Tool manual

How to use the Patch tool

The Patch tool repairs an area you draw round by filling it with texture from another part of the picture, blending the colour at the edges.

Where to find it

It is in the toolbar, in one slot with Spot Healing Brush, Remove, Healing Brush, Content-Aware Move and Red Eye. Right-click the slot, or press and hold it, to choose between them. Press Shift+J until it is selected (J on its own picks Spot Healing Brush).

How to use it

1. Choose the tool. Press Shift+J until it is selected, or right-click the healing slot and pick Patch.
2. Draw round the flaw. Drag a loop around the mark, like the Lasso.
3. Drag the loop. Drag from inside the loop onto a clean area with matching texture. A preview shows the result.
4. Let go. The flaw is replaced and blended in. Press Ctrl+D (Cmd+D on a Mac) to drop the selection.

Options bar settings

• Source and Destination: Source: the loop is the flaw, and you drag to the good texture. Destination: the loop is the good texture, and you drag it onto where a copy should go.
• Color: From 0 to 10: how much the patch takes on the colour of its new surroundings. 10 blends fully; lower keeps more of the copied colour.

Tips and common mistakes

• Hold Shift while dragging the patch to keep it exactly level or upright with the place it came from.
• A selection made with any other selection tool works too: draw it, switch to Patch, and drag.

Related

• How to use the Healing Brush tool
• How to use the Content-Aware Move tool
• How to use the Remove tool

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Checked 13 November 2026 in the current editor.

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