How-to guide · how to select all instances of a block in autocad

How to find and select all instances of a block in AutoCAD

DWGDXFFree1,218 words

By Saumyajit Maity · Published 31 Oct 2022 · Updated 6 Dec 2025

Selecting every instance of a particular block in one move is a small superpower. Want to move all the chairs to a new layer, delete every old door symbol, or recolour all the trees at once? Trying to click each one on a busy drawing is slow and error-prone — you will miss some and grab the wrong ones. AutoCAD has several tools that select all instances of a named block instantly, and learning them turns a tedious hunt into a single action.

This guide covers the three reliable methods — QSELECT, Select Similar and the FILTER command — explains when each is best, and then shows what to do with the selection once you have it: change layers, recolour, count, or edit en masse. It finishes with the pitfalls that make a 'select all' miss instances or grab too many.

The common thread is that AutoCAD identifies blocks by name, so 'all instances of a block' means every reference sharing that block name, wherever and however they are placed.

Method 1 — QSELECT (the precise way)

QSELECT is the most controllable method. Type QSELECT and press Enter. In the dialog, set 'Object type' to 'Block Reference', set 'Properties' to 'Name', set the operator to 'Equals', and pick the block's name from the value list. Leave 'Include in new selection set' chosen and click OK. AutoCAD selects every instance of that block across the whole drawing in one go.

The power of QSELECT is that you can add criteria. Set the name and also a layer, and you select only the instances of that block on that layer — perfect when the same chair block appears in two zones and you only want one. QSELECT is the method to learn first because it is exact, repeatable, and works in any AutoCAD version and most DWG-compatible programs.

Method 2 — Select Similar (the fast way)

If you have one instance handy, Select Similar is the quickest route. Click a single instance of the block, right-click, and choose 'Select Similar'. AutoCAD selects every other object that matches it — for blocks, that means every reference with the same name. It is two clicks and you are done, with no dialog to fill in.

By default Select Similar matches on name and layer; you can change what counts as 'similar' with the SELECTSIMILAR command's Settings option (for example, match by name regardless of layer). Select Similar is ideal for quick, in-the-moment selections — you spotted a wrong block and want all of them — whereas QSELECT is better when you want to specify criteria precisely without an example to click.

Method 3 — the FILTER command

FILTER is the old-school power tool and still useful for complex or reusable selections. Type FILTER to open the Object Selection Filters dialog. Add a filter for 'Block Name' and enter the block you want, then apply it. You can build compound filters — block name AND layer AND colour — and crucially you can name and save a filter to reuse later or across sessions.

FILTER shines when you repeatedly need the same intricate selection, or when you want to filter a selection you are part-way through making (you can apply a filter to a window selection to keep only the matching blocks). It is fussier than QSELECT for a one-off, but for a saved, complex, oft-repeated selection rule it has no equal.

What to do with the selection

Once every instance is selected, the whole point is to act on all of them together. Open the Properties palette (Ctrl+1) and change the layer to move them all at once, or change the colour, linetype or scale across the entire set. Delete to remove every copy of an obsolete symbol. Use the selection as the input to other commands — move, rotate, or copy them as a group.

This is where bulk selection pays off: a task that would be dozens of careful clicks becomes one selection plus one property change. To recolour every tree, select-similar a tree then set the colour. To relayer all furniture, QSELECT the chairs and desks and reassign the layer. The selection is the hard part; acting on it is then trivial.

Finding instances you can't see

Selecting works on what is selectable, so instances on frozen or off layers, or far outside the current view, can be missed. Before a 'select all', run ZOOM Extents to bring everything into view and make sure the relevant layers are thawed and on — a frozen layer's objects can't be selected. Then your QSELECT or Select Similar genuinely catches every instance.

To simply locate instances rather than select them, the COUNT command highlights and steps through each one, which is a good way to discover that a few copies are lurking somewhere unexpected. If a later operation behaves as though it missed some blocks, a hidden-layer instance is the usual reason — thaw everything, reselect, and the full set comes in.

Pitfalls and edge cases

A few things trip up bulk block selection. Same-looking, different-named blocks are the big one: two chairs that look identical but carry different block names are different blocks to AutoCAD, so selecting one name misses the other. If a 'select all chairs' comes up short, check whether several block names are in play and select each, or redefine them to a single name first. Exploded instances won't be caught either, because they are no longer block references.

Dynamic blocks add a wrinkle: different visibility states or parameter values still share the base block name, so QSELECT by name selects all of them, which is usually what you want — but be aware that anonymous-block names (starting with '*') can appear for dynamic variants. Nested blocks are another edge case: selecting a block does not separately select the blocks nested inside it. Keep block names consistent and your selections stay clean; let names fragment and you will be hunting stragglers.

Free download

Browse the full library — DWG & DXF, no signup.

Download CAD blocks

Questions

Frequently asked

How do I select every instance of one block at once?+

The most precise way is QSELECT: set Object type to 'Block Reference', Properties to 'Name', operator to Equals, and pick the block name. The quickest way, if you can click one instance, is to right-click it and choose Select Similar, which grabs every reference of the same name.

What's the difference between QSELECT and Select Similar?+

QSELECT lets you specify criteria in a dialog — block name, layer, colour — without needing an example, so it's precise and repeatable. Select Similar matches an instance you click (by default on name and layer) in two clicks. Use QSELECT for exact control, Select Similar for speed.

Why does selecting all of a block miss some copies?+

Usually because those copies are on frozen or off layers, or outside the current view — frozen-layer objects can't be selected. Run ZOOM Extents and thaw and turn on all layers, then reselect. Also check the missed copies aren't a different, similarly-named block, or have been exploded.

Can I select all instances and change their layer in one move?+

Yes. Select every instance with QSELECT or Select Similar, then open the Properties palette (Ctrl+1) and change the Layer field — all selected blocks move to the new layer at once. The same approach works to recolour, rescale or delete every instance together.

Related downloads