Load UXML and USS C# scripts

Unity represents UXML files as VisualTreeAsset objects in C# and represents USS files as StyleSheet objects in C#. Since VisualTreeAsset and StyleSheet are regular Unity assets, you can use Unity’s standard workflows to load them.

Use serialization references

Unity automatically detect fields from your C# scriptsA piece of code that allows you to create your own Components, trigger game events, modify Component properties over time and respond to user input in any way you like. More info
See in Glossary which are of type VisualTreeAsset or StyleSheet. You can use the InspectorA Unity window that displays information about the currently selected GameObject, asset or project settings, allowing you to inspect and edit the values. More info
See in Glossary to set references to specific UXML or USS files imported in your project. Such references remain valid even when the location of your assets change in your project.

There are three ways to use this in your scripts:

Note: The default references works for all scripts that derive from MonoBehaviour or ScriptableObject. It provides a way to populate default values for serialized fields of scripts.

The following example MonoBehaviour class receives a UXML file and a list of USS files from the Inspector:

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEngine.UIElements;

public class MyBehaviour : MonoBehaviour
{
  // Note that public fields are automatically exposed in the Inspector.
  public VisualTreeAsset exampleUI;
  public StyleSheet[] exampleStyle;
}

The following example EditorWindow class receives default references from the Inspector:

using UnityEditor;
using UnityEngine.UIElements;

public class MyWindow : EditorWindow
{
  [SerializeField]
  private VisualTreeAsset uxml;
  [SerializeField]
  private StyleSheet uss;
}

Use the Asset Database (Editor only)

You can load your UI Assets by path or GUID with the AssetDatabase class.

The following example shows how to locate an asset by path:

VisualTreeAsset uxml = AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath<VisualTreeAsset>("Assets/Editor/main_window.uxml");
StyleSheet uss = AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath<StyleSheet>("Assets/Editor/main_styles.uss");

The following example shows how to locate an asset by path from a package:

VisualTreeAsset uxml = AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath<VisualTreeAsset>("Packages/<name-of-the-package>/main_window.uxml");
StyleSheet uss = AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath<StyleSheet>("Packages/<name-of-the-package>/main_styles.uss");

Use Addressables

The Addressables system provides tools and scripts to organize and package content for your application and an API to load and release assets at runtime.

You can use UXML and USS assets with the Addressable system. A code-less way to use addressables is to create a prefabAn asset type that allows you to store a GameObject complete with components and properties. The prefab acts as a template from which you can create new object instances in the scene. More info
See in Glossary out of the UI Document component and then add that prefab as an addressable.

Use a Resources folder

If you add a Resources folder in your project and place your UI assets in it, you can use the Resources.Load method to load your assets.

The following examples shows how to load an asset in the Resources folder:

VisualTreeAsset uxml = Resources.Load<VisualTreeAsset>("main_window");
StyleSheet uss = Resources.Load<StyleSheet>("main_styles");

Note: This method increases the final build size and memory loading time significantly because all files in the Resources folder are included in the build. If you are concerned about these, use Addressables instead.

Additional resources

• Instantiate UXML from C# scripts
• Reference other files from UXML
• 📚 Documentation: Addressables: Planning and best practices