# MTLDepthStencilState A depth and stencil state instance that specifies the depth and stencil configuration and operations used in a render pass. ``` protocol MTLDepthStencilState : NSObjectProtocol, Sendable ``` ## Overview The [`MTLDepthStencilState`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState) protocol defines the interface for a lightweight instance used to encode how a graphics rendering pass should perform depth and stencil operations. The [`MTLRenderCommandEncoder`](/documentation/Metal/MTLRenderCommandEncoder) uses an [`MTLDepthStencilState`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState) instance to set the depth and stencil state for a rendering pass. The standard allocation and initialization techniques don’t apply when creating an [`MTLDepthStencilState`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState) instance. Instead, you can apply the following steps: 1. Create an [`MTLDepthStencilDescriptor`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilDescriptor) instance that defines the operations you want the rendering pass to use. 2. Create an [`MTLDepthStencilState`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState) instance by passing the descriptor to an [`MTLDevice`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDevice) instance’s [`makeDepthStencilState(descriptor:)`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDevice/makeDepthStencilState(descriptor:)) method. Typically, you create [`MTLDepthStencilState`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState) instances when your app is first initialized and then reuse them throughout the lifetime of your app. ## Topics ### Identifying properties [`device`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState/device) The device from which this state object was created. [`label`](/documentation/Metal/MTLDepthStencilState/label) A string that identifies this object. --- Copyright © 2026 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. | [Terms of Use](https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/terms/site.html) | [Privacy Policy](https://www.apple.com/privacy/privacy-policy)