
path: appkit/ui-element-colors
---

# UI element colors

Retrieve standard color objects for use with windows, controls, labels, text, selections and other content in your app.

## Overview

Overview For design guidance, see Human Interface Guidelines.

## Topics

### Label colors

- [labelColor](appkit/nscolor/labelcolor.md)
- [secondaryLabelColor](appkit/nscolor/secondarylabelcolor.md)
- [tertiaryLabelColor](appkit/nscolor/tertiarylabelcolor.md)
- [quaternaryLabelColor](appkit/nscolor/quaternarylabelcolor.md)

### Text colors

- [textColor](appkit/nscolor/textcolor.md)
- [placeholderTextColor](appkit/nscolor/placeholdertextcolor.md)
- [selectedTextColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedtextcolor.md)
- [textBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/textbackgroundcolor.md)
- [selectedTextBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedtextbackgroundcolor.md)
- [keyboardFocusIndicatorColor](appkit/nscolor/keyboardfocusindicatorcolor.md)
- [unemphasizedSelectedTextColor](appkit/nscolor/unemphasizedselectedtextcolor.md)
- [unemphasizedSelectedTextBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/unemphasizedselectedtextbackgroundcolor.md)

### Content colors

- [linkColor](appkit/nscolor/linkcolor.md)
- [separatorColor](appkit/nscolor/separatorcolor.md)
- [selectedContentBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedcontentbackgroundcolor.md)
- [unemphasizedSelectedContentBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/unemphasizedselectedcontentbackgroundcolor.md)

### Menu colors

- [selectedMenuItemTextColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedmenuitemtextcolor.md)

### Table colors

- [gridColor](appkit/nscolor/gridcolor.md)
- [headerTextColor](appkit/nscolor/headertextcolor.md)
- [alternatingContentBackgroundColors](appkit/nscolor/alternatingcontentbackgroundcolors.md)

### Control colors

- [controlAccentColor](appkit/nscolor/controlaccentcolor.md)
- [controlColor](appkit/nscolor/controlcolor.md)
- [controlBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/controlbackgroundcolor.md)
- [controlTextColor](appkit/nscolor/controltextcolor.md)
- [disabledControlTextColor](appkit/nscolor/disabledcontroltextcolor.md)
- [currentControlTint](appkit/nscolor/currentcontroltint.md)
- [selectedControlColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedcontrolcolor.md)
- [selectedControlTextColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedcontroltextcolor.md)
- [alternateSelectedControlTextColor](appkit/nscolor/alternateselectedcontroltextcolor.md)
- [scrubberTexturedBackground](appkit/nscolor/scrubbertexturedbackground.md)

### Window colors

- [windowBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/windowbackgroundcolor.md)
- [windowFrameTextColor](appkit/nscolor/windowframetextcolor.md)
- [underPageBackgroundColor](appkit/nscolor/underpagebackgroundcolor.md)

### Highlights and shadows

- [findHighlightColor](appkit/nscolor/findhighlightcolor.md)
- [highlightColor](appkit/nscolor/highlightcolor.md)
- [shadowColor](appkit/nscolor/shadowcolor.md)

### Fill colors

- [quaternarySystemFill](appkit/nscolor/quaternarysystemfill.md)
- [quinaryLabel](appkit/nscolor/quinarylabel.md)
- [quinarySystemFill](appkit/nscolor/quinarysystemfill.md)
- [secondarySystemFill](appkit/nscolor/secondarysystemfill.md)
- [systemFill](appkit/nscolor/systemfill.md)
- [tertiarySystemFill](appkit/nscolor/tertiarysystemfill.md)
- [textInsertionPointColor](appkit/nscolor/textinsertionpointcolor.md)

### Deprecated colors

- [alternateSelectedControlColor](appkit/nscolor/alternateselectedcontrolcolor.md)
- [controlAlternatingRowBackgroundColors](appkit/nscolor/controlalternatingrowbackgroundcolors.md)
- [controlHighlightColor](appkit/nscolor/controlhighlightcolor.md)
- [controlLightHighlightColor](appkit/nscolor/controllighthighlightcolor.md)
- [controlShadowColor](appkit/nscolor/controlshadowcolor.md)
- [controlDarkShadowColor](appkit/nscolor/controldarkshadowcolor.md)
- [headerColor](appkit/nscolor/headercolor.md)
- [knobColor](appkit/nscolor/knobcolor.md)
- [selectedKnobColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedknobcolor.md)
- [scrollBarColor](appkit/nscolor/scrollbarcolor.md)
- [secondarySelectedControlColor](appkit/nscolor/secondaryselectedcontrolcolor.md)
- [selectedMenuItemColor](appkit/nscolor/selectedmenuitemcolor.md)
- [windowFrameColor](appkit/nscolor/windowframecolor.md)

## See Also

### Getting and creating colors

- [Standard colors](appkit/standard-colors.md)
- [Color creation](appkit/color-creation.md)