2021 Adobe Illustrator keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet. Adobe Illustrator is a vector graphics editor and design program developed and marketed by Adobe Inc. The latest version, Illustrator CC 2021, was released on October 20, 2020 and is the 25th generation in the product line. Adobe Illustrator was reviewed as the best vector graphics editing program in 2018 by PC Magazine. Illustrator’s processing level is more difficult than Photoshop’s, perhaps because of that, Illustrator’s shortcuts are also more than Photoshop’s shortcuts. Therefore, to work at a fast speed and save time in the design process when using this software, users must definitely understand all the shortcuts in Illustrator.
Note:
On Windows is the Ctrl key, and on Mac it is the Cmd key.
On Windows it’s the Alt key, on Mac it’s the Option key.
Table of Contents
2021 Adobe Illustrator keyboard shortcuts
| Shortcut (Win) | Shortcut (Mac) | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Shortcuts | ||
| Ctrl + N | Cmd + N | Create new document |
| Alt + Ctrl + N | Option + Cmd + N | Skip New Document dialog box |
| Shift + Ctrl + N | Shift + Cmd + N | Create document from a template |
| Ctrl + S | Cmd + S | Save document |
| Alt + Ctrl + E | Option + Cmd + E | Export document for screens |
| Alt + Shift + Ctrl + P | Option + Shift + Cmd + P | Package document |
| Ctrl + P | Cmd + P | |
| Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Z | Undo |
| Shift + Ctrl + Z | Shift + Cmd + Z | Redo |
| Ctrl + X | Cmd + X | Cut |
| Ctrl + C | Cmd + C | Copy |
| Ctrl + V | Cmd + V | Paste |
| Shift + Ctrl + B | Shift + Cmd + B | Paste in place |
| Ctrl + F | Cmd + F | Paste in front of selected item |
| Ctrl + B | Cmd + B | Paste behind selected item |
| Shift + Ctrl + P | Shift + Cmd + P | Place an existing file into document |
| Ctrl + L | Cmd + L | Add new layer |
| Alt + Ctrl + L | Option + Cmd + L | Add new layer with the New Layer dialog box |
| Alt + Click layer name | Option + Click layer name | Select all objects on a layer |
| Alt + Click Eye icon | Option + Click Eye icon | Show or hide all other layers |
| Alt + Click Lock icon | Option + Click Lock icon | Lock or unlock all other layers |
| View Shortcuts | ||
| F | F | Switch between screen modes (Normal, Full Screen, etc.) |
| Esc | Esc | Exit Full Screen mode |
| Shift + Ctrl + H | Shift + Cmd + H | Show or hide artboards |
| Ctrl + R | Cmd + R | Show or hide rulers |
| Ctrl + U | Cmd + U | Show or hide smart guides |
| Ctrl + ‘ | Cmd + ‘ | Show or hide grid |
| Shift + Ctrl + ‘ | Shift + Cmd + ‘ | Turn Snap to Grid on or off |
| Alt + Ctrl + ‘ | Option + Cmd + ‘ | Turn Snap to Point on or off |
| Ctrl + = | Cmd + = | Zoom in |
| Ctrl + – | Cmd + – | Zoom out |
| Ctrl + 0 | Cmd + 0 | Fit to window |
| Ctrl + 1 | Cmd + 1 | View actual size |
| Tool Shortcuts | ||
| Double click | Double click | View settings for selected tool |
| H | H | Hand tool |
| Spacebar | Spacebar | Use Hand tool when not entering text |
| Ctrl + Spacebar | Cmd + Spacebar | Use Hand tool while entering text |
| V | V | Selection tool |
| A | A | Direct Selection tool |
| Y | Y | Magic Wand tool |
| Q | Q | Lasso tool |
| P | P | Pen tool |
| + | + | Add anchor point |
| – | – | Delete anchor point |
| Shift + C | Shift + C | Anchor Point tool |
| Shift + ~ | Shift + ~ | Curvature tool |
| T | T | Type tool |
| Shift + T | Shift + T | Touch Type tool |
| \ | \ | Line Segment tool |
| M | M | Rectangle tool |
| L | L | Ellipse tool |
| B | B | Paintbrush tool |
| Shift + B | Shift + B | Blob Brush tool |
| N | N | Pencil tool |
| Shift + N | Shift + N | Shaper tool |
| Shift + E | Shift + E | Eraser tool |
| C | C | Scissors tool |
| R | R | Rotate tool |
| O | O | Reflect tool |
| S | S | Scale tool |
| Shift + W | Shift + W | Width tool |
| Shift + R | Shift + R | Warp tool |
| E | E | Free Transform tool |
| Shift + M | Shift + M | Shape Builder tool |
| K | K | Live Paint Bucket |
| Shift + L | Shift + L | Live Paint Bucket Selection tool |
| Shift + P | Shift + P | Perspective Grid tool |
| Shift + V | Shift + V | Perspective Selection tool |
| U | U | Mesh tool |
| G | G | Gradient tool |
| I | I | Eyedropper tool |
| W | W | Blend tool |
| Shift + S | Shift + S | Symbol Sprayer tool |
| J | J | Column Graph tool |
| Shift + O | Shift + O | Artboard tool |
| Esc | Esc | Exit Artboard tool mode |
| Shift + K | Shift + K | Slice tool |
| Z | Z | Zoom tool |
| Ctrl + 1 | Cmd + 1 | Magnify 100 percent |
| X | X | Fill |
| Shift X | Shift X | Swap fill and stroke styles |
| Selection Shortcuts | ||
| Shift + Click | Shift + Click | Select multiple objects |
| Ctrl + A | Cmd + A | Select all |
| Shift + Ctrl + A | Shift + Cmd + A | Deselect all |
| Ctrl + 6 | Cmd + 6 | Reselect |
| Ctrl + G | Cmd + G | Group objects |
| Alt + Ctrl + ] | Option + Cmd + ] | Select object above current selection |
| Alt + Ctrl + [ | Option + Cmd + [ | Select object below current selection |
| Ctrl + Double click | Cmd + Double click | Select object behind |
| Arrow keys | Arrow keys | Move selection |
| Shift + Arrow keys | Shift + Arrow keys | Move selection 10 points |
| Alt + drag | Option + drag | Duplicate selection |
| Shift + Ctrl + B | Shift + Cmd + B | Hide bounding box for selected item |
| Alt + Shift + Ctrl + 3 | Option + Shift + Cmd + 3 | Hide unselected items |
| Shift + Ctrl + O | Shift + Cmd + O | Create outlines from type |
| Editing Tools Shortcuts | ||
| Shift + Drag handlebars | Shift + Drag handlebars | Expand or shrink object proportionally |
| Spacebar + Drag | Spacebar + Drag | Move and position shape while drawing it |
| ] | ] | Increase size of brush, text, etc. |
| [ | [ | Decrease size of brush, text, etc. |
| Alt | Option | Draw shape starting from its center |
| Shift (when drawing or rotating) | Shift (when drawing or rotating) | Snap line or object to vertical, horizontal, or diagonal position |
| Ctrl + 7 | Cmd + 7 | Create clipping mask |
| Alt + Ctrl + 7 | Option + Cmd + 7 | Remove clipping mask |
| X | X | Switch between stroke and fill |
| D | D | Revert stroke and fill to default settings |
| / | / | Set no stroke or fill |
| Ctrl + / | Cmd + / | Add new fill |
| Alt + Ctrl + / | Option + Cmd + / | Add new stroke |
| Shift + Eyedropper tool | Shift + Eyedropper tool | Sample color from an image |
| Ctrl + I | Cmd + I | Check spelling |
| Panels Shortcuts | ||
| Tab | Tab | Show or hide all panels |
| Shift + F7 | Shift + F7 | Align panel |
| Shift + F6 | Shift + F6 | Appearance panel |
| Ctrl + F11 | Cmd + F11 | Attributes panel |
| F5 | F5 | Brushes panel |
| F6 | F6 | Color panel |
| Shift + F3 | Shift + F3 | Color Guide panel |
| Ctrl + F9 | Cmd + F9 | Gradient panel |
| Shift + F5 | Shift + F5 | Graphic Styles panel |
| Ctrl + F8 | Cmd + F8 | Info panel |
| F7 | F7 | Layers panel |
| Shift + Ctrl + F9 | Shift + Cmd + F9 | Pathfinder panel |
| Ctrl + F10 | Cmd + F10 | Stroke panel |
| Shift + Ctrl + F11 | Shift + Cmd + F11 | Symbols panel |
| Shift + F8 | Shift + F8 | Transform panel |
| Shift + Ctrl + F10 | Shift + Cmd + F10 | Transparency panel |
Conclusion
Ngolongtech has introduced useful shortcuts for quick operation in Adobe Illustrator software that supports the program running on both Windows and MacOS platforms. We hope you can learn, practice and use more proficiently this useful graphic design software.
