Welcome to our guide on the top shortcuts for AutoCAD! If you’re an AutoCAD user, you know that the program can be complex and time-consuming. But with the right shortcuts, you can streamline your workflow and get more done in less time. In this article, we’ll share some of the most useful keyboard shortcuts for AutoCAD, so you can work smarter and faster
Toggle General Features
Ctrl+E Toggle coordinate display
Ctrl+G Toggle Grid
Ctrl+E Cycle isometric planes
Ctrl+F Toggle running object snaps
Ctrl+H Toggle Pick Style
Ctrl+Shift+H Toggle Hide pallets
Ctrl+I Toggle Coords
Ctrl+Shift+I Toggle Infer Constraints
Manage Screen
Ctrl+0 Clean Screen
Ctrl+1 Property Palette
Ctrl+2 Design Center Palette
Ctrl+3 Tool Palette
Ctrl+4 Sheet Set Palette
Ctrl+6 DBConnect Manager
Ctrl+7 Markup Set Manager Palette
Ctrl+8 Quick Calc
Ctrl+9 Command Line
Manage Drawings
Ctrl+N New Drawing
Ctrl+S Save drawing
Ctrl+O Open drawing
Ctrl+P Plot dialog box
Ctrl+Tab Switch to next
Ctrl+Shift+Tab Switch to previous drawing
Ctrl+Page Up Switch to previous tab in current drawing
Ctrl+Page Down Switch to next tab in current drawing
Ctrl+Q Down
Ctrl+A Select all objects
Toggle Drawing Modes
F1 Display Help
F2 Toggle text screen
F3 Toggle object snap mode
F4 Toggle 3DOsnap
F5 Toggle Isoplane
F6 Toggle Dynamic UCS
F7 Toggle grid mode
F8 Toggle ortho mode
F9 Toggle snap mode
F10 Toggle polar mode
F11 Toggle object snap tracking
F12 Toggle dynamic input mode
Manage Workflow
Ctrl+C Copy object
Ctrl+X Cut object
Ctrl+V Paste object
Ctrl+Shift+C Copy to clipboard with base point
Ctrl+Shift+V Paste data as block
Ctrl+Z Undo last action
Ctrl+Y Redo last action
Ctrl+[ Cancel current command (or ctrl+\)
ESC Cancel current command
Command Shortcuts
A ARC / Creates an arc
ADC ADCENTER / Manages and inserts content such as blocks, xrefs, and hatch patterns
AA AREA / Calculates the area and perimeter of objects or of defined areas
AL ALIGN / Aligns objects with other objects in 2D and 3D
AP APPLOAD / Load Application
AR ARRAY / Creates multiple copies of objects in a pattern
ARR ACTRECORD / Starts the Action Recorder
ARM ACTUSERMESSAGE / Inserts a user message into an action macro
ARU ACTUSERINPUT / Pauses for user input in an action macro
ARS ACTSTOP / Stops the Action Recorder and provides the option of saving the recorded actions to an action macro file
ATI ATTIPEDIT / Changes the textual content of an attribute within a block
ATT ATTDEF / Redefines a block and updates associated attributes
ATE ATTEDIT / Changes attribute information in a block
B BLOCK / Creates a block definition from selected objects
BC BCLOSE / Closes the Block Editor
BE BEDIT / Opens the block definition in the Block Editor
BH HATCH / Fills an enclosed area or selected objects with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or gradient fill
BO BOUNDARY / Creates a region or a polyline from an enclosed area
BR BREAK / Breaks the selected object between two points
BS BSAVE / Saves the current block definition
BVS BVSTATE / Creates, sets, or deletes a visibility state in a dynamic block
C CIRCLE / Creates a circle
CAM CAMERA / Sets a camera and target location to create and save a 3D perspective view of objects
CBAR CONSTRAINTBAR / A toolbar-like UI element that displays the available geometric constraints on an object
CH PROPERTIES / Controls properties of existing objects
CHA CHAMFER / Bevels the edges of objects
CHK CHECKSTANDARDS / Checks the current drawing for standards violations
CLI COMMANDLINE / Displays the Command Line window
COL COLOR / Sets the color for new objects
CO COPY / Copies objects a specified distance in a specified direction
CT CTABLESTYLE / Sets the name of the current table style
CUBE NAVVCUBE / Controls the visibility and display properties of the ViewCube tool
CYL CYLINDER / Creates a 3D solid cylinder
D DIMSTYLE / Creates and modifies dimension styles
DAN DIMANGULAR / Creates an angular dimension
DAR DIMARC / Creates an arc length dimension
DBA DIMBASELINE / Creates a linear, angular, or ordinate dimension from the baseline of the previous or selected dimension
DBC DBCONNECT / Provides an interface to external database tables
DCE DIMCENTER / Creates the center mark or the centerlines of circles and arcs
DCO DIMCONTINUE / Creates a dimension that starts from an extension line of a previously created dimension
DCON DIMCONSTRAINT / Applies dimensional constraints to selected objects or points on objects
DDA DIMDISASSOCIATE / Removes associativity from selected dimensions
DDI DIMDIAMETER / Creates a diameter dimension for a circle or an arc
DED DIMEDIT / Edits dimension text and extension lines
DI DIST / Measures the distance and angle between two points
DIV DIVIDE / Creates evenly spaced point objects or blocks along the length or perimeter of an object
DJL DIMJOGLINE / Adds or removes a jog line on a linear or aligned dimension
DJO DIMJOGGED / Creates jogged dimensions for circles and arcs
DL DATALINK / The Data Link dialog box is displayed
DLU DATALINKUPDATE / Updates data to or from an established external data link
DO DONUT / Creates a filled circle or a wide ring
DOR DIMORDINATE / Creates ordinate dimensions
DOV DIMOVERRIDE / Controls overrides of system variables used in selected dimensions
DR DRAWORDER / Changes the draw order of images and other objects
DRA DIMRADIUS / Creates a radius dimension for a circle or an arc
DRE DIMREASSOCIATE / Associates or re-associates selected dimensions to objects or points on objects
DRM DRAWINGRECOVERY / Displays a list of drawing files that can be recovered after a program or system failure
DS DSETTINGS / Sets grid and snap, polar and object snap tracking, object snap modes, Dynamic Input, and Quick Properties
DT TEXT / Creates a single-line text object
DV DVIEW / Defines parallel projection or perspective views by using a camera and target
DX DATAEXTRACTION / Extracts drawing data and merges data from an external source to a data extraction table or external file
E ERASE / Removes objects from a drawing
ED DDEDIT / Edits single-line text, dimension text, attribute definitions, and feature control frames
EL ELLIPSE / Creates an ellipse or an elliptical arc
EPDF EXPORTPDF / Exports drawing to PDF
ER EXTERNALREFERENCES / Opens the External References palette
EX EXTEND / Extends objects to meet the edges of other objects
EXIT QUIT / Exits the program
EXP EXPORT / Saves the objects in a drawing to a different file format
EXT EXTRUDE / Extends the dimensions of a 2D object or 3D face into 3D space
F FILLET / Rounds and fillets the edges of objects
FI FILTER / Creates a list of requirements that an object must meet to be included in a selection set
FS FSMODE / Creates a selection set of all objects that touch the selected object
FSHOT FLATSHOT / Creates a 2D representation of all 3D objects based on the current view
G GROUP / Creates and manages saved sets of objects called groups
GCON GEOCONSTRAINT / Applies or persists geometric relationships between objects or points on objects
GD GRADIENT / Fills an enclosed area or selected objects with a gradient fill
GEO GEOGRAPHICLOCATION / Specifies the geographic location information for a drawing file
H HATCH / Fills an enclosed area or selected objects with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or gradient fill
HE HATCHEDIT / Modifies an existing hatch or fill
HI HIDE / Regenerates a 3D wireframe model with hidden lines suppressed
I INSERT / Inserts a block or drawing into the current drawing
IAD IMAGEADJUST / Controls the image display of the brightness, contrast, and fade values of images
IAT IMAGEATTACH / Inserts a reference to an image file
ICL IMAGECLIP / Crops the display of a selected image to a specified boundary
ID ID / Displays the UCS coordinate values of a specified location
IM IMAGE / Displays the External References palette
IMP IMPORT / Imports files of different formats into the current drawing
IN INTERSECT / Creates a 3D solid, surface, or 2D region from overlapping solids, surfaces, or regions
INF INTERFERE / Creates a temporary 3D solid from the interferences between two sets of selected 3D solids
IO INSERTOBJ / Inserts a linked or embedded object
J JOIN / Joins similar objects to form a single, unbroken object
JOG DIMJOGGED / Creates jogged dimensions for circles and arcs
L LINE / Creates straight line segments
LA LAYER / Manages layers and layer properties
LAS LAYERSTATE / Saves, restores, and manages named layer states
LE QLEADER / Creates a leader and leader annotation
LEN LENGTHEN / Changes the length of objects and the included angle of arcs
LESS MESHSMOOTHLESS / Decreases the level of smoothness for mesh objects by one level
LI LIST / Displays property data for selected objects
LO LAYOUT / Creates and modifies drawing layout tabs
LT LINETYPE / Loads, sets, and modifies linetypes
LTS LTSCALE / Changes the scale factor of linetypes for all objects in a drawing
LW LWEIGHT / Sets the current lineweight, lineweight display options, and lineweight units
M MOVE / Moves objects a specified distance in a specified direction
MA MATCHPROP / Applies the properties of a selected object to other objects
ME MEASURE / Joins similar objects to form a single, unbroken object
MEA MEASUREGEOM / Measures the distance, radius, angle, area, and volume of selected objects or sequence of points
MI MIRROR / Creates a mirrored copy of selected objects
ML MLINE / Creates multiple parallel lines
MLA MLEADERALIGN / Aligns and spaces selected multileader objects
MLC MLEADERCOLLECT / Organizes selected multileaders that contain blocks into rows or columns, and displays the result with a single leader
MLD MLEADER / Creates a multileader object
MLE MLEADEREDIT / Adds leader lines to, or removes leader lines from, a multileader object
MLS MLEADERSTYLE / Creates and modifies multileader styles
MO PROPERTIES / Controls properties of existing objects
MORE MESHSMOOTHMORE / Increases the level of smoothness for mesh objects by one level
MS MSPACE / Switches from paper space to a model space viewport
MSM MARKUP / Opens the Markup Set Manager
MT MTEXT / Creates a multiline text object
MV MVIEW / Creates and controls layout viewports
NORTH GEOGRAPHICLOCATION / Specifies the geographic location information for a drawing file
NSHOT NEWSHOT / Creates a named view with motion that is played back when viewed with ShowMotion
NVIEW NEWVIEW / Creates a named view with no motion
O OFFSET / Creates concentric circles, parallel lines, and parallel curves
OBJECTSELECTION LIMIT OPTIONS / Customizes the program settings
OFFSETSRF SURFOFFSET/ Creates a parallel surface or solid by setting an offset distance from a surface
OP OPTIONS / Customizes the program settings
OPENPROJECT SURFOFFSET / Creates a parallel surface or solid by setting an offset distance from a surface
ORBIT 3DORBIT / Rotates the view in 3D space, but constrained to horizontal and vertical orbit only
OS OSNAP / Sets running object snap modes
P PAN / Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition
PA PASTESPEC / Pastes objects from the Clipboard into the current drawing and controls the format of the data
PAR PARAMETERS / Controls the associative parameters used in the drawing
PARAM BPARAMETER / Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition
PATCH SURFPATCH / Creates a new surface by fitting a cap over a surface edge that forms a closed loop
PCATTACH POINTCLOUDATTACH / Inserts an indexed point cloud file into the current drawing
PE PEDIT / Edits polylines and 3D polygon meshes
PL PLINE / Creates a 2D polyline
PO POINT / Creates a point object
POFF HIDEPALETTES / Hides currently displayed palettes (including the command line)
POL POLYGON / Creates an equilateral closed polyline
PON SHOWPALETTES / Restores the display of hidden palettes
PR PROPERTIES / Displays Properties palette
PRE PREVIEW / Displays the drawing as it will be plotted
PRINT PLOT / Plots a drawing to a plotter, printer, or file
PS PSPACE / Switches from a model space viewport to paper space
PSOLID POLYSOLID / Creates a 3D wall-like polysolid
PU PURGE / Removes unused items, such as block definitions and layers, from the drawing
PYR PYRAMID / Creates a 3D solid pyramid
QC QUICKCALC / Opens the QuickCalc calculator
QCUI QUICKCUI / Displays the Customize User Interface Editor in a collapsed state
QP QUICKPROPERTIES / Displays open drawings and layouts in a drawing in preview images
QSAVE QSAVE / Saves the current drawing
QVD QVDRAWING / Displays open drawings and layouts in a drawing using preview images
QVDC QVDRAWINGCLOSE / Closes preview images of open drawings and layouts in a drawing
QVL QVLAYOUT / Displays preview images of model space and layouts in a drawing
QVLC QVLAYOUTCLOSE / Closes preview images of model space and layouts in the current drawing
R REDRAW / Refreshes the display in the current viewport
RA REDRAWALL / Refreshes the display in all viewports
RC RENDERCROP / Renders a specified rectangular area, called a crop window, within a viewport
RE REGEN / Regenerates the entire drawing from the current viewport
REA REGENALL / Regenerates the drawing and refreshes all viewports
REC RECTANG / Creates a rectangular polyline
REG REGION / Converts an object that encloses an area into a region object
REN RENAME / Changes the names assigned to items such as layers and dimension styles
REV REVOLVE / Creates a 3D solid or surface by sweeping a 2D object around an axis
RO ROTATE / Rotates objects around a base point
RP RENDERPRESETS / Specifies render presets, reusable rendering parameters, for rendering an image
RPR RPREF / Displays or hides the Advanced Render Settings palette for access to advanced rendering settings
RR RENDER / Creates a photorealistic or realistically shaded image of a 3D solid or surface model
RW RENDERWIN / Displays the Render window without starting a rendering operation
S STRETCH / Stretches objects crossed by a selection window or polygon
SC SCALE / Enlarges or reduces selected objects, keeping the proportions of the object the same after scaling
SCR SCALESCRIPT / Executes a sequence of commands from a script file
SEC SECTION / Uses the intersection of a plane and solids, surfaces, or mesh to create a region
SET SETVAR / Lists or changes the values of system variables
SHA SHADEMODE / Starts the VSCURRENT command
SL SLICE / Creates new 3D solids and surfaces by slicing, or dividing, existing objects
SN SNAP / Restricts cursor movement to specified intervals
SO SOLID / Creates solid-filled triangles and quadrilaterals
SP SPELL / Checks spelling in a drawing
SPE SPLINEDIT / Edits a spline or spline-fit polyline
SPL SPLINE / Creates a smooth curve that passes through or near specified points
SPLANE SECTIONPLANE / Creates a section object that acts as a cutting plane through 3D objects
SPLAY SEQUENCEPLAY / Plays named views in one category
SPLIT MESHSPLIT / Splits a mesh face into two faces
SPE SPLINEDIT / Edits a spline or spline-fit polyline
SSM SHEETSET / Opens the Sheet Set Manager
ST STYLE / Creates, modifies, or specifies text styles
STA STANDARDS / Manages the association of standards files with drawings
SU SUBTRACT / Combines selected 3D solids, surfaces, or 2D regions by subtraction
T MTEXT / Creates a multiline text object
TA TEXTALIGN / Aligns multiple text objects vertically, horizontally, or obliquely
TB TABLE / Creates an empty table object
TEDIT TEXTEDIT / Edits a dimensional constraint, dimension, or text object
TH THICKNESS / Sets the default 3D thickness property when creating 2D geometric objects
TI TILEMODE / Controls whether paper space can be accessed
TO TOOLBAR / Displays, hides, and customizes toolbars
TOL TOLERANCE / Creates geometric tolerances contained in a feature control frame
TOR TORUS / Creates a donut-shaped 3D solid
TP TOOLPALETTES / Opens the Tool Palettes window
TR TRIM / Trims objects to meet the edges of other objects
TS TABLESTYLE / Creates, modifies, or specifies table styles
UC UCSMAN / Manages defined user coordinate systems.
UN UNITS / Controls coordinate and angle display formats and precision.
UNHIDE / UNISOLATE UNISOLATEOBJECTS / Displays objects previously hidden with the ISOLATEOBJECTS or HIDEOBJECTS command.
UNI UNION / Unions two solid or two region objects.
V VIEW / Saves and restores named views, camera views, layout views, and preset views.
VGO VIEWGO / Restores a named view.
VP DDVPOINT / Sets the 3D viewing direction.
VPLAY VIEWPLAY / Plays the animation associated to a named view.
VS VSCURRENT / Sets the visual style in the current viewport.
VSM VISUALSTYLES / Creates and modifies visual styles and applies a visual style to a viewport.
W WBLOCK / Writes objects or a block to a new drawing file.
WE WEDGE / Creates a 3D solid wedge.
WHEEL NAVSWHEEL / Displays a wheel that contains a collection of view navigation tools.
X EXPLODE / Breaks a compound object into its component objects.
XA XATTACH / Inserts a DWG file as an external reference (xref).
XB XBIND / Binds one or more definitions of named objects in an xref to the current drawing.
XC XCLIP / Crops the display of a selected external reference or block reference to a specified boundary.
XL XLINE / Creates a line of infinite length.
XR XREF / Starts the EXTERNALREFERENCES command.
Z ZOOM / Increases or decreases the magnification of the view in the current viewport.
ZEBRA ANALYSISZEBRA / Projects stripes onto a 3D model to analyze surface continuity.
ZIP ETRANSMIT / Creates a Self-Extracting or Zipped Transmittal Package.