What do all the different colors in Forms Mode mean?
by TurboTax • 
Updated January 7, 2026 10:55 AM
When you look at an onscreen tax form using Forms Mode, you might wonder why one figure is blue, while others are red or black. This chart explains it all:
| <strong>Color</strong> | <strong> Meaning</strong> |
| <strong>Blue</strong> | You entered this data, either in the interview or Forms Mode. |
| <strong>Black</strong> | The program populated this data or calculated this amount. |
| <strong>Red</strong> | This data has either been <a href="https://ttlc.intuit.com/oicms/L1bMjqkww_US_en_US">overridden</a> or is invalid (for example, a nonexistent ZIP code). |
| <strong><em>Red italics</em></strong> | You marked this amount as estimated. |
| <strong><em>Black italics</em></strong><strong><em><br> </em></strong> | The program calculated this amount from an amount you marked as estimated. |
| <strong>Purple</strong> | This information has supporting details. |
| <strong>Aquamarine</strong> | This data was transferred over from last year's return. |
| <strong>Green</strong> | This data was imported from Quicken or QuickBooks. |
| <strong>Yellow fields </strong>(Windows)<strong><br> </strong> | Yellow fields allow user input. Anything you enter here shows up in <strong>blue</strong>. |
