Mastering Midjourney Style Codes: How to Discover, Combine, and Create Stunning Visual Styles
Midjourney style codes (often called SREF codes) are one of the most powerful ways to transform ordinary prompts into visually striking, consistent, and unique images—without writing long, complex prompts.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to discover new styles, blend multiple styles, control their strength, reuse older version styles, organize your favorites, and even create your own custom style codes using Midjourney’s built-in tools.
Whether you’re an artist, designer, marketer, or creator, mastering style codes gives you a serious creative edge.
FULL GUIDE to Midjourney SREF Codes (Midjourney tutorial)
What Are Midjourney Style Codes?
Style codes in Midjourney allow you to apply a predefined visual aesthetic to your image generation. Instead of describing a style in words, you reference a style ID that encodes color, texture, lighting, and artistic influence.
Think of them as visual presets for AI art.
Discovering Styles with Random SREF Codes
The fastest way to explore new styles is by using random style references.
Basic Method
Add a random style reference to your prompt:
Each time you run it, Midjourney applies a completely different visual style.
Generate Multiple Random Styles at Once
To explore styles faster, you can generate multiple random style variations in one submission using repeat.
Plan limits apply:
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Basic plan: up to 4 repeats
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Standard plan: up to 10
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Pro / Mega: up to 40
This lets you visually compare many styles at once and quickly spot what you like.
Using Multiple Style Codes Together
Option 1: Test Styles Individually (Permutations)
You can test several style codes separately using permutations:
Midjourney will submit multiple versions of the same prompt—one per style—so you can compare results side by side.
Option 2: Blend Multiple Styles into One
If you want to merge styles, simply separate style codes with spaces (no brackets):
This blends multiple aesthetics into a single visual output.
Controlling Style Strength with Weights
You’re not stuck with equal influence across styles.
You can weight individual style codes using double colons:
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Higher numbers = stronger influence
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Lower numbers = subtler influence
This allows precise control over which aesthetic dominates the final image.
Using Images as Style References
Instead of (or in addition to) codes, you can drag an image into Midjourney and use it as a style reference.
This is ideal when you want:
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exact color palettes
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specific lighting moods
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painterly or anime-like textures
You can also combine image style references with SREF codes for even more control.
Reusing Midjourney v6 Styles in v7
Midjourney v7 introduced a new style library, which means older styles don’t always carry over automatically.
The Fix: Style Version Override
Use style variation 4 to reference v6 aesthetics inside v7:
This restores older, lighter, or more painterly looks while still using the v7 engine.
Discover & Organize Styles with the Style Explorer
Midjourney’s Style Explorer lets you browse and search styles visually.
You can:
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try styles instantly
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add styles directly to your prompt
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search by keywords (e.g. “anime,” “surreal,” “red”)
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explore similar styles via visual similarity
Pro Tip: Save Styles You Love
Heart-react styles to save them under Likes, creating your own personal style library for future use.
Creating Your Own Custom Style Codes
Midjourney’s Style Creator lets you generate your own unique SREF codes.
How It Works
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Start with a neutral prompt
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Select images you like
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Refine repeatedly
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Progress toward the “ideal minimum”
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End the session
Each iteration produces its own reusable style code, meaning you can:
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reuse earlier versions
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fine-tune multiple stylistic branches
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apply your custom style to any prompt
This gives you a look no one else has.
Advanced Workflow: Mood Boards for Style Control
The most powerful customization method is combining SREF codes with mood boards.
Why Mood Boards Work
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they capture color, texture, and composition across subjects
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they reduce randomness
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they improve consistency across projects
Workflow
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Generate multiple images using the same style codes
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Add them to a new mood board
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Use the mood board as a reference in future prompts
This lets you package a complex style into a single reusable creative asset.
Final Thoughts
Midjourney style codes aren’t just shortcuts—they’re a full visual system.
By learning how to:
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discover styles quickly
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blend and weight them
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reuse older versions
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organize favorites
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create custom styles
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build mood boards
…you move from “prompting” to art direction.
If you want consistent, standout visuals without endless trial and error, mastering SREF codes is one of the highest-leverage skills you can develop in AI image creation.
