Property Types

Description

Property Types are the types of Property than can be defined on the Blackboard for use in the Graph. These Properties are exposed to the Inspector for Materials that use the shader.

Each property has an associated Data Type. See Data Types for more information.

Common Parameters

All properties have the following common parameters in addition to those specific to their Data Types.

Parameter	Description
Name	Displays the user-facing name of the property in the UI.
Reference	Defines the internal identifier used by the shader for this property; use this Reference instead of the display Name when accessing the property from a script. If you overwrite this parameter, be aware of the following: If the string doesn't begin with an underscore, Unity automatically adds one. If the string contains any characters that HLSL does not support, Unity removes them. You can revert to the default value: right-click on the Reference field label, and select Reset Reference.
Promote to final Shader	Makes the property accessible across the final shader as a material property, not as an input port on the Subgraph Node.
Precision	Sets the numeric precision for the property’s data type. The options are: Inherit: Uses the precision defined by the graph or parent context. Single: Uses single-precision (float) for maximum accuracy. Half: Uses half-precision to reduce memory and improve performance. Use Graph Precision: Uses the precision mode set in the graph settings. For more details, refer to Precision Modes.
Scope	Specifies where and how the property is edited across materials. The options are: Global: Makes the property editable at a global level, through a C# script only, for all materials that use it. Selecting this option hides or grays out all parameters that relate to the Inspector UI display. Per Material: Makes the property independently editable per material, either through a C# script, or in the Inspector UI if you enable Show In Inspector. Hybrid Per Instance: Has the same effect as Per Material, unless you're using DOTS instancing.
Default Value	Sets the property's initial value to be serialized and used when new material instances are created. The value depends on the property type.
Preview Value	Sets a value to use for preview in the Shader Graph window, only when you set Scope to Global.
Show In Inspector	Displays the property in the material Inspector when enabled. If you disable this option, it includes an [HideInInspector] attribute to the material property (refer to Properties block reference in ShaderLab for more details).
Read Only	Marks the property as non-editable in the material Inspector by adding the PerRendererData attribute.
Custom Attributes	Enables attachment of custom scripted drawers or decorators to extend the material property UI, such as adding static headers or complex controls. The Custom Material Property Drawers sample, available in the Package Manager among other Shader Graph samples, shows how to display a Vector2 as a min/max slider, for example. Note: When you declare the custom functions in the script, make sure to suffix their names with Drawer or Decorator. In the list, use + or - to add or remove entries. Each entry corresponds to a function call which requires the following parameters: Name: A shorthened version of the function name, without its Drawer or Decorator suffix. Value: The input values for the function as the script expects them. Note: A property can only have one drawer at any given time.
Use Custom Binding	Turns the property into a bound input port for connection to the Branch On Input Connection node. In the Label field, enter the label for the default value that displays on your Subgraph node's port binding in its parent Shader Graph. This property is available only in sub graphs.

Float

Defines a Float value.

Parameters specific to Float properties in addition to the common parameters:

Parameter	Description
Mode	Selects the UI mode used to display and edit the property value in the material Inspector, requiring a specific subset of parameters depending on the chosen option. The options are: Default: Displays a scalar input field in the material Inspector; only requires a Default Value. Slider: Defines the Float property in Range mode to display a slider; use additional parameters to define the slider type. Integer: Displays an integer input field in the material Inspector; only requires a Default Value. Enum: Adds an Enum attribute to the Float property to display a drop-down of specific values; use additional parameters to define the enum type.
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. The value is either a float or an integer depending on the selected Mode and its options. Not available when Scope is set to Global.
Requires Literal Input	Requires the input to be a constant value. When enabled, if the user connects a variable, the shader compilation fails with an error.

Slider

Additional parameters available when you set the Float property Mode to Slider.

Parameter	Description
Slider Type	Selects the slider response type applied when adjusting the value in the material Inspector. The options are: Default: Displays a slider with a linear response; the value changes linearly within the slider range. Power: Adds a PowerSlider attribute to display a slider with a non-linear response; the value changes exponentially within the range according to the specified Power. Integer: Adds an IntRange attribute to display a slider with integer steps; the value changes in whole-number increments within the range.
Min	Sets the minimum value of the slider range.
Max	Sets the maximum value of the slider range.
Power	Defines the exponent used for non-linear response between Min and Max when Slider Type is set to Power.

Enum

Additional parameters available when you set the Float property Mode to Enum.

Parameter	Description
Enum Type	Selects the source used to populate the dropdown entries in the material Inspector. The options are: Explicit Values: Uses a list of Entries you specify directly in this interface. Type Reference: Uses a C# Enum Type reference that contains predefined entries.
Entries	Defines the list of dropdown entries when Enum Type is set to Explicit Values. Use + or - to add or remove entries. Each entry requires the following parameters: Name: Sets the label displayed in the dropdown in the material Inspector. Value: Sets the numeric value applied to the Float property when its Name is selected. Note: Supports up to 7 entries. If you need more, use Type Reference.
C# Enum Type	Specifies the existing enum type to reference when Enum Type is set to Type Reference. Enter the full type path with namespace, for example: UnityEngine.Rendering.BlendMode.

Vector 2

Defines a Vector 2 value. Displays a Vector 4 input field in the material inspector, where the z and w components are not used.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 2D vector value (Vector2).

Vector 3

Defines a Vector 3 value. Displays a Vector 4 input field in the material inspector, where the w component is not used.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 3D vector value (Vector3).

Vector 4

Defines a Vector 4 value. Displays a Vector 4 input field in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 4D vector value (Vector4).

Color

Defines a Color value. If the Property Inspector displays Main Color, this is the Main Color for the shader. To select or deselect this node as the Main Color, right-click it in the graph or Blackboard and select Set as Main Color or Clear Main Color. Corresponds to the MainColor ShaderLab Properties attribute.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property.
Mode	Selects the color input mode. The options are: Default: Allows to select a standard sRGB color. HDR: Allows to select an HDR color and sets its intensity from -10 to 10 exposure stops.

Note: In versions prior to 10.0, Shader Graph didn't correct HDR colors for the project colorspace. Version 10.0 corrected this behavior. HDR color properties that you created with older versions maintain the old behavior, but you can use the Graph Inspector to upgrade them. To mimic the old behavior in a gamma space project, you can use the Colorspace Conversion Node to convert a new HDR Color property from RGB to Linear space.

Boolean

Defines a Boolean value. Displays a ToggleUI field in the material inspector. Note that internally to the shader this value is a Float. The Boolean type in Shader Graph is merely for usability.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A boolean value.

Gradient

Defines a constant Gradient.

Parameters specific to Gradient properties in addition to the common parameters:

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Displays the HDR Gradient Editor with selectable modes. The options are: Blend (Classic): Creates transitions based on traditional HDR handling. Blend (Perceptual): Creates human vision–based gradient transitions in HDR. Fixed: Creates a discrete gradient with fixed steps.

Note: The Promote to final Shader parameter is not available for this property.

Texture 2D

Defines a Texture 2D value. Displays an object field of type Texture in the material inspector. If the Property Inspector displays Main Texture, this is the Main Texture for the shader. To select or deselect this node as the Main Texture, right-click on it in the graph or Blackboard and select Set as Main Texture or Clear Main Texture. Corresponds to the MainTexture ShaderLab Properties attribute.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A texture asset reference.
Mode	Defines the fallback texture Unity uses when none is provided. The options are: White: Sets a solid white (1,1,1) texture to ensure full-intensity sampling. Black: Sets a solid black (0,0,0) texture to yield zero contribution. Grey: Sets a mid-grey in sRGB (~0.5) as a neutral fallback. Normal Map: Sets a flat normal value to keep surfaces flat without a normal texture. Linear Grey: Sets a mid-grey in linear color space. Red: Sets a solid red (1,0,0) texture, useful for data expected in the red channel.
Use Tiling and Offset	Toggles the property NoScaleOffset to enable manipulating scale and offset separately from other texture properties; see SplitTextureTransformNode. A boolean value.
Use TexelSize	Uses the size of texels expressed in UV space.

Texture 2D Array

Defines a Texture 2D Array value. Displays an object field of type Texture 2D Array in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A texture asset reference.

Texture 3D

Defines a Texture 3D value. Displays an object field of type Texture 3D in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A texture asset reference.

Cubemap

Defines a Cubemap value. Displays an object field of type Texture in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A cubemap asset reference.

Virtual Texture

Defines a Texture Stack, which appears as object fields of type Texture in the Material Inspector. The number of fields corresponds to the number of layers in the property.

Parameter	Description
Layers	Manages the collection of layers in the stack. The options are: Add (+): Adds a new layer. Remove (−): Removes the selected layer. Select the active layer to edit its parameters.
Layer Name	Displays the user-defined name for the selected layer.
Layer Reference	Defines the internal identifier used to reference the selected layer.
Layer Texture	Assigns the default texture asset for the selected layer.
Layer Texture Type	Specifies the expected data type for the selected layer’s texture, which determines import settings and sampling behavior, such as sRGB vs Linear and normal map decoding. The options are: Normal tangent space: Encodes per-texel normals relative to the mesh’s tangent basis so surface detail follows UVs and local orientation. Normal object space: Preserves per-texel normals in object coordinates.

Note: The Use Custom Binding parameter isn't available for this property.

Note: The Promote to final Shader parameter is not available for this property.

Matrix 2

Defines a Matrix 2. Matrices do not display in the Inspector window of the material.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 2×2 matrix value (Matrix2).

Matrix 3

Defines a Matrix 3 value. Can't be displayed in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 3×3 matrix value (Matrix3).

Matrix 4

Defines a Matrix 4 value. Can't be displayed in the material inspector.

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Sets the initial value of the Property. A 4×4 matrix value (Matrix4).

SamplerState

Defines a SamplerState.

Parameters specific to Float properties in addition to the common parameters:

Parameter	Description
Filter	Specifies the texture filtering mode used when sampling. The options are: Linear: Sets bilinear filtering within mip levels for smoother results, at the cost of potential blur. Point: Sets nearest-neighbor sampling for a crisp, pixelated look. Trilinear: Sets bilinear filtering with interpolation between mip levels for smoother transitions.
Wrap	Specifies how UVs outside the [0–1] range are handled. The options are: Repeat: Tiles the texture infinitely. Clamp: Clamps to edge texels with no tiling. Mirror: Tiles by mirroring each repeat. MirrorOnce: Mirrors once, then clamps.
Aniso	Specifies the anisotropic filtering level to improve texture clarity at grazing angles. The options are: None: Disables anisotropic filtering. x2: Applies a low level for higher performance. x4: Applies a moderate level. x8: Applies a high level. x16: Applies the maximum level for best quality at lower performance.

Dropdown

Defines a Dropdown. This property is available only in sub graphs.

Parameters specific to Dropdown properties in addition to the common parameters:

Parameter	Description
Default Value	Selects the default Entry that you want Shader Graph to select on your property.
Entries	Adds a corresponding input port to the node for each entry. The options are: Add to the list (+): Adds a new option to your dropdown. Remove selection from the list (-): Removes the selected entry from the list.

Note: The Promote to final Shader parameter is not available for this property.