This dialog shows a list of all paths present in the current image. For each path you can set their attributes, as explained below, and perform certain actions using the buttons at the bottom of the dialog, or using the context menu.

In multi-window mode, you can show the name of the active image at the top of the dock by choosing “Show Image Selection” from the Tab menu. This allows you to see at a glance to which image the paths you are working on belong.

If the list is non-empty, at any given moment one of the members is the image's active path, which will be the subject of any operations you perform using the dialog menu or the buttons at the bottom: the active path is shown highlighted in the list. Clicking on any of the entries will make it the active path.

Right-clicking on any entry in the list brings up the Paths Menu. You can also access the Paths Menu from the dialog Tab menu.

GIMP allows you to select multiple paths and perform actions on them, like stroking or filling. Selecting multiple paths is done by using the mouse and Shift key, for adding a range of paths, or Ctrl key, for adding or removing the clicked path.

Directly above the list of paths is the header bar. On the left you see the icons that identify the visibility and lock columns. In the middle a text label will tell you how many paths are currently selected if it is more than one.

Every path is shown in the list with its own attributes, which are very similar to the layer attributes:

The button bar at the bottom offers the following functionality:

These buttons correspond to entries in the context menu (accessed by right-clicking on an entry in the list), but some of them have extra options obtainable by holding down modifier keys while pressing the button.

Edit Path is an alternative way to activate the Paths tool, used for creating and manipulating paths. It can also be activated from the Toolbox, or by using the keyboard shortcut B.

Edit Path Attributes brings up a small dialog that allows you to change the name of the path. You can also do this by double-clicking on the name in the list in the Paths dialog.

Color Tags brings up a sub menu, similar to the one in the Layers Dialog, that allows you to select a color tag for the selected paths.

New Path creates a new path, adds it to the list in the Paths dialog, and makes it the active path for the image. It brings up a dialog that allows you to give a name to the path. The new path is created with no anchor points, so you will need to use the Path tool to give it some before you can use it for anything.

Raise Paths moves the selected paths one slot higher in the list in the Paths dialog.

The position of a path in the list has no functional significance, so this is simply a convenience to help you keep things organized.

Lower Paths moves the selected paths one slot lower in the list in the Paths dialog.

The position of a path in the list has no functional significance, so this is simply a convenience to help you keep things organized.

Duplicate Paths creates a copy of the selected paths, assigns unique names, adds them to the list in the Paths dialog, and makes them the selected paths for the image. The copies will be visible only if the original paths were visible.

Delete Paths deletes the currently selected paths.

Merge Visible Paths takes all the paths in the image that are visible (that is, all that show “open eye” symbols in the Paths dialog), and turns them into components of a single path. This may be convenient if you want to stroke them all in the same way, etc.

These commands all convert the active paths into a selection, and then combine it with the existing selection in the specified ways. (Paths to Selection discards the existing selection and replaces it with one formed from the path.) If necessary, any unclosed components of the path are closed by connecting the last anchor point to the first anchor point with a straight line. The “marching ants” for the resulting selection should closely follow the path, but don't expect the correspondence to be perfect.

This operation can be accessed in several ways:

Selection to Path creates a new path from the image's selection. In most cases the resulting path will closely follow the “marching ants” of the selection, but the correspondence will not usually be perfect.

Converting a two-dimensional selection mask into a one-dimensional path involves some rather tricky algorithms: you can alter the way it is done using the Advanced Options, which are accessed by holding down the Shift key while pressing the Selection to Path button at the bottom of the Paths dialog. This brings up the Advanced Settings dialog, which allows you to set a lot of different options. In general, Selection to Path will do what you expect it to, without the need to adjust the advanced settings.

This operation can be accessed in several ways:

Fill Paths fills all areas delimited by the selected paths with the current foreground color or currently selected pattern. See the section about Fill Paths for more information.

This operation can be accessed in several ways:

Stroke Paths renders the selected paths on the active layer of the image, permitting a wide variety of line styles and stroking options. See the sections about Stroke Paths and Stroking for more information.

Copy Paths copies the selected paths to the Paths Clipboard, enabling you to paste it into a different image.

	Tip
	You can also copy and paste paths by dragging their icon from the Paths dialog into the target image's display.

	Note
	When you copy a path to an image, it is not visible. You have to make it visible in the Paths dialog.

Paste Path creates a new path from the contents of the Path Clipboard, adds it to the list in the Paths dialog, and makes it the active path for the image. If no path has previously been copied into the clipboard, the menu entry will be disabled.

Export Paths… allows you to save a path to a file: it pops up a file save dialog that allows you to specify the file name and location. You can later add this path to any GIMP image using the Import Path command. The format used for saving paths is SVG: this means that vector-graphics programs such as Inkscape will also be able to import the paths you save. See the Paths section for more information on SVG files and how they relate to GIMP paths.

Import Path… creates a new path from an SVG file: it pops up a file chooser dialog that allows you to navigate to the file. See the Paths section for information on SVG files and how they relate to GIMP paths.