diff --git a/docs/README-migration.md b/docs/README-migration.md
index 97f1f255a..693c3e963 100644
--- a/docs/README-migration.md
+++ b/docs/README-migration.md
@@ -1269,6 +1269,8 @@ Textures are created with SDL_SCALEMODE_LINEAR by default, and use SDL_BLENDMODE
 
 SDL_QueryTexture() has been removed. The properties of the texture can be queried using SDL_PROP_TEXTURE_FORMAT_NUMBER, SDL_PROP_TEXTURE_ACCESS_NUMBER, SDL_PROP_TEXTURE_WIDTH_NUMBER, and SDL_PROP_TEXTURE_HEIGHT_NUMBER. A function SDL_GetTextureSize() has been added to get the size of the texture as floating point values.
 
+SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(), SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(), and SDL_GetTextureScaleMode() have been changed to return the values directly instead of an int error code.
+
 Mouse and touch events are no longer filtered to change their coordinates, instead you
 can call SDL_ConvertEventToRenderCoordinates() to explicitly map event coordinates into
 the rendering viewport.
@@ -1712,6 +1714,8 @@ SDL_SetSurfaceColorKey() takes an SDL_bool to enable and disable colorkey. RLE a
 
 SDL_SetSurfaceRLE() takes an SDL_bool to enable and disable RLE acceleration.
 
+SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode() and SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey() have been changed to return the values directly instead of an int error code.
+
 The following functions have been renamed:
 * SDL_BlitScaled() => SDL_BlitSurfaceScaled()
 * SDL_ConvertSurfaceFormat() => SDL_ConvertSurface()
@@ -1749,8 +1753,6 @@ The following symbols have been renamed:
 
 SDL_WindowsMessageHook has changed signatures so the message may be modified and it can block further message processing.
 
-SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState() takes the state as an output parameter and returns 0 if the function succeeds or a negative error code if there was an error.
-
 SDL_RequestAndroidPermission is no longer a blocking call; the caller now provides a callback function that fires when a response is available.
 
 SDL_iPhoneSetAnimationCallback() and SDL_iPhoneSetEventPump() have been renamed to SDL_SetiOSAnimationCallback() and SDL_SetiOSEventPump(), respectively. SDL2 has had macros to provide this new name with the old symbol since the introduction of the iPad, but now the correctly-named symbol is the only option.
diff --git a/include/SDL3/SDL_render.h b/include/SDL3/SDL_render.h
index 6580f575b..6bd99f4d9 100644
--- a/include/SDL3/SDL_render.h
+++ b/include/SDL3/SDL_render.h
@@ -1006,15 +1006,13 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SD
  * Get the blend mode used for texture copy operations.
  *
  * \param texture the texture to query.
- * \param blendMode a pointer filled in with the current SDL_BlendMode.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the current SDL_BlendMode.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetTextureBlendMode
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC SDL_BlendMode SDLCALL SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture);
 
 /**
  * Set the scale mode used for texture scale operations.
@@ -1038,15 +1036,13 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_SetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SD
  * Get the scale mode used for texture scale operations.
  *
  * \param texture the texture to query.
- * \param scaleMode a pointer filled in with the current scale mode.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the current scale mode.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetTextureScaleMode
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_ScaleMode *scaleMode);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC SDL_ScaleMode SDLCALL SDL_GetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture);
 
 /**
  * Update the given texture rectangle with new pixel data.
@@ -1641,15 +1637,13 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_SetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer,
  * Get the color scale used for render operations.
  *
  * \param renderer the rendering context.
- * \param scale a pointer filled in with the current color scale value.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the current color scale value.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetRenderColorScale
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer, float *scale);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC float SDLCALL SDL_GetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer);
 
 /**
  * Set the blend mode used for drawing operations (Fill and Line).
@@ -1671,15 +1665,13 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_SetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *rendere
  * Get the blend mode used for drawing operations.
  *
  * \param renderer the rendering context.
- * \param blendMode a pointer filled in with the current SDL_BlendMode.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the current SDL_BlendMode.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetRenderDrawBlendMode
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC SDL_BlendMode SDLCALL SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer);
 
 /**
  * Clear the current rendering target with the drawing color.
diff --git a/include/SDL3/SDL_surface.h b/include/SDL3/SDL_surface.h
index 6998b1299..e14de0f25 100644
--- a/include/SDL3/SDL_surface.h
+++ b/include/SDL3/SDL_surface.h
@@ -511,16 +511,14 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC SDL_bool SDLCALL SDL_SurfaceHasColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface
  * If the surface doesn't have color key enabled this function returns -1.
  *
  * \param surface the SDL_Surface structure to query.
- * \param key a pointer filled in with the transparent pixel.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the transparent pixel.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetSurfaceColorKey
  * \sa SDL_SurfaceHasColorKey
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface, Uint32 *key);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC Uint32 SDLCALL SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface);
 
 /**
  * Set an additional color value multiplied into blit operations.
@@ -620,15 +618,13 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface, SD
  * Get the blend mode used for blit operations.
  *
  * \param surface the SDL_Surface structure to query.
- * \param blendMode a pointer filled in with the current SDL_BlendMode.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
+ * \returns the current SDL_BlendMode.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC SDL_BlendMode SDLCALL SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface);
 
 /**
  * Set the clipping rectangle for a surface.
diff --git a/include/SDL3/SDL_system.h b/include/SDL3/SDL_system.h
index 3d9c9d979..4c4a963ea 100644
--- a/include/SDL3/SDL_system.h
+++ b/include/SDL3/SDL_system.h
@@ -426,16 +426,14 @@ extern SDL_DECLSPEC const char *SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidInternalStoragePath(void);
  *
  * If external storage is currently unavailable, this will return 0.
  *
- * \param state filled with the current state of external storage. 0 if
+ * \returns the current state of external storage, or 0 if
  *              external storage is currently unavailable.
- * \returns 0 on success or a negative error code on failure; call
- *          SDL_GetError() for more information.
  *
  * \since This function is available since SDL 3.0.0.
  *
  * \sa SDL_GetAndroidExternalStoragePath
  */
-extern SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(Uint32 *state);
+extern SDL_DECLSPEC Uint32 SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(void);
 
 /**
  * Get the path used for external storage for this Android application.
diff --git a/src/core/SDL_core_unsupported.c b/src/core/SDL_core_unsupported.c
index 883c50452..da1c14327 100644
--- a/src/core/SDL_core_unsupported.c
+++ b/src/core/SDL_core_unsupported.c
@@ -142,11 +142,11 @@ const char* SDL_GetAndroidExternalStoragePath()
     return NULL;
 }
 
-SDL_DECLSPEC int SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(Uint32 *state);
-int SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(Uint32 *state)
+SDL_DECLSPEC Uint32 SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(void);
+Uint32 SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(void)
 {
-    (void)state;
-    return SDL_Unsupported();
+    SDL_Unsupported();
+    return 0;
 }
 SDL_DECLSPEC const char *SDLCALL SDL_GetAndroidInternalStoragePath(void);
 const char *SDL_GetAndroidInternalStoragePath(void)
diff --git a/src/core/android/SDL_android.c b/src/core/android/SDL_android.c
index d0c4e1a04..3d1e46b68 100644
--- a/src/core/android/SDL_android.c
+++ b/src/core/android/SDL_android.c
@@ -2507,22 +2507,19 @@ const char *SDL_GetAndroidInternalStoragePath(void)
     return s_AndroidInternalFilesPath;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(Uint32 *state)
+Uint32 SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(void)
 {
     struct LocalReferenceHolder refs = LocalReferenceHolder_Setup(__FUNCTION__);
     jmethodID mid;
     jclass cls;
     jstring stateString;
     const char *state_string;
-    int stateFlags;
+    Uint32 stateFlags;
 
     JNIEnv *env = Android_JNI_GetEnv();
     if (!LocalReferenceHolder_Init(&refs, env)) {
         LocalReferenceHolder_Cleanup(&refs);
-        if (state) {
-            *state = 0;
-        }
-        return -1;
+        return 0;
     }
 
     cls = (*env)->FindClass(env, "android/os/Environment");
@@ -2546,10 +2543,8 @@ int SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState(Uint32 *state)
     (*env)->ReleaseStringUTFChars(env, stateString, state_string);
 
     LocalReferenceHolder_Cleanup(&refs);
-    if (state) {
-        *state = stateFlags;
-    }
-    return 0;
+
+    return stateFlags;
 }
 
 // this caches a string until the process ends, so there's no need to use SDL_FreeLater.
diff --git a/src/dynapi/SDL_dynapi_procs.h b/src/dynapi/SDL_dynapi_procs.h
index c33d2779b..e2cedea07 100644
--- a/src/dynapi/SDL_dynapi_procs.h
+++ b/src/dynapi/SDL_dynapi_procs.h
@@ -196,7 +196,7 @@ SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_bool,SDL_GamepadSensorEnabled,(SDL_Gamepad *a, SDL_SensorTyp
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(void*,SDL_GetAndroidActivity,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetAndroidCachePath,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetAndroidExternalStoragePath,(void),(),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState,(Uint32 *a),(a),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(Uint32,SDL_GetAndroidExternalStorageState,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetAndroidInternalStoragePath,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(void*,SDL_GetAndroidJNIEnv,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetAndroidSDKVersion,(void),(),return)
@@ -433,8 +433,8 @@ SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRectUnionFloat,(const SDL_FRect *a, const SDL_FRect *
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_bool,SDL_GetRelativeMouseMode,(void),(),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_MouseButtonFlags,SDL_GetRelativeMouseState,(float *a, float *b),(a,b),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRenderClipRect,(SDL_Renderer *a, SDL_Rect *b),(a,b),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRenderColorScale,(SDL_Renderer *a, float *b),(a,b),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode,(SDL_Renderer *a, SDL_BlendMode *b),(a,b),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(float,SDL_GetRenderColorScale,(SDL_Renderer *a),(a),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_BlendMode,SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode,(SDL_Renderer *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRenderDrawColor,(SDL_Renderer *a, Uint8 *b, Uint8 *c, Uint8 *d, Uint8 *e),(a,b,c,d,e),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetRenderDrawColorFloat,(SDL_Renderer *a, float *b, float *c, float *d, float *e),(a,b,c,d,e),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetRenderDriver,(int a),(a),return)
@@ -475,9 +475,9 @@ SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetStoragePathInfo,(SDL_Storage *a, const char *b, SDL_P
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(Uint64,SDL_GetStorageSpaceRemaining,(SDL_Storage *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetStringProperty,(SDL_PropertiesID a, const char *b, const char *c),(a,b,c),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetSurfaceAlphaMod,(SDL_Surface *a, Uint8 *b),(a,b),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode,(SDL_Surface *a, SDL_BlendMode *b),(a,b),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_BlendMode,SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode,(SDL_Surface *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetSurfaceClipRect,(SDL_Surface *a, SDL_Rect *b),(a,b),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey,(SDL_Surface *a, Uint32 *b),(a,b),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(Uint32,SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey,(SDL_Surface *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetSurfaceColorMod,(SDL_Surface *a, Uint8 *b, Uint8 *c, Uint8 *d),(a,b,c,d),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_Colorspace,SDL_GetSurfaceColorspace,(SDL_Surface *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_Palette*,SDL_GetSurfacePalette,(SDL_Surface *a),(a),return)
@@ -488,11 +488,11 @@ SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(void*,SDL_GetTLS,(SDL_TLSID *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextInputArea,(SDL_Window *a, SDL_Rect *b, int *c),(a,b,c),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureAlphaMod,(SDL_Texture *a, Uint8 *b),(a,b),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureAlphaModFloat,(SDL_Texture *a, float *b),(a,b),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureBlendMode,(SDL_Texture *a, SDL_BlendMode *b),(a,b),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_BlendMode,SDL_GetTextureBlendMode,(SDL_Texture *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureColorMod,(SDL_Texture *a, Uint8 *b, Uint8 *c, Uint8 *d),(a,b,c,d),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureColorModFloat,(SDL_Texture *a, float *b, float *c, float *d),(a,b,c,d),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_PropertiesID,SDL_GetTextureProperties,(SDL_Texture *a),(a),return)
-SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureScaleMode,(SDL_Texture *a, SDL_ScaleMode *b),(a,b),return)
+SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_ScaleMode,SDL_GetTextureScaleMode,(SDL_Texture *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(int,SDL_GetTextureSize,(SDL_Texture *a, float *b, float *c),(a,b,c),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(SDL_ThreadID,SDL_GetThreadID,(SDL_Thread *a),(a),return)
 SDL_DYNAPI_PROC(const char*,SDL_GetThreadName,(SDL_Thread *a),(a),return)
diff --git a/src/render/SDL_render.c b/src/render/SDL_render.c
index ed049a5d1..6fb1a0ebf 100644
--- a/src/render/SDL_render.c
+++ b/src/render/SDL_render.c
@@ -1641,7 +1641,6 @@ SDL_Texture *SDL_CreateTextureFromSurface(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_Surface *s
 
     {
         Uint8 r, g, b, a;
-        SDL_BlendMode blendMode;
 
         SDL_GetSurfaceColorMod(surface, &r, &g, &b);
         SDL_SetTextureColorMod(texture, r, g, b);
@@ -1653,8 +1652,7 @@ SDL_Texture *SDL_CreateTextureFromSurface(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_Surface *s
             /* We converted to a texture with alpha format */
             SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(texture, SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND);
         } else {
-            SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(surface, &blendMode);
-            SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(texture, blendMode);
+            SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(texture, SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(surface));
         }
     }
     return texture;
@@ -1799,6 +1797,10 @@ int SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
 
     CHECK_TEXTURE_MAGIC(texture, -1);
 
+    if (blendMode == SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID) {
+        return SDL_InvalidParamError("blendMode");
+    }
+
     renderer = texture->renderer;
     if (!IsSupportedBlendMode(renderer, blendMode)) {
         return SDL_Unsupported();
@@ -1810,14 +1812,11 @@ int SDL_SetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
     return 0;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode)
+SDL_BlendMode SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(SDL_Texture *texture)
 {
-    CHECK_TEXTURE_MAGIC(texture, -1);
+    CHECK_TEXTURE_MAGIC(texture, SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID);
 
-    if (blendMode) {
-        *blendMode = texture->blendMode;
-    }
-    return 0;
+    return texture->blendMode;
 }
 
 int SDL_SetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_ScaleMode scaleMode)
@@ -1836,14 +1835,11 @@ int SDL_SetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_ScaleMode scaleMode)
     return 0;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture, SDL_ScaleMode *scaleMode)
+SDL_ScaleMode SDL_GetTextureScaleMode(SDL_Texture *texture)
 {
-    CHECK_TEXTURE_MAGIC(texture, -1);
+    CHECK_TEXTURE_MAGIC(texture, SDL_SCALEMODE_LINEAR);
 
-    if (scaleMode) {
-        *scaleMode = texture->scaleMode;
-    }
-    return 0;
+    return texture->scaleMode;
 }
 
 #if SDL_HAVE_YUV
@@ -3069,20 +3065,21 @@ int SDL_SetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer, float scale)
     return 0;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer, float *scale)
+float SDL_GetRenderColorScale(SDL_Renderer *renderer)
 {
-    CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, -1);
+    CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, 1.0f);
 
-    if (scale) {
-        *scale = renderer->color_scale / renderer->SDR_white_point;
-    }
-    return 0;
+    return renderer->color_scale / renderer->SDR_white_point;
 }
 
 int SDL_SetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
 {
     CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, -1);
 
+    if (blendMode == SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID) {
+        return SDL_InvalidParamError("blendMode");
+    }
+
     if (!IsSupportedBlendMode(renderer, blendMode)) {
         return SDL_Unsupported();
     }
@@ -3090,20 +3087,18 @@ int SDL_SetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
     return 0;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode)
+SDL_BlendMode SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(SDL_Renderer *renderer)
 {
-    CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, -1);
+    CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID);
 
-    *blendMode = renderer->blendMode;
-    return 0;
+    return renderer->blendMode;
 }
 
 int SDL_RenderClear(SDL_Renderer *renderer)
 {
-    int retval;
     CHECK_RENDERER_MAGIC(renderer, -1);
-    retval = QueueCmdClear(renderer);
-    return retval;
+
+    return QueueCmdClear(renderer);
 }
 
 int SDL_RenderPoint(SDL_Renderer *renderer, float x, float y)
@@ -3970,7 +3965,7 @@ static int SDLCALL SDL_SW_RenderGeometryRaw(SDL_Renderer *renderer,
     float r = 0, g = 0, b = 0, a = 0;
 
     /* Save */
-    SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(renderer, &blendMode);
+    blendMode = SDL_GetRenderDrawBlendMode(renderer);
     SDL_GetRenderDrawColorFloat(renderer, &r, &g, &b, &a);
 
     if (texture) {
diff --git a/src/render/software/SDL_render_sw.c b/src/render/software/SDL_render_sw.c
index 4e462e75d..4df9ea7ef 100644
--- a/src/render/software/SDL_render_sw.c
+++ b/src/render/software/SDL_render_sw.c
@@ -355,7 +355,7 @@ static int SW_RenderCopyEx(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_Surface *surface, SDL_Tex
         return -1;
     }
 
-    SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src, &blendmode);
+    blendmode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src);
     SDL_GetSurfaceAlphaMod(src, &alphaMod);
     SDL_GetSurfaceColorMod(src, &rMod, &gMod, &bMod);
 
@@ -841,7 +841,7 @@ static int SW_RunCommandQueue(SDL_Renderer *renderer, SDL_RenderCommand *cmd, vo
                         SDL_BlendMode blendmode;
                         Uint8 alphaMod, rMod, gMod, bMod;
 
-                        SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src, &blendmode);
+                        blendmode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src);
                         SDL_GetSurfaceAlphaMod(src, &alphaMod);
                         SDL_GetSurfaceColorMod(src, &rMod, &gMod, &bMod);
 
diff --git a/src/render/software/SDL_rotate.c b/src/render/software/SDL_rotate.c
index 02382a8e6..30ff1e95b 100644
--- a/src/render/software/SDL_rotate.c
+++ b/src/render/software/SDL_rotate.c
@@ -78,11 +78,7 @@ Returns colorkey info for a surface
 */
 static Uint32 get_colorkey(SDL_Surface *src)
 {
-    Uint32 key = 0;
-    if (SDL_SurfaceHasColorKey(src)) {
-        SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(src, &key);
-    }
-    return key;
+    return SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(src);
 }
 
 /* rotate (sx, sy) by (angle, center) into (dx, dy) */
@@ -501,9 +497,8 @@ SDL_Surface *SDLgfx_rotateSurface(SDL_Surface *src, double angle, int smooth, in
     }
 
     if (SDL_SurfaceHasColorKey(src)) {
-        if (SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(src, &colorkey) == 0) {
-            colorKeyAvailable = SDL_TRUE;
-        }
+        colorkey = SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(src);
+        colorKeyAvailable = SDL_TRUE;
     }
     /* This function requires a 32-bit surface or 8-bit surface with a colorkey */
     is8bit = src->internal->format->bits_per_pixel == 8 && colorKeyAvailable;
@@ -536,7 +531,7 @@ SDL_Surface *SDLgfx_rotateSurface(SDL_Surface *src, double angle, int smooth, in
     /* Adjust for guard rows */
     rz_dst->h = rect_dest->h;
 
-    SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src, &blendmode);
+    blendmode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src);
 
     if (colorKeyAvailable == SDL_TRUE) {
         /* If available, the colorkey will be used to discard the pixels that are outside of the rotated area. */
diff --git a/src/render/software/SDL_triangle.c b/src/render/software/SDL_triangle.c
index fd4350d06..048859f54 100644
--- a/src/render/software/SDL_triangle.c
+++ b/src/render/software/SDL_triangle.c
@@ -524,7 +524,7 @@ int SDL_SW_BlitTriangle(
 
     bounding_rect_fixedpoint(d0, d1, d2, &dstrect);
 
-    SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src, &blend);
+    blend = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src);
 
     /* TRIANGLE_GET_TEXTCOORD interpolates up to the max values included, so reduce by 1 */
     {
diff --git a/src/video/SDL_surface.c b/src/video/SDL_surface.c
index 9a6a7bce9..d973aca69 100644
--- a/src/video/SDL_surface.c
+++ b/src/video/SDL_surface.c
@@ -515,20 +515,13 @@ SDL_bool SDL_SurfaceHasColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface)
     return SDL_TRUE;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface, Uint32 *key)
+Uint32 SDL_GetSurfaceColorKey(SDL_Surface *surface)
 {
     if (!SDL_SurfaceValid(surface)) {
-        return SDL_InvalidParamError("surface");
+        return 0;
     }
 
-    if (!(surface->internal->map.info.flags & SDL_COPY_COLORKEY)) {
-        return SDL_SetError("Surface doesn't have a colorkey");
-    }
-
-    if (key) {
-        *key = surface->internal->map.info.colorkey;
-    }
-    return 0;
+    return surface->internal->map.info.colorkey;
 }
 
 /* This is a fairly slow function to switch from colorkey to alpha
@@ -706,6 +699,10 @@ int SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
         return SDL_InvalidParamError("surface");
     }
 
+    if (blendMode == SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID) {
+        return SDL_InvalidParamError("blendMode");
+    }
+
     status = 0;
     flags = surface->internal->map.info.flags;
     surface->internal->map.info.flags &= ~(SDL_COPY_BLEND | SDL_COPY_BLEND_PREMULTIPLIED | SDL_COPY_ADD | SDL_COPY_ADD_PREMULTIPLIED | SDL_COPY_MOD | SDL_COPY_MUL);
@@ -742,40 +739,39 @@ int SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface, SDL_BlendMode blendMode)
     return status;
 }
 
-int SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface, SDL_BlendMode *blendMode)
+SDL_BlendMode SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(SDL_Surface *surface)
 {
-    if (!SDL_SurfaceValid(surface)) {
-        return SDL_InvalidParamError("surface");
-    }
+    SDL_BlendMode blendMode;
 
-    if (!blendMode) {
-        return 0;
+    if (!SDL_SurfaceValid(surface)) {
+        SDL_InvalidParamError("surface");
+        return SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID;
     }
 
     switch (surface->internal->map.info.flags & (SDL_COPY_BLEND | SDL_COPY_BLEND_PREMULTIPLIED | SDL_COPY_ADD | SDL_COPY_ADD_PREMULTIPLIED | SDL_COPY_MOD | SDL_COPY_MUL)) {
     case SDL_COPY_BLEND:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND;
         break;
     case SDL_COPY_BLEND_PREMULTIPLIED:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND_PREMULTIPLIED;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND_PREMULTIPLIED;
         break;
     case SDL_COPY_ADD:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_ADD;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_ADD;
         break;
     case SDL_COPY_ADD_PREMULTIPLIED:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_ADD_PREMULTIPLIED;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_ADD_PREMULTIPLIED;
         break;
     case SDL_COPY_MOD:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_MOD;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_MOD;
         break;
     case SDL_COPY_MUL:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_MUL;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_MUL;
         break;
     default:
-        *blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_NONE;
+        blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_NONE;
         break;
     }
-    return 0;
+    return blendMode;
 }
 
 SDL_bool SDL_SetSurfaceClipRect(SDL_Surface *surface, const SDL_Rect *rect)
@@ -1151,7 +1147,7 @@ int SDL_BlitSurfaceUncheckedScaled(SDL_Surface *src, const SDL_Rect *srcrect,
             /* Save source infos */
             SDL_GetSurfaceColorMod(src, &r, &g, &b);
             SDL_GetSurfaceAlphaMod(src, &alpha);
-            SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src, &blendMode);
+            blendMode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(src);
             srcrect2.x = srcrect->x;
             srcrect2.y = srcrect->y;
             srcrect2.w = srcrect->w;
diff --git a/test/testautomation_render.c b/test/testautomation_render.c
index aebdb32a0..c9057d3b3 100644
--- a/test/testautomation_render.c
+++ b/test/testautomation_render.c
@@ -402,9 +402,8 @@ static void testBlendModeOperation(TestRenderOperation op, int mode, SDL_PixelFo
         return;
     }
     if (SDL_ISPIXELFORMAT_ALPHA(dst_format)) {
-        SDL_BlendMode blendMode = SDL_BLENDMODE_NONE;
-        ret = SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(dst, &blendMode);
-        SDLTest_AssertCheck(ret == 0, "Verify result from SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(), expected: 0, got: %i", ret);
+        SDL_BlendMode blendMode = SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(dst);
+        SDLTest_AssertCheck(blendMode != SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID, "Verify result from SDL_GetTextureBlendMode(), expected: !SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID, got: 0x%" SDL_PRIx32, blendMode);
         SDLTest_AssertCheck(blendMode == SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND, "Verify alpha texture blend mode, expected %d, got %" SDL_PRIu32, SDL_BLENDMODE_BLEND, blendMode);
     }
 
diff --git a/test/testautomation_surface.c b/test/testautomation_surface.c
index f3e266bae..6cc29c07e 100644
--- a/test/testautomation_surface.c
+++ b/test/testautomation_surface.c
@@ -54,8 +54,8 @@ static void surfaceSetUp(void *arg)
         /* Disable blend mode for target surface */
         result = SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode(testSurface, blendMode);
         SDLTest_AssertCheck(result == 0, "Validate result from SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode, expected: 0, got: %i", result);
-        result = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(testSurface, &currentBlendMode);
-        SDLTest_AssertCheck(result == 0, "Validate result from SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode, expected: 0, got: %i", result);
+        currentBlendMode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(testSurface);
+        SDLTest_AssertCheck(currentBlendMode != SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID, "Validate result from SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode, expected: !SDL_BLENDMODE_INVALID, got: 0x%" SDL_PRIx32, currentBlendMode);
         SDLTest_AssertCheck(currentBlendMode == blendMode, "Validate blendMode, expected: %" SDL_PRIu32 ", got: %" SDL_PRIu32, blendMode, currentBlendMode);
     }
 }
diff --git a/test/testshader.c b/test/testshader.c
index aa299077a..d8bc7f441 100644
--- a/test/testshader.c
+++ b/test/testshader.c
@@ -332,7 +332,7 @@ SDL_GL_LoadTexture(SDL_Surface *surface, GLfloat *texcoord)
     }
 
     /* Save the alpha blending attributes */
-    SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(surface, &saved_mode);
+    saved_mode = SDL_GetSurfaceBlendMode(surface);
     SDL_SetSurfaceBlendMode(surface, SDL_BLENDMODE_NONE);
 
     /* Copy the surface into the GL texture image */