100 Adobe Illustrator Keyboard Shortcuts

Photo of Devil DevilLast Updated: October 27, 2025
5 minutes read

Working with Adobe Illustrator becomes much easier when you learn its shortcuts. Thanks to its user-friendly interface, you can quickly get the hang of it, and mastering these shortcuts will be the cherry on top.

Using keyboard shortcuts for repetitive tasks can save you both time and effort. Below is a list of Illustrator shortcuts for Windows users that you can use to work more effectively and efficiently.

Function keys Shortcuts

ActionAdobe Illustrator ShortcutsAdobe Illustrator Shortcuts
HelpF1F1
CopyF3F3
PasteF4F4
CutF2F2
Show or hide Brushes panelF5F5
Show or hide the Color panelF6F6
Show or hide Layers of panelF7F7
Create a new symbolF8F8
Show or hide the Info panelCtrl + F8Command + F8
Show or hide the Gradient panelCtrl + F9Command + F9
Show or hide the Stroke panelCtrl + F10Command + F10
Show or hide the Attributes panelCtrl + F11Command + F11
RevertF12F12
Show or hide the Graphic Styles panelShift + F5Shift + F5
Show or hide the Appearance panelShift + F6Shift + F6
Show or hide the Align panelShift + F7Shift + F7
Show or hide the Transform panelShift + F8Shift + F8
Show or hide the Pathfinder panelShift + Ctrl + F9Shift + Command + F9
Show or hide the Transparency panelShift + Ctrl + F10Shift + Command + F10
Show or hide the Symbols panelShift + Ctrl + F11Shift + Command + F11
Show or hide the perspective gridCtrl + Shift + ICommand + Shift + I

Selecting Tools Shortcuts

ActionIllustrator Shortcuts WindowsIllustrator Shortcuts Mac
Artboard ToolShift + OShift + O
Selection toolVV
Direct selection toolAA
Magic Wand toolYY
Lasso toolQQ
Pen toolPP
Blob brush toolShift + BShift + B
Add Anchor Point tool++
Convert Anchor Point toolShift + CShift + C
Type toolTT
Line segment tool\\
Rectangle toolMM
Ellipse toolII
Paintbrush toolBB
Pencil toolNN
Rotate toolRR
Scale toolSS
Wrap toolShift + RShift + R
Width toolShift + WShift + W
Free transform toolEE
Shape builder toolShift + MShift + M
Perspective grid toolShift + PShift + P
Perspective selection toolShift + VShift + V
Symbol sprayer toolShift + SShift + S
Column graph toolJJ
Mesh toolUU
Gradient toolGG
Eyedropper toolII
Blend toolWW
Slice toolShift + KShift + K
Eraser toolShift + EShift + E
Scissors toolCC
Hand toolHH
Zoom toolZZ

Viewing Artwork Shortcuts

ActionIllustrator Shortcuts windowsIllustrator Shortcuts Mac
Switch to the Hand toolSpacebarSpacebar
Switch to the Zoom tool in Magnify modeCtrl + SpacebarCommand + Spacebar
Switch to the Zoom tool to reduce the modeCtrl + Alt + SpacebarCommand + Option + Spacebar
Hide unselected artworkCtrl + Alt + Shift + 3Command + Option + Shift + 3
Exit Artboard tool modeEscEsc
Navigate to the next documentCtrl + F6Command + F6
Navigate to the previous documentCtrl + Shift + F6Command + Shift + F6
Navigate to the next document groupCtrl + Alt + F6Command + Option + F6
Navigate to the previous document groupCtrl + Alt + Shift + F6Command + Option + Shift + F6
Exit Full-Screen modeEscEsc

Painting Objects Shortcuts

ActionIllustrator Shortcuts WindowsIllustrator Shortcuts Mac
Swap fill and strokeShift + XShift + X
Select gradient fill mode>>
Select color fill mode<<
Select no stroke/fill mode//

Working with Type

ActionAdobe Illustrator ShortcutsAdobe Illustrator Shortcuts
Move one character rightRight Arrow keyRight Arrow key
Move one character leftLeft Arrow keyLeft Arrow key
Move up one lineUp Arrow keyUp Arrow key
Move down one lineDown Arrow keyDown Arrow key
Move one word rightCtrl + Right Arrow keyCommand + Right Arrow key
Move one word leftCtrl + Left Arrow keyCommand + Left Arrow key
Move up one paragraphCtrl + Up Arrow keyCommand + Up Arrow key
Move down one paragraphCtrl + Down Arrow keyCommand + Down Arrow key
Select one word rightCtrl + Shift + Right Arrow keyCommand + Shift + Right Arrow key
Select one word leftCtrl + Shift + Left Arrow keyCommand + Shift + Left Arrow key
Select one paragraph beforeCtrl + Shift + Right Arrow keyCommand + Shift + Right Arrow key
Select one paragraph afterCtrl + Shift + Left Arrow keyCommand + Shift + Left Arrow key
Align paragraph leftCtrl + Shift + LCommand + Shift + L
Align paragraph rightCtrl + Shift + RCommand + Shift + R
Align paragraph centerCtrl + Shift + CCommand + Shift + C
Justify paragraphCtrl + Shift + JCommand + Shift + J
Insert soft returnShift + EnterShift + Return
Highlight kerningCtrl + Alt + KCommand + Option + K
Reset the horizontal scale to 100%Ctrl + Shift + XCommand + Shift + X
Increase type sizeCtrl + Shift + >Command + Shift + >
Decrease type sizeCtrl + Shift + <Command + Shift + <
Reset tracking or kerning to 0Ctrl + Alt + QCommand + Option + Q

Others Shortcuts

ActionAdobe Illustrator ShortcutsAdobe Illustrator Shortcuts
To switch between Selection and Direct Selection toolsCtrl + Alt + TabCommand + Option + Tab
To make a copy while draggingAltOption
To add to a selectionShiftShift
Lock selected artworkCtrl + 2Command + 2
Lock all deselected artworkCtrl + Shift + Alt + 2Command + Shift + Option + 2
Unlock all artworkCtrl + Alt + 2Command + Option + 2
Hide selected artworkCtrl + 3Command + 3
Hide all deselected artworkCtrl + Shift + Alt + 3Command + Shift + Option + 3
Show all artworkCtrl + Alt + 3Command + Option + 3
Download Adobe Illustrator Shortcuts PDF

With the above list of Adobe Illustrator shortcuts for Windows users, you can control things like creating a document, making quick selections, changing the text size, selecting tools, etc. All these countless shortcuts will help you to create amazing and professional artwork. An alternative to Illustrator will be CorelDraw. Looking out for CorelDraw Shortcut Keys.

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Photo of Devil DevilLast Updated: October 27, 2025
5 minutes read
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