How-to guide · how to print a drawing to scale in autocad

How to print an AutoCAD drawing to scale

DWGDXFFree1,031 words

By Saumyajit Maity · Published 23 Jul 2023 · Updated 19 Mar 2024

Printing to scale means a reader can put a ruler on the paper and measure real dimensions off it. On a 1:100 print, ten millimetres on the page is one metre on site. Getting there reliably is mostly about not letting AutoCAD second-guess you with 'Fit to Paper', and about setting the scale in the right place — the viewport, not the plotter.

This guide prints a measurable drawing the clean way: set the scale inside the viewport, plot the layout at 1:1, and keep 'Fit to Paper' off. It also covers the model-space shortcut for a quick scaled check print, and the verification step that confirms the print is truly to scale before you hand it over.

Where the scale really lives: the viewport

On a finished drawing, the scale is a property of the viewport, not the plot. Each viewport on a layout is set to a ratio — 1:50, 1:100 and so on — and the layout itself plots at 1:1 because the viewports already carry the real scales. This is the key idea: you scale the viewport, then plot the sheet at full size.

Trying to set the scale at the plotter instead leads to confusion, because the plot scale and the viewport scale fight each other. Decide the scale in the viewport, lock it, and let the plot run at 1:1.

Step 1 — Set and lock the viewport scale

Double-click into the viewport, then use the viewport scale control on the status bar to choose the ratio you want — 1:100, for example. If the ratio you need is not listed, add it as a custom scale. Frame the drawing inside the window, then select the viewport border and set 'Display locked' to Yes so the scale cannot drift.

Locking matters here more than anywhere, because a scaled print is the deliverable. An unlocked viewport can be knocked off scale by a stray scroll between now and the plot, and the error will not show until someone measures the paper.

Step 2 — Open the Plot dialog and plot the layout at 1:1

Press Ctrl+P from the layout tab. Set 'What to plot' to Layout, and set the plot scale to 1:1. Because each viewport already holds its true scale, the sheet plots full size and every viewport prints at the ratio you set. Confirm the paper size matches your sheet — printing an A1 layout onto A3 without a deliberate scale change will distort the result.

Leave 'Center the plot' off for a layout (the title block already positions everything) and make sure the correct plotter and plot-style table are selected so line weights come out right.

Step 3 — Turn off 'Fit to Paper'

This is the setting that quietly ruins scaled prints. 'Fit to Paper' tells AutoCAD to resize the drawing so it fills the page, which overrides your scale and makes the print un-measurable. For a true-scale plot, this box must be unticked.

If you tick 'Fit to Paper', the scale field greys out and shows an odd ratio AutoCAD calculated to make things fit — a sure sign the print will not be to scale. Untick it, and the scale field returns to your chosen value.

Printing to scale straight from model space

For a quick check print without a layout, you can plot model space to scale directly. Press Ctrl+P from the Model tab, set 'What to plot' to Window and box the area you want, then set the plot scale to your ratio — for a millimetre drawing at 1:100, that is 1 mm to 100 drawing units. Untick 'Fit to Paper'.

This route skips the title block and viewport composition, so it is best for working prints rather than issued drawings. For anything you hand to a client or contractor, plot a proper layout instead.

Step 4 — Verify the print is truly to scale

Never assume a print is to scale — check it. Pick an object whose real size you know, such as a standard door, and measure it on the paper with a ruler or a scale rule. On a 1:100 print a one-metre length should read 10 mm; on 1:50 it should read 20 mm. If the measurement is off, the cause is almost always 'Fit to Paper' left on, a wrong viewport scale, or a units mismatch between the model and the layout.

An architect's scale rule makes this check effortless: set it to the sheet's ratio, lay it across a known dimension, and read the real length straight off. If the number is wrong by a clean factor of ten, suspect a metre-versus-millimetre units problem; if it is wrong by an odd fraction, suspect Fit to Paper. A graphic scale bar drawn in the title block is good insurance too, because it scales with the drawing and stays accurate even if the print is later photocopied or resized, giving the reader a way to measure when the paper is no longer at its original size.

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Questions

Frequently asked

Why is my drawing not printing to scale?+

Almost always 'Fit to Paper' is ticked, which resizes the drawing to fill the page and breaks the scale. Untick it, set the plot scale to 1:1 when plotting a layout, and make sure the viewport scale is set and locked.

Do I set the scale in the viewport or in the Plot dialog?+

Set it in the viewport. Each viewport carries its true scale, and the layout then plots at 1:1. Setting a scale in the Plot dialog for a layout fights the viewport scale and causes confusion.

How do I print model space to a scale like 1:100?+

From the Model tab, press Ctrl+P, set 'What to plot' to Window and box the area, untick 'Fit to Paper', and set the plot scale to your ratio — for a millimetre drawing that is 1 mm to 100 units for 1:100.

How can I check that a print really is to scale?+

Measure a known object on the paper with a scale rule. On a 1:100 print, one metre should measure 10 mm. If it doesn't, recheck Fit to Paper, the viewport scale and your drawing units.

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