# Blurs

**URL:** https://www.sketch.com/docs/symbols-and-styles/styling/blurs/ | **Last updated:** 2026-04-07

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To add a blur, click the **Blur** section in the Inspector, then choose a blur type from the drop-down menu. To switch an existing blur to a different type, click the type name in the blur row or right-click it and choose from the menu.

> **Note:** You can apply a blur to any shape (including vector shapes), image, text, frame or graphic. You cannot blur to Symbol instances or groups.

**Gaussian Blur** applies a blur in all directions. You can set the blur amount using its slider.
![A movie showing how to apply gaussian blur](https://cdn.sketch.com/docs/styling/gaussian-blur@2x.mp4)

**Motion Blur** blurs in one direction to imply motion. You can set both the blur amount and the angle using the sliders. To reset the angle to its default value, double-click the slider.
![A movie showing how to apply motion blur](https://cdn.sketch.com/docs/styling/motion-blur@2x.mp4)

**Zoom Blur** will blur from one point outwards. You can set both the blur amount and the point where it starts from.
![A movie showing how to apply zoom blur](https://cdn.sketch.com/docs/styling/zoom-blur@2x.mp4)

**Background Blur** replicates the blurs behind overlays and panes in macOS and iOS. Content underneath your layer will blur and you can set that content’s saturation and a blur amount in the Inspector. To reset the saturation slider to its default value, double-click it. If you have any fill styles on this layer, they’ll need to be transparent in order to see this blur. A transparent color fill is also a great way to tint it.

![A movie showing how to apply background blur](https://cdn.sketch.com/docs/styling/background-blur@2x.mp4)

**Note:** Applying lots of blurs (or large blurs) can cause the Mac app to slow down as they require lots of memory and processing power to render them.