Creative Media Learning Hub

MEDIAART 2DF3

Adobe Illustrator Shortcuts

A quick reference guide to commonly used Adobe Illustrator shortcuts for the Composition Techniques, projects, and other course exercises.

These are the default Adobe Illustrator shortcuts. Shortcuts may differ if you have customized your keyboard settings.

Basic Tools

Action Mac Windows
Selection Tool V V
Direct Selection Tool A A
Pen Tool P P
Add Anchor Point Tool + +
Delete Anchor Point Tool – –
Anchor Point Tool Shift + C Shift + C
Curvature Tool Shift + ~ Shift + ~
Rectangle Tool M M
Ellipse Tool L L
Pencil Tool N N
Paintbrush Tool B B
Shaper Tool Shift + N Shift + N
Eraser Tool Shift + E Shift + E
Scissors Tool C C
Rotate Tool R R
Reflect Tool O O
Scale Tool S S
Free Transform Tool E E
Width Tool Shift + W Shift + W
Gradient Tool G G
Eyedropper Tool I I
Type Tool T T
Artboard Tool Shift + O Shift + O
Hand Tool H H
Zoom Tool Z Z

File and Document

Action Mac Windows
New Document Command + N Ctrl + N
Open File Command + O Ctrl + O
Place / Import File Shift + Command + P Shift + Ctrl + P
Save Command + S Ctrl + S
Save As Shift + Command + S Shift + Ctrl + S
Save a Copy Option + Command + S Alt + Ctrl + S
Document Setup Option + Command + P Alt + Ctrl + P
Close Document Command + W Ctrl + W
Preferences Command + K Ctrl + K

Basic Editing

Action Mac Windows
Undo Command + Z Ctrl + Z
Redo Shift + Command + Z Shift + Ctrl + Z
Cut Command + X Ctrl + X
Copy Command + C Ctrl + C
Paste Command + V Ctrl + V
Paste in Front Command + F Ctrl + F
Paste in Back Command + B Ctrl + B
Paste in Place Shift + Command + V Shift + Ctrl + V
Select All Command + A Ctrl + A
Deselect Shift + Command + A Shift + Ctrl + A
Group Command + G Ctrl + G
Ungroup Shift + Command + G Shift + Ctrl + G
Lock Selection Command + 2 Ctrl + 2
Unlock All Option + Command + 2 Alt + Ctrl + 2
Hide Selection Command + 3 Ctrl + 3
Show All Option + Command + 3 Alt + Ctrl + 3

Arrange and Move Objects

Action Mac Windows
Bring Forward Command + ] Ctrl + ]
Bring to Front Shift + Command + ] Shift + Ctrl + ]
Send Backward Command + [ Ctrl + [
Send to Back Shift + Command + [ Shift + Ctrl + [
Move Object Arrow Keys Arrow Keys
Move Object in Larger Increments Shift + Arrow Keys Shift + Arrow Keys
Duplicate Object Option + Drag Alt + Drag
Repeat Last Transformation Command + D Ctrl + D
Constrain Movement to 45° Shift + Drag Shift + Drag

Command/Ctrl + D is especially useful for repetition, rotation, gradation, and systematic transformations.

Drawing Shapes

Action Mac Windows
Constrain shape proportions Shift + Drag Shift + Drag
Draw shape from centre Option + Drag Alt + Drag
Move shape while drawing Spacebar + Drag Spacebar + Drag
Add/remove polygon or star points Up / Down Arrow while drawing Up / Down Arrow while drawing
Duplicate while transforming Option + Drag Alt + Drag
Delete region with Shape Builder Option + Click Alt + Click

Hold Shift while drawing rectangles or ellipses to create perfect squares or circles.

Paths and Masks

Action Mac Windows
Join Selected Paths Command + J Ctrl + J
Make Clipping Mask Command + 7 Ctrl + 7
Release Clipping Mask Option + Command + 7 Alt + Ctrl + 7

Pen Tool modifiers

Action Mac Windows
Temporarily use Anchor Point Tool Option Alt
Move anchor point while drawing Spacebar + Drag Spacebar + Drag
Add Anchor Point + +
Delete Anchor Point – –

Transformations

Action Mac Windows
Rotate Tool R R
Reflect Tool O O
Scale Tool S S
Free Transform Tool E E
Repeat Transformation Command + D Ctrl + D
Set transformation origin + open options Option + Click Alt + Click
Duplicate during transformation Option + Drag Alt + Drag
Open Transform Each Option + Shift + Command + D Alt + Shift + Ctrl + D

Option/Alt + Click with the Rotate, Reflect, or Scale Tool lets you establish an exact transformation point and enter numerical values.

Action Mac Windows
Temporarily activate Hand Tool Spacebar (hold) Spacebar (hold)
Zoom Tool Z Z
Zoom In Command + = Ctrl + =
Zoom Out Command + – Ctrl + –
Fit Active Artboard in Window Command + 0 Ctrl + 0
View at 100% Command + 1 Ctrl + 1
View All Artboards Command + Option + 0 Ctrl + Alt + 0

Guides, Grids, and Alignment

Action Mac Windows
Show/Hide Guides Command + ; Ctrl + ;
Lock Guides Option + Command + ; Alt + Ctrl + ;
Make Guides from Selected Objects Command + 5 Ctrl + 5
Show/Hide Smart Guides Command + U Ctrl + U
Show/Hide Grid Command + ‘ Ctrl + ‘
Snap to Grid Shift + Command + ‘ Shift + Ctrl + ‘
Snap to Point Option + Command + ‘ Alt + Ctrl + ‘
Show/Hide Align Panel Shift + F7 Shift + F7
Show/Hide Transform Panel Shift + F8 Shift + F8

Smart Guides are particularly useful for aligning objects, identifying centres and edges, and maintaining consistent spatial relationships.