How-to guide · how to make a block annotative in autocad
How to make a block annotative in AutoCAD
By Saumyajit Maity · Published 9 Mar 2023 · Updated 22 Jan 2025
An annotative block holds its printed size no matter what scale a viewport is set to. A north arrow, a section tag, a level marker or a datum symbol should look the same on paper whether it sits in a 1:50 detail or a 1:200 plan — and that is exactly what the annotative property delivers. AutoCAD keeps a separate scale representation for each scale you assign, so the symbol shrinks and grows in model space to print at one consistent height.
This is not about furniture or doors, which are drawn at real-world size and should scale with the drawing. It is specifically for symbols and annotation that represent information rather than physical objects, and therefore need to read at a fixed size on the sheet regardless of zoom.
This guide makes a block annotative from its definition, assigns the scales it needs, and covers the placement habits that keep annotative blocks behaving — because the property is easy to set and easy to misuse if you do not understand how the scale list works.
Step 1 — Decide if the block should be annotative at all
First, a sanity check: only symbols and annotation should be annotative. A door, a chair or a car is a real object drawn at true size — it must scale with the drawing, so it stays non-annotative. A north arrow, a section flag, a grid bubble or a key symbol represents information and should print at a fixed size — those are the annotative candidates.
Getting this distinction right up front saves trouble. Making a piece of furniture annotative by mistake produces a chair that is the same printed size in every viewport, which is wrong. Reserve the property for things that are notation, not geometry.
Step 2 — Set the block definition to annotative
You can make a block annotative when you define it or afterwards. When creating it with BLOCK, tick the Annotative checkbox in the Block Definition dialog. For an existing block, run BEDIT to open it, then in the Block Editor open the Properties of the block itself (or use the Block Definition settings) and set Annotative to Yes, and save.
Alternatively, select an inserted block reference, open Properties, and toggle its Annotative property — but the cleanest route is to set it on the definition so every instance behaves consistently. Once annotative, the block reference shows the annotative scale icon when you hover over it.
Step 3 — Draw the block at its intended paper size
An annotative block should be drawn at the size you want it to print, measured in paper units, at a scale of 1:1 in the Block Editor. If you want a section tag to print 6 mm across, draw it 6 mm across in the editor. AutoCAD then multiplies that by the annotation scale to work out how big to display it in model space at each scale.
This is the mental flip that trips people up: with annotative content you draw at paper size, and AutoCAD handles the model-space size. Draw it at real model size by mistake and the symbol will print tiny or huge.
Step 4 — Add the scales the block needs
An annotative block only appears at scales you have assigned to it. Set the current annotation scale (the control on the status bar) before or while placing the block, and AutoCAD adds a scale representation. To support several scales, select the block and use Properties or the Annotative Scale option (OBJECTSCALE / the Add Current Scale tool) to add each scale the symbol must appear at — for example 1:50, 1:100 and 1:200.
Each added scale is a representation the block can display at. A common surprise is a symbol that vanishes in one viewport because that viewport's scale was never added to the block's scale list. Add every scale you will plot at.
Step 5 — Place it and check across viewports
Insert the annotative block in model space, then look at it through layout viewports set to different scales. With ANNOAUTOSCALE on and the annotation scale matching the viewport, the symbol should print the same physical size in each viewport even though it is a different size in model space. Toggle the viewport scales and watch the symbol hold its paper size.
If the symbol is missing in a viewport, that viewport's scale is not in the block's scale list — add it. If it is the wrong size, the block was probably not drawn at paper size in step 3. Checking through real viewports is the only reliable test.
Pitfalls with annotative blocks
The most frequent error is making real objects annotative. Keep doors, furniture and any true-size geometry non-annotative — only notation should be annotative. The second is drawing the block at model size instead of paper size, which makes it print at the wrong scale entirely.
A third trap is the scale list: a block only shows at scales it has been given, so a symbol can simply disappear in a viewport whose scale was never added. Use ANNOALLVISIBLE and the annotative scale tools to manage this. Finally, beware mixing annotative and non-annotative content in one block; the block as a whole takes one annotative setting, so keep symbols and real geometry in separate blocks rather than combining them.
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Questions
Frequently asked
Which blocks should be annotative and which should not?+
Symbols and annotation — north arrows, section tags, grid bubbles, level markers — should be annotative so they print at a fixed size. Real objects like doors and furniture are drawn at true size and must stay non-annotative.
Why does my annotative block disappear in one viewport?+
That viewport's scale is not in the block's scale list. Select the block, add the missing annotation scale via Properties or the Add Current Scale tool, and it will appear at that scale.
At what size should I draw an annotative block?+
Draw it at its intended paper size at 1:1 in the Block Editor. AutoCAD multiplies that by the annotation scale to size it in model space, so a 6 mm tag is drawn 6 mm across.
Can I convert an existing block to annotative?+
Yes. Open it with BEDIT, set the block's Annotative property to Yes and save, or toggle the Annotative property on an inserted reference. Setting it on the definition keeps every instance consistent.
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