Colors and fonts

As a developer, you work with a lot of text resources: the source code in the editor, search results, debugger information, console input and output, and so on. Colors and font styles are used to format this text and help you better understand it at a glance.

PhpStorm lets you choose between configurable color schemes that define colors and fonts used in IDE text.

You can use a predefined color scheme or customize it to your liking. It is also possible to share schemes.

Watch this video to get a quick overview on PhpStorm customization possibilities:

Select a color scheme

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme.
Use the Scheme list to select a color scheme.

Customize a color scheme

You can customize a predefined color scheme, but it is recommended to create a duplicate for your custom color and font settings:

Duplicate a color scheme

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme.
Select a color scheme, click , and then click Duplicate.
(Optional) To rename your custom scheme, click and select Rename.

To define color and font settings, open the Editor | Color Scheme page of the IDE settings Ctrl+Alt+S. The settings under Editor | Color Scheme are separated into sections. For example, the General section defines basic editor colors, such as the gutter, line numbers, errors, warnings, popups, hints, and so on. The Language Defaults section contains common syntax highlighting settings, which are applied to all supported programming languages by default. In most cases, it is sufficient to configure Language Defaults and make adjustments for specific languages if necessary. To change inherited color settings for an element, clear the Inherit values from checkbox.

Language Defaults section under Color Scheme settings

Semantic highlighting

By default, the color scheme defines syntax highlighting for reserved words and other symbols in your source code: operators, keywords, suggestions, string literals, and so on. If you have a function or method with many parameters and local variables, it may be hard to distinguish them from one another at a glance. You can use semantic highlighting to assign a different color to each parameter and local variable.

Enable semantic highlighting

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme | Language Defaults | Semantic highlighting.
Select the Semantic highlighting checkbox and customize the color ranges if necessary.

If you are used to a specific color scheme, you can export it from one installation and import it to another one. You can also share color schemes with other developers.

Export a color scheme as XML

PhpStorm can save your color scheme settings as an XML file with the .icls extension. You can then import the file to another installation.

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme.
From the Scheme list, select a color scheme, click , then click Export and select IntelliJ IDEA color scheme (.icls).
Specify the name and location of the file and save it.

Export a color scheme as a plugin

The plugin can be uploaded to the plugin repository for others to install. This format has several benefits over an XML file, including metadata, feedback, download statistics, and versioning (when you upload a new version of the plugin, users will be notified about it).

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme.
From the Scheme list, select a color scheme, click , then click Export and select Color scheme plugin .jar.
In the Create Color Scheme Plugin dialog, specify the version details and vendor information. Then click OK.

Import a color scheme

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme.
From the Scheme list, select a color scheme, click , then click Import Scheme.

Fonts

To customize the default font, open the Editor | Font page of the IDE settings Ctrl+Alt+S. This font is used and inherited in all color schemes by default. For more information, see Font.

PhpStorm can use any font that's available in your operating system. To add another font to the list, either install it in the operating system or into the Java runtime that is used run PhpStorm.

Customize the color scheme font

You can set a different font for your current scheme.

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme | Color Scheme Font.
Select the Use color scheme font instead of the default checkbox.

Customize the console font

By default, text in the console uses the same font as the color scheme. To use a different font in the console:

Press Ctrl+Alt+S to open the IDE settings and select Editor | Color Scheme | Console Font.
Select the Use console font instead of the default checkbox.

Productivity tips

See the color scheme settings for the current symbol

Put the caret at the necessary symbol, press Ctrl+Shift+A, find the Jump to Colors and Fonts action, and execute it.

This will open the relevant color scheme settings for the symbol under the caret.

See which fonts are currently used in the editor

Press Ctrl+Shift+A, find the Show Fonts Used by Editor action, and execute it.

This will open the Fonts Used in Editor dialog with a list of fonts.

Last modified: 13 May 2022