---
title: Color table ID
framework: quicktime-file-format
role: symbol
role_heading: Data field
path: quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/color_table_id
---

# Color table ID

A 16-bit integer that identifies which color table to use.

## Overview

Overview If this field is set to –1, the default color table should be used for the specified depth. For all depths below 16 bits per pixel, this indicates a standard Macintosh color table for the specified depth. Depths of 16, 24, and 32 have no color table. If the color table ID is set to 0, a color table is contained within the sample description itself. The color table immediately follows the color table ID field in the sample description. See Color table atom ('ctab') for a complete description of a color table.

## See Also

### Data fields

- [Sample description size](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/sample_description_size.md)
- [Data format](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/data_format.md)
- [Reserved](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/reserved.md)
- [Data reference index](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/data_reference_index.md)
- [Version](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/version.md)
- [Revision level](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/revision_level.md)
- [Vendor](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/vendor.md)
- [Temporal quality](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/temporal_quality.md)
- [Spatial quality](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/spatial_quality.md)
- [Width](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/width.md)
- [Height](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/height.md)
- [Horizontal resolution](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/horizontal_resolution.md)
- [Vertical resolution](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/vertical_resolution.md)
- [Data size](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/data_size.md)
- [Frame count](quicktime-file-format/video_sample_description/frame_count.md)