---
name: "SDL_SetAlpha"
section: "3"
platform: "linux"
package: "libsdl1.2-dev"
version: "1.2.15+dfsg2-8"
release: "Debian 12 (Bookworm)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/SDL_SetAlpha"
---

# SDL\_SetAlpha(3)

Adjust the alpha properties of a surface

## NAME

SDL\_SetAlpha - Adjust the alpha properties of a surface

## SYNOPSIS

**#include "SDL.h"**

**int SDL\_SetAlpha**(**SDL\_Surface \*surface, Uint32 flag, Uint8 alpha**);

## DESCRIPTION

**Note:**

**This function and the semantics of SDL alpha blending have changed since version 1.1.4. Up until version 1.1.5, an alpha value of 0 was considered opaque and a value of 255 was considered transparent. This has now been inverted: 0 (SDL\_ALPHA\_TRANSPARENT) is now considered transparent and 255 (SDL\_ALPHA\_OPAQUE) is now considered opaque.**

**SDL\_SetAlpha is used for setting the per-surface alpha value and/or enabling and disabling alpha blending.**

**Thesurface** parameter specifies which surface whose alpha attributes you wish to adjust. **flags** is used to specify whether alpha blending should be used (**SDL\_SRCALPHA**) and whether the surface should use RLE acceleration for blitting (**SDL\_RLEACCEL**). **flags** can be an OR'd combination of these two options, one of these options or 0. If **SDL\_SRCALPHA** is not passed as a flag then all alpha information is ignored when blitting the surface. The **alpha** parameter is the per-surface alpha value; a surface need not have an alpha channel to use per-surface alpha and blitting can still be accelerated with **SDL\_RLEACCEL**.

**Note:**

**The per-surface alpha value of 128 is considered a special case and is optimised, so it's much faster than other per-surface values.**

**Alpha effects surface blitting in the following ways:**

- **RGBA-\>RGB with SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The source is alpha-blended with the destination, using the alpha channel. SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY and the per-surface alpha are ignored.**

- **RGBA-\>RGB without SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The RGB data is copied from the source. The source alpha channel and the per-surface alpha value are ignored.**

- **RGB-\>RGBA with SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The source is alpha-blended with the destination using the per-surface alpha value. If SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is set, only the pixels not matching the colorkey value are copied. The alpha channel of the copied pixels is set to opaque.**

- **RGB-\>RGBA without SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The RGB data is copied from the source and the alpha value of the copied pixels is set to opaque. If SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is set, only the pixels not matching the colorkey value are copied.**

- **RGBA-\>RGBA with SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The source is alpha-blended with the destination using the source alpha channel. The alpha channel in the destination surface is left untouched. SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is ignored.**

- **RGBA-\>RGBA without SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The RGBA data is copied to the destination surface. If SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is set, only the pixels not matching the colorkey value are copied.**

- **RGB-\>RGB with SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The source is alpha-blended with the destination using the per-surface alpha value. If SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is set, only the pixels not matching the colorkey value are copied.**

- **RGB-\>RGB without SDL\_SRCALPHA**

  **The RGB data is copied from the source. If SDL\_SRCCOLORKEY is set, only the pixels not matching the colorkey value are copied.**

**Note:**

 **Note that RGBA-\>RGBA blits (with SDL\_SRCALPHA set) keep the alpha of the destination surface. This means that you cannot compose two arbitrary RGBA surfaces this way and get the result you would expect from "overlaying" them; the destination alpha will work as a mask.**

**Also note that per-pixel and per-surface alpha cannot be combined; the per-pixel alpha is always used if available**

## RETURN VALUE

**This function returns 0**, or **-1** if there was an error.

## SEE ALSO

**SDL\_MapRGBA**, **SDL\_GetRGBA**, **SDL\_DisplayFormatAlpha**, **SDL\_BlitSurface**