Carrara Keyboard Shortcuts: Complete List for Windows & Mac
Carrara keyboard shortcuts let you model, animate, texture, and render faster inside DAZ 3D Carrara by replacing slow menu clicks with single keystrokes. The most-used shortcuts are Ctrl + S (Save), Ctrl + Z (Undo), and the single-key tool switches R (Rotate), S (Scale), and T (Move). This guide lists all 110+ Carrara shortcuts by category for both Windows and Mac, shows you how to create your own custom keys, and includes a free downloadable PDF cheat sheet.
Key takeaways
- Carrara has 110+ keyboard shortcuts across 11 tool categories.
- On Mac, replace Ctrl with Cmd (⌘) for almost every shortcut.
- You can customize any shortcut via Window > Workspace > Customise.
- Carrara is developed by DAZ 3D; the latest stable release is 8.5.1 (2013).
- A free Carrara Shortcuts PDF is available at the end of this guide.
What Is Carrara?
Carrara is a full-featured 3D modeling, animation, texturing, and rendering application developed by DAZ 3D. It combines figure posing, terrain and nature modeling, soft- and rigid-body dynamics, dynamic hair and fur, and particle effects in a single program, and it is compatible with Poser and Daz Studio figures such as Genesis. Because it bundles so many tools under one interface, keyboard shortcuts are the fastest way to move between modeling, painting, and animation modes without hunting through menus.
Most-Used Carrara Shortcuts
These are the everyday file and edit commands you will reach for in almost every session.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| New | Ctrl + N | ⌘ + N |
| Open | Ctrl + O | ⌘ + O |
| Save | Ctrl + S | ⌘ + S |
| Save As | F12 | F12 |
| Ctrl + P | ⌘ + P | |
| Close | Ctrl + W | ⌘ + W |
| Copy | Ctrl + C | ⌘ + C |
| Paste | Ctrl + V | ⌘ + V |
| Cut | Ctrl + X | ⌘ + X |
| Duplicate | Ctrl + D | ⌘ + D |
| Group | Ctrl + G | ⌘ + G |
| Ungroup | Ctrl + U | ⌘ + U |
| Undo | Ctrl + Z | ⌘ + Z |
| Redo | Ctrl + Y | ⌘ + Y |
Carrara Shortcuts on Mac vs Windows
Carrara runs on both Windows and macOS, and the shortcut layout is nearly identical between them. The main rule: wherever Windows uses Ctrl, macOS uses Cmd (⌘). The Alt key on Windows maps to Option (⌥) on Mac, while Shift and the function keys (F12, etc.) stay the same. Single-letter tool shortcuts such as R, S, T, B, D, and P are the same on both platforms. Because of this, every Ctrl-based shortcut in the tables below works on Mac by swapping Ctrl for ⌘.
3D View Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| 3D View Grid | Ctrl + J | ⌘ + J |
| Send Working Box to Origin | Ctrl + Alt + B | ⌘ + ⌥ + B |
| Send Working Box to Object | Ctrl + Alt + Shift + B | ⌘ + ⌥ + Shift + B |
| Show Production Frame | Ctrl + Alt + F | ⌘ + ⌥ + F |
| Align | Ctrl + K | ⌘ + K |
| Center Hot Point | Ctrl + Alt + H | ⌘ + ⌥ + H |
| Duplicate with Symmetry | Ctrl + Shift + D | ⌘ + Shift + D |
| Edit Scene Effects | Ctrl + Shift + T | ⌘ + Shift + T |
| Hide or Show in 3D View | Ctrl + / | ⌘ + / |
| Jump In | Ctrl + [ | ⌘ + [ |
| Jump Out | Ctrl + ] | ⌘ + ] |
| Point At | Ctrl + M | ⌘ + M |
| Select All | Ctrl + A | ⌘ + A |
| Select All Primitives | Ctrl + Alt + A | ⌘ + ⌥ + A |
| Send to Origin | Ctrl + Shift + O | ⌘ + Shift + O |
| View Selection | 0 | 0 |
Tools Application Shortcuts
These single-key shortcuts switch the active manipulation tool in the 3D viewport.
| Action | Shortcut (Windows & Mac) |
|---|---|
| Bank | B |
| Dolly | D |
| Pan | P |
| Rotate | R |
| Scale | S |
| Move | T |
| Eye Dropper | Y |
| 2D Zoom | Z |
| 2D Pan | Spacebar |
| Track XY | W |
| Track XZ | E |
| Track YZ | Q |
View Shortcuts
Switch cameras and viewport pane layouts instantly with these keys.
| Action | Shortcut (Windows & Mac) |
|---|---|
| Cycle Pane Views | K |
| Bottom Camera | Alt + B (⌥ + B) |
| Back Camera | Alt + C (⌥ + C) |
| Director Camera | Alt + D (⌥ + D) |
| Front Camera | Alt + F (⌥ + F) |
| Left Camera | Alt + L (⌥ + L) |
| Right Camera | Alt + R (⌥ + R) |
| Top Camera | Alt + T (⌥ + T) |
| UV Camera | Alt + U (⌥ + U) |
| One Pane Configuration | 1 |
| Two Pane Configuration | 2 |
| Three Pane Configuration | 3 |
| Four Panes Configuration | 4 |
| Two Panes Inset Configuration | 5 |
Windows (Panel) Shortcuts
Open and close Carrara’s main panels and the render window.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Browser | Ctrl + B | ⌘ + B |
| Properties | Ctrl + I | ⌘ + I |
| Hide Application | Ctrl + H | ⌘ + H |
| Render Scene | Ctrl + R | ⌘ + R |
| Sequencer | Ctrl + Shift + H | ⌘ + Shift + H |
Vertex Model Shortcuts
Used inside the Vertex Modeler for building and editing mesh geometry.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Fill Polygon | Ctrl + F | ⌘ + F |
| Link | Ctrl + Shift + L | ⌘ + Shift + L |
| Move | Ctrl + Shift + T | ⌘ + Shift + T |
| Rotate | Ctrl + Shift + R | ⌘ + Shift + R |
| Scale | Ctrl + Shift + S | ⌘ + Shift + S |
| Unlink | Ctrl + Shift + U | ⌘ + Shift + U |
| Weld | Ctrl + Shift + W | ⌘ + Shift + W |
Vertex Tools Shortcuts
| Action | Shortcut (Windows & Mac) |
|---|---|
| Add | V |
| Crease or Smooth | C |
| Delete | F |
| Dynamic Extrusion | H |
| Magnet | A |
| Link | G |
| Polyline | Y |
| Tessellate | J |
| Weld | N |
Vertex View Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Grid | Ctrl + J | ⌘ + J |
| Hide Selection | Ctrl + \ | ⌘ + \ |
| Reveal Hidden Vertices | Ctrl + | | ⌘ + | |
| Snap to Grid | Ctrl + G | ⌘ + G |
| Auto-Resize Working Mode | Ctrl + Alt + R | ⌘ + ⌥ + R |
| View Selection | 0 | 0 |
Spline Modeler Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Spline Modeler Grid | Ctrl + J | ⌘ + J |
| Break Apart Compound | Ctrl + Alt + U | ⌘ + ⌥ + U |
| Combine as Compound | Ctrl + Alt + G | ⌘ + ⌥ + G |
| Create Section | Ctrl + Shift + C | ⌘ + Shift + C |
| Cross Section Options | Ctrl + Alt + N | ⌘ + ⌥ + N |
| Set Shape Number | Ctrl + Shift + N | ⌘ + Shift + N |
| Add Point | + | + |
| Convert Point | * | * |
| Delete Point | – | – |
| Draw Oval | O | O |
| Draw Rectangle | A | A |
| Draw Rounded Corners Rectangle | U | U |
| Draw Text | H | H |
| Draw Polygon | F | F |
| Pan Tool | J | J |
3D Paint Tools Shortcuts
| Action | Shortcut (Windows & Mac) |
|---|---|
| Oval Layer | C |
| Polygon Layer | G |
| Rectangle Layer | S |
| Select Layer | W |
Animation Shortcuts
Control the timeline, keyframes, and playback in the animation room.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Create Keyframe | Ctrl + K | ⌘ + K |
| Next Frame | . | . |
| Next Keyframe | Shift + K | Shift + K |
| Play or Stop | / | / |
| Previous Frame | , | , |
| Previous Keyframe | Alt + K | ⌥ + K |
How to Customize Carrara Keyboard Shortcuts
Carrara lets you reassign almost any command to your own key combination. This is useful if a default conflicts with your habits from Blender, Daz Studio, or another 3D app. Here is how:
- Open the Window menu.
- Go to Workspace.
- Select Customise to open the customization dialog.
- Find the command you want in the list on the left and right-click it.
- Choose to change the keyboard shortcut, then press the key combination you want to assign.
- For navigation and selection commands, use the tabs at the bottom of the dialog (note that available modifier keys are limited for those).
Once set, your custom shortcut works immediately no restart required. On Mac, you can also remap application-level shortcuts system-wide through the Keyboard section of System Settings.
Download the Carrara Shortcuts PDF
Want an offline copy? Download the complete list as a printable cheat sheet:
➡️ Download DAZ 3D Carrara Shortcuts PDF
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Carrara work on Mac?
Yes. Carrara runs on both Windows and macOS. The shortcuts are the same except that you replace Ctrl with Cmd (⌘) and Alt with Option (⌥).
How do I change a keyboard shortcut in Carrara?
Go to Window > Workspace > Customise, right-click the command you want in the left-hand list, choose to change its shortcut, and press your new key combination.
What is the shortcut to render in Carrara?
Press Ctrl + R (⌘ + R on Mac) to render the current scene.
Is there a free Carrara shortcuts PDF?
Yes. You can download the full printable cheat sheet using the link in the section above.
How many keyboard shortcuts does Carrara have?
This guide covers 110+ shortcuts organized into 11 categories, from file commands to vertex modeling, spline tools, painting, and animation.
Which version of Carrara do these shortcuts apply to?
These shortcuts are based on DAZ 3D Carrara 8.5, the latest major release. The core shortcuts are consistent across recent Carrara versions.
Conclusion
Learning even a handful of these Carrara keyboard shortcuts — starting with the most-used file commands and the R / S / T tool switches will noticeably speed up your modeling, animation, and rendering workflow. Bookmark this page as your reference, download the PDF for offline use, and customize any keys that don’t fit your habits through Window > Workspace > Customise.
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