Every AutoCAD user reaches for the mouse hundreds of times a day, and each click adds up to lost time on a drawing. The fastest way to work around this is to learn AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts and build them into muscle memory. Once you know the right autocad commands shortcut keys for your daily tasks, you stop hunting through ribbons and menus and start drawing at the speed you think.

This guide covers the full range of autocad shortcut commands, from single-key aliases to full Ctrl and function key combinations. Whether you are looking for autocad basic commands as a beginner or trying to fill gaps in a list of autocad all commands you already know, everything below is organized so you can scan it fast and start using it today.

We have also included a short section on autocad symbols shortcuts for anyone who types dimension text and needs the degree or diameter symbol without leaving the keyboard.

Table of Contents

AutoCAD Shortcuts

One Key Shortcuts

These are the fastest shortcuts in AutoCAD because they use a single letter to trigger a full command. They are worth memorizing first since they cover the tools most people use in every session.

Read more: AutoCAD Civil vs AutoCAD Architecture

Key	Command	Function
Q	QSAVE	Saves the current drawing
A	ARC	Creates an arc
Z	ZOOM	Increases or decreases magnification in the current viewport
W	WBLOCK	Writes objects or a block to a new drawing file
S	STRETCH	Stretches objects crossed by a selection window or polygon
X	EXPLODE	Breaks a compound object into its component objects
E	ERASE	Removes objects from a drawing
D	DIMSTYLE	Creates and modifies dimension styles
C	CIRCLE	Creates a circle
R	REDRAW	Refreshes the display in the current viewport
F	FILLET	Rounds and fillets the edges of objects
V	VIEW	Saves and restores named views
T	MTEXT	Creates a multiline text object
G	GROUP	Creates and manages saved sets of objects
B	BLOCK	Creates a block definition from selected objects
H	HATCH	Fills an area with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or gradient
J	JOIN	Joins similar objects into a single unbroken object
M	MOVE	Moves objects a set distance in a set direction
I	INSERT	Inserts a block or drawing into the current drawing
O	OFFSET	Creates concentric circles, parallel lines, and parallel curves
L	LINE	Creates straight line segments
P	PAN	Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition

Function Key Shortcuts

The function keys toggle drawing modes on and off without needing to open a settings panel.

Key	Function
F1	Display Help
F2	Toggle text screen
F3	Toggle object snap mode
F4	Toggle 3D Osnap
F5	Toggle Isoplane
F6	Toggle Dynamic UCS
F7	Toggle grid mode
F8	Toggle ortho mode
F9	Toggle snap mode
F10	Toggle polar mode
F11	Toggle object snap tracking
F12	Toggle dynamic input mode

Toggle Shortcuts for General Features

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl+D	Toggle coordinate display
Ctrl+G	Toggle Grid
Ctrl+E	Cycle isometric planes
Ctrl+F	Toggle running object snaps
Ctrl+H	Toggle Pick Style
Ctrl+Shift+H	Toggle Hide palettes
Ctrl+I	Toggle Coords
Ctrl+Shift+I	Toggle Infer Constraints

Screen Management Shortcuts

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl+0	Clean Screen
Ctrl+1	Property Palette
Ctrl+2	Design Center Palette
Ctrl+3	Toggle Palette
Ctrl+4	Sheet Set Palette
Ctrl+6	DBConnect Manager
Ctrl+7	Markup Set Manager Palette
Ctrl+8	Quick Calc
Ctrl+9	Command Line

Workflow Shortcuts

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl+C	Copy object
Ctrl+X	Cut object
Ctrl+V	Paste object
Ctrl+Shift+C	Copy to clipboard with base point
Ctrl+Shift+V	Paste data as block
Ctrl+Z	Undo last action
Ctrl+Y	Redo last action
Ctrl+[ or Ctrl+\	Cancel current command
Esc	Cancel current command

Drawing Management Shortcuts

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl+N	New Drawing
Ctrl+S	Save drawing
Ctrl+O	Open drawing
Ctrl+P	Plot dialog box
Ctrl+Tab	Switch to next drawing
Ctrl+Shift+Tab	Switch to previous drawing
Ctrl+Page Up	Switch to previous tab in current drawing
Ctrl+Page Down	Switch to next tab in current drawing
Ctrl+Q	Exit
Ctrl+A	Select all objects

Commands Starting With A

Alias	Command	Function
A	ARC	Creates an arc
AA	AREA	Calculates the area and perimeter of objects
ADC	ADCENTER	Manages and inserts blocks, xrefs, and hatch patterns
AI	ACTIVITYINSIGHTSOPEN	Opens the Activity Insights palette to view past drawing actions
AI	ACTIVITYINSIGHTSCLOSE	Closes the Activity Insights palette
AL	ALIGN	Aligns objects with other objects in 2D and 3D
AP	APPLOAD	Loads an application
AR	ARRAY	Creates multiple copies of objects in a pattern
ARR	ACTRECORD	Starts the Action Recorder
ARM	ACTUSERMESSAGE	Inserts a user message into an action macro
ARU	ACTUSERINPUT	Pauses for user input in an action macro
ARS	ACTSTOP	Stops the Action Recorder and saves it as a macro file
ATI	ATTIPEDIT	Changes the text content of a block attribute
ATT	ATTDEF	Redefines a block and updates its attributes
ATE	ATTEDIT	Changes attribute information in a block

Commands Starting With B

Alias	Command	Function
B	BLOCK	Creates a block definition from selected objects
BC	BCLOSE	Closes the Block Editor
BE	BEDIT	Opens a block definition in the Block Editor
BH	HATCH	Fills an area with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or gradient
BO	BOUNDARY	Creates a region or polyline from an enclosed area
BR	BREAK	Breaks a selected object between two points
BS	BSAVE	Saves the current block definition
BVS	BVSTATE	Creates, sets, or deletes a visibility state in a dynamic block

Commands Starting With C

Alias	Command	Function
C	CIRCLE	Creates a circle
CAM	CAMERA	Sets a camera and target for a 3D perspective view
CBAR	CONSTRAINTBAR	Displays geometric constraints available on an object
CH	PROPERTIES	Controls properties of existing objects
CHA	CHAMFER	Bevels the edges of objects
CHK	CHECKSTANDARDS	Checks a drawing for standards violations
CLI	COMMANDLINE	Displays the Command Line window
COL	COLOR	Sets the color for new objects
CO	COPY	Copies objects a set distance in a set direction
CT	CTABLESTYLE	Sets the name of the current table style
CUBE	NAVVCUBE	Controls the visibility of the ViewCube tool
CYL	CYLINDER	Creates a 3D solid cylinder

Commands Starting With D

Alias	Command	Function
D	DIMSTYLE	Creates and modifies dimension styles
DAN	DIMANGULAR	Creates an angular dimension
DAR	DIMARC	Creates an arc length dimension
DBA	DIMBASELINE	Creates a dimension from the baseline of a prior dimension
DBC	DBCONNECT	Provides an interface to external database tables
DCE	DIMCENTER	Creates the center mark of circles and arcs
DCO	DIMCONTINUE	Creates a dimension from an extension line of a prior dimension
DCON	DIMCONSTRAINT	Applies dimensional constraints to objects or points
DDA	DIMDISASSOCIATE	Removes associativity from selected dimensions
DDI	DIMDIAMETER	Creates a diameter dimension for a circle or arc
DED	DIMEDIT	Edits dimension text and extension lines
DI	DIST	Measures the distance and angle between two points
DIV	DIVIDE	Creates evenly spaced points or blocks along an object
DJL	DIMJOGLINE	Adds or removes a jog line on a dimension
DJO	DIMJOGGED	Creates jogged dimensions for circles and arcs
DL	DATALINK	Opens the Data Link dialog box
DLU	DATALINKUPDATE	Updates data from an established external data link
DO	DONUT	Creates a filled circle or a wide ring
DOR	DIMORDINATE	Creates ordinate dimensions
DOV	DIMOVERRIDE	Controls overrides of system variables in dimensions
DR	DRAWORDER	Changes the draw order of images and other objects
DRA	DIMRADIUS	Creates a radius dimension for a circle or arc
DRE	DIMREASSOCIATE	Reassociates dimensions to objects or points
DRM	DRAWINGRECOVERY	Lists drawings recoverable after a crash
DS	DSETTINGS	Sets grid, snap, tracking, osnap, and dynamic input options
DT	TEXT	Creates a single line text object
DV	DVIEW	Defines parallel or perspective views with a camera and target
DX	DATAEXTRACTION	Extracts and merges drawing data to a table or file

Commands Starting With E

Alias	Command	Function
E	ERASE	Removes objects from a drawing
ED	DDEDIT	Edits single line text, dimension text, and attribute definitions
EL	ELLIPSE	Creates an ellipse or elliptical arc
EPDF	EXPORTPDF	Exports the drawing to PDF
ER	EXTERNALREFERENCES	Opens the External References palette
EX	EXTEND	Extends objects to meet the edge of other objects
EXIT	QUIT	Exits the program
EXP	EXPORT	Saves drawing objects to a different file format
EXT	EXTRUDE	Extends a 2D object or 3D face into 3D space

Commands Starting With F

Alias	Command	Function
F	FILLET	Rounds and fillets the edges of objects
FI	FILTER	Sets requirements an object must meet for a selection set
FS	FSMODE	Creates a selection set of objects touching a selected object
FSHOT	FLATSHOT	Creates a 2D representation of 3D objects from the current view

Commands Starting With G

Alias	Command	Function
G	GROUP	Creates and manages saved sets of objects
GCON	GEOCONSTRAINT	Applies geometric relationships between objects or points
GD	GRADIENT	Fills an area with a gradient fill
GEO	GEOGRAPHICLOCATION	Sets the geographic location for a drawing file

Commands Starting With H

Alias	Command	Function
H	HATCH	Fills an area with a hatch pattern, solid fill, or gradient
HE	HATCHEDIT	Modifies an existing hatch or fill
HI	HIDE	Regenerates a 3D wireframe with hidden lines suppressed

Commands Starting With I

Alias	Command	Function
I	INSERT	Inserts a block or drawing into the current drawing
IAD	IMAGEADJUST	Controls brightness, contrast, and fade of an image
IAT	IMAGEATTACH	Inserts a reference to an image file
ICL	IMAGECLIP	Crops the display of a selected image
ID	ID	Displays the UCS coordinates of a specified location
IM	IMAGE	Displays the External References palette
IMP	IMPORT	Imports files of a different format into the drawing
IN	INTERSECT	Creates a solid, surface, or region from overlapping objects
INF	INTERFERE	Creates a temporary solid from overlapping 3D solids
IO	INSERTOBJ	Inserts a linked or embedded object

Commands Starting With J

Alias	Command	Function
J	JOIN	Joins similar objects into a single unbroken object
JOG	DIMJOGGED	Creates jogged dimensions for circles and arcs

Commands Starting With L

Alias	Command	Function
L	LINE	Creates straight line segments
LA	LAYER	Manages layers and layer properties
LAS	LAYERSTATE	Saves, restores, and manages named layer states
LE	QLEADER	Creates a leader and leader annotation
LEN	LENGTHEN	Changes the length of objects and the angle of arcs
LESS	MESHSMOOTHLESS	Decreases the smoothness of mesh objects by one level
LI	LIST	Displays property data for selected objects
LO	LAYOUT	Creates and modifies drawing layout tabs
LT	LINETYPE	Loads, sets, and modifies linetypes
LTS	LTSCALE	Changes the scale factor of linetypes in a drawing
LW	LWEIGHT	Sets the current lineweight and display options

Commands Starting With M

Alias	Command	Function
M	MOVE	Moves objects a set distance in a set direction
MA	MATCHPROP	Applies properties from one object to others
MAT	MATERIALS	Shows or hides the Materials window
ME	MEASURE	Creates points or blocks at measured intervals along an object
MEA	MEASUREGEOM	Measures distance, radius, angle, area, and volume
MI	MIRROR	Creates a mirrored copy of selected objects
ML	MLINE	Creates multiple parallel lines
MLA	MLEADERALIGN	Aligns and spaces selected multileader objects
MLC	MLEADERCOLLECT	Organizes multileaders with blocks into rows or columns
MLD	MLEADER	Creates a multileader object
MLE	MLEADEREDIT	Adds or removes leader lines from a multileader
MLS	MLEADERSTYLE	Creates and modifies multileader styles
MO	PROPERTIES	Controls properties of existing objects
MORE	MESHSMOOTHMORE	Increases the smoothness of mesh objects by one level
MS	MSPACE	Switches from paper space to a model space viewport
MSM	MARKUP	Opens the Markup Set Manager
MT	MTEXT	Creates a multiline text object
MV	MVIEW	Creates and controls layout viewports

Commands Starting With N

Alias	Command	Function
NORTH	GEOGRAPHICLOCATION	Sets the geographic location for a drawing file
NSHOT	NEWSHOT	Creates a named view with motion for ShowMotion playback
NVIEW	NEWVIEW	Creates a named view with no motion

Commands Starting With O

Alias	Command	Function
O	OFFSET	Creates concentric circles, parallel lines, and parallel curves
OP	OPTIONS	Customizes the program settings
ORBIT	3DORBIT	Rotates the view in 3D space along a horizontal or vertical orbit
OS	OSNAP	Sets running object snap modes

Commands Starting With P

Alias	Command	Function
P	PAN	Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition
PA	PASTESPEC	Pastes clipboard objects and controls the data format
PAR	PARAMETERS	Controls the associative parameters used in a drawing
PARAM	BPARAMETER	Adds a parameter with grips to a dynamic block definition
PATCH	SURFPATCH	Creates a surface by capping a closed surface edge loop
PC	POINTCLOUD	Creates and attaches point cloud files
PCATTACH	POINTCLOUDATTACH	Inserts an indexed point cloud file into a drawing
PCINDEX	POINTCLOUDINDEX	Creates an indexed point cloud file from a scan file
PE	PEDIT	Edits polylines and 3D polygon meshes
PL	PLINE	Creates a 2D polyline
PO	POINT	Creates a point object
POFF	HIDEPALETTES	Hides currently displayed palettes
POL	POLYGON	Creates an equilateral closed polyline
PON	SHOWPALETTES	Restores the display of hidden palettes
PR	PROPERTIES	Displays the Properties palette
PRE	PREVIEW	Displays the drawing as it will be plotted
PRINT	PLOT	Plots a drawing to a plotter, printer, or file
PS	PSPACE	Switches from a model space viewport to paper space
PSOLID	POLYSOLID	Creates a 3D wall like polysolid
PU	PURGE	Removes unused block definitions and layers from a drawing
PYR	PYRAMID	Creates a 3D solid pyramid

Commands Starting With Q

Alias	Command	Function
QC	QUICKCALC	Opens the QuickCalc calculator
QCUI	QUICKCUI	Displays the Customize User Interface editor collapsed
QP	QUICKPROPERTIES	Displays open drawings and layouts as preview images
QSAVE	QSAVE	Saves the current drawing
QVD	QVDRAWING	Displays open drawings and layouts using preview images
QVDC	QVDRAWINGCLOSE	Closes preview images of open drawings and layouts
QVL	QVLAYOUT	Displays preview images of model space and layouts
QVLC	QVLAYOUTCLOSE	Closes preview images of model space and layouts

Commands Starting With R

Alias	Command	Function
R	REDRAW	Refreshes the display in the current viewport
RA	REDRAWALL	Refreshes the display in all viewports
RC	RENDERCROP	Renders a rectangular crop window within a viewport
RE	REGEN	Regenerates the entire drawing from the current viewport
REA	REGENALL	Regenerates the drawing and refreshes all viewports
REC	RECTANG	Creates a rectangular polyline
REG	REGION	Converts an enclosed area into a region object
REN	RENAME	Changes the names assigned to layers and dimension styles
REV	REVOLVE	Creates a solid or surface by sweeping a 2D object around an axis
RO	ROTATE	Rotates objects around a base point
RP	RENDERPRESETS	Specifies reusable rendering parameters
RPR	RPREF	Displays the Advanced Render Settings palette
RR	RENDER	Creates a photorealistic image of a 3D model
RW	RENDERWIN	Displays the Render window without starting a render

Commands Starting With S

Alias	Command	Function
S	STRETCH	Stretches objects crossed by a selection window or polygon
SC	SCALE	Enlarges or reduces objects while keeping proportions
SCR	SCRIPT	Executes a sequence of commands from a script file
SEC	SECTION	Creates a region from the intersection of a plane and a solid
SET	SETVAR	Lists or changes the values of system variables
SHA	SHADEMODE	Starts the VSCURRENT command
SL	SLICE	Creates new solids and surfaces by dividing existing objects
SN	SNAP	Restricts cursor movement to specified intervals
SO	SOLID	Creates solid filled triangles and quadrilaterals
SP	SPELL	Checks spelling in a drawing
SPE	SPLINEDIT	Edits a spline or spline fit polyline
SPL	SPLINE	Creates a smooth curve through or near specified points
SPLANE	SECTIONPLANE	Creates a cutting plane through 3D objects
SPLAY	SEQUENCEPLAY	Plays named views in one category
SPLIT	MESHSPLIT	Splits a mesh face into two faces
SSM	SHEETSET	Opens the Sheet Set Manager
ST	STYLE	Creates, modifies, or specifies text styles
STA	STANDARDS	Manages standards files associated with a drawing
SU	SUBTRACT	Combines solids, surfaces, or regions by subtraction

Commands Starting With T

Alias	Command	Function
T	MTEXT	Creates a multiline text object
TA	TEXTALIGN	Aligns multiple text objects vertically or horizontally
TB	TABLE	Creates an empty table object
TEDIT	TEXTEDIT	Edits a dimensional constraint, dimension, or text object
TH	THICKNESS	Sets the default 3D thickness for 2D geometric objects
TI	TILEMODE	Controls whether paper space can be accessed
TO	TOOLBAR	Displays, hides, and customizes toolbars
TOL	TOLERANCE	Creates geometric tolerances in a feature control frame
TOR	TORUS	Creates a donut shaped 3D solid
TP	TOOLPALETTES	Opens the Tool Palettes window
TR	TRIM	Trims objects to meet the edges of other objects
TS	TABLESTYLE	Creates, modifies, or specifies table styles

Commands Starting With U

Alias	Command	Function
UC	UCSMAN	Manages defined user coordinate systems
UN	UNITS	Controls coordinate and angle display formats and precision
UNHIDE / UNISOLATE	UNISOLATEOBJECTS	Restores objects hidden with ISOLATEOBJECTS or HIDEOBJECTS
UNI	UNION	Unions two solid or region objects

Commands Starting With V

Alias	Command	Function
V	VIEW	Saves and restores named views and preset views
VGO	VIEWGO	Restores a named view
VP	DDVPOINT	Sets the 3D viewing direction
VPLAY	VIEWPLAY	Plays the animation associated with a named view
VS	VSCURRENT	Sets the visual style in the current viewport
VSM	VISUALSTYLES	Creates and applies visual styles to a viewport

Commands Starting With W

Alias	Command	Function
W	WBLOCK	Writes objects or a block to a new drawing file
WE	WEDGE	Creates a 3D solid wedge
WHEEL	NAVSWHEEL	Displays a wheel of view navigation tools

Commands Starting With X

Alias	Command	Function
X	EXPLODE	Breaks a compound object into its component objects
XA	XATTACH	Inserts a DWG file as an external reference
XB	XBIND	Binds named object definitions from an xref to the drawing
XC	XCLIP	Crops the display of a selected external reference or block
XL	XLINE	Creates a line of infinite length
XR	XREF	Starts the External References command

Commands Starting With Z

Alias	Command	Function
Z	ZOOM	Increases or decreases magnification in the current viewport
ZEBRA	ANALYSISZEBRA	Projects stripes onto a model to analyze surface continuity
ZIP	ETRANSMIT	Creates a self extracting or zipped transmittal package

Special Symbol Shortcuts for Text and Dimensions

A few autocad symbols shortcuts come up often when adding notes and dimensions, since these characters do not sit on a standard keyboard.

Code	Symbol	Meaning
%%d	°	Degree symbol
%%p	±	Plus or minus symbol
%%c	Ø	Diameter symbol

Read more: Autodesk vs AutoCAD

Conclusion

Learning autocad keyboard shortcuts is one of the simplest ways to cut hours off repetitive drafting work, and the list above covers the full range you will run into across daily projects, from one key commands to full alphabetical aliases. Keep this page open for a few weeks while you draft and the most used autocad shortcut keys for your workflow will stick on their own.

Shortcuts speed up how fast you draw, but they do not teach you how a BIM workflow connects AutoCAD to Revit, Navisworks software, and the rest of the coordination process that architecture and engineering teams use on real projects. That gap is what BuildAmbit’s Full-Stack BIM Professional Course for Civil Engineers, built with RSP Design India, is designed to close for civil engineers early in their careers.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the 5 commands in AutoCAD?

Five of the most used commands in AutoCAD are LINE, CIRCLE, MOVE, COPY, and TRIM. LINE and CIRCLE create basic geometry, MOVE and COPY reposition objects on the drawing, and TRIM cleans up overlapping lines so the drawing stays accurate.

2. What is Ctrl+1 in AutoCAD?

Ctrl+1 opens the Properties palette in AutoCAD. It shows the properties of a selected object, such as layer, color, linetype, and linetype scale, and lets you edit those values directly without opening a separate dialog box.

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