AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts: all 43 Ctrl, Shift and Alt combinations plus the F3–F12 row, and how they differ from aliases

Two different things in AutoCAD both get called "shortcuts". The first is the command alias: type L and press Enter to draw a line. The second is the true keyboard shortcut: press a combination like Ctrl+S or a function key like F8, with no Enter. They live in two different files and are changed in two different ways.

This article is about the second kind. The AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts below are read straight from the 2027 interface file acad.cuix: all 43 Ctrl, Shift and Alt combinations, none left out. The F3–F12 row is listed with the system variable each key toggles. Typed aliases are covered in command aliases in AutoCAD, and commands grouped by task in AutoCAD commands. For drafting taught properly, the Institute runs an AutoCAD course for construction.

Shortcut keys versus aliases

The Autodesk documentation on command aliases, shortcut keys and AutoCorrect draws the same distinction. People searching for AutoCAD shortcut keys often really want aliases; if you want to type fewer letters, the aliases article is the one you need.

Function keys in AutoCAD: toggling drawing modes

The function keys do not run commands; they toggle a mode by changing a system variable. The table gives each variable's value before and after one press, in a new drawing:

A few things stand out:

• F3 does not clear your chosen snap modes. The value rises by exactly 16 384, the "temporarily off" bit; press again and OSMODE returns to 4133 with the old snap modes intact. Choosing snap modes is covered in object snaps.
• F10 and F11 change the same variable, AUTOSNAP, one bit each: F10 adds 8, F11 subtracts 16.
• F5 is the only key in the row where a second press does not restore the old value: SNAPISOPAIR does not return to 0 after the second press.
• Every other key returns to its original value on the second press.

F8 has its own article: the F8 key. Grid F7 and snap F9 are covered in grid and snap.

AutoCAD shortcut keys for files and drawings

This group works like most office software: open, save, plot, quit. The Command column is the command each combination runs, read from its macro in acad.cuix.

Note that Ctrl+S runs QSAVE, not SAVE. Ctrl+Q runs QUIT: with a changed drawing, AutoCAD always asks to save before quitting, as shown in exiting in AutoCAD.

Ctrl shortcuts in AutoCAD for editing and selecting

Two differences from Word or Excel. First, Ctrl+Z runs the U command, undoing exactly one step. Second, AutoCAD has two variants of copy and paste that office software lacks: Ctrl+Shift+C copies with a base point you pick, and Ctrl+Shift+V pastes the contents as a block. Copying within a drawing is covered in the copy command.

Ctrl+Shift+L has a smarter macro than it looks. With no command running, it runs SELECT with the P option to reselect the previous selection set. In the middle of a command such as MOVE, it sends only P, so it works right at the Select objects: prompt. Ctrl+Y runs MREDO 1, redoing exactly one undone step. Ctrl+H changes the PICKSTYLE variable, which toggles selecting a whole group when you click one of its members; groups are covered in groups in AutoCAD.

Ctrl plus a number: opening palettes

The number row opens and closes palettes. These macros are conditional: if the palette is open the key closes it, if it is closed the key opens it.

Ctrl+9 is the one to remember. When the command line is showing, it runs COMMANDLINEHIDE, which asks for confirmation and then hides the command line; when it is hidden, it runs COMMANDLINE to bring it back. A missing command line is covered in how to enter commands. Ctrl+1 opens the Properties palette; see the Properties palette.

Ctrl+0 follows the same pattern: its macro reads the CleanScreenState variable and runs CLEANSCREENON when the screen is normal or CLEANSCREENOFF when it is already clean. So the same key takes you into the clean screen and back out, and you never need to remember which of the two commands to type.

Mode toggles and rarely used keys

Some Ctrl combinations do exactly what an F-key does: Ctrl+L sends ^O like F8, and Ctrl+D sends ^D like F6. The last group holds the Shift+F combinations for 3D subobject selection and the Alt keys for VBA macros.

The five Shift+F keys all set one variable, SUBOBJSELECTIONMODE, to a value from 0 to 4: no filter, vertices, edges, faces and solid history. They matter only when you pick parts of 3D solids; in 2D drafting you can ignore them.

Ten keys worth learning first

For everyday 2D drafting, these ten cover most of the working day:

Add Ctrl+Shift+C once you start copying between drawings, and Ctrl+Shift+L once reselecting the previous set becomes a habit.

Change shortcut keys in AutoCAD

To add a typed alias, for example making C run COPY or adding your own letters for a command you use often, edit acad.pgp. It is a text file, edited in Notepad and reloaded without restarting AutoCAD; the steps are in command aliases in AutoCAD.

The Ctrl combinations in the tables above live in acad.cuix, a compressed interface file containing many smaller files; the key list is in the part named AcceleratorRoot. This file cannot be edited in Notepad. Before changing shortcut keys of this kind, back up acad.cuix, because the ribbon, menus and toolbars all live in the same file.

Frequently asked questions

How do AutoCAD keyboard shortcuts differ from aliases?

An alias is letters typed and followed by Enter, like L, stored in acad.pgp. A shortcut is a key combination pressed directly, like Ctrl+S or F8, stored in acad.cuix.

How many Ctrl, Shift and Alt shortcuts does 2027 have?

43 combinations, all in the tables above. The F3–F12 row adds ten keys that toggle modes.

Does F3 lose my chosen object snaps?

No. F3 only sets the "temporarily off" bit, 16 384, in OSMODE; press it again and the old modes are back intact.

I pressed Ctrl+9 and the command line disappeared.

Press Ctrl+9 again. When the command line is hidden, this key runs COMMANDLINE to show it.

How do I set up a typed shortcut for a command?

Edit acad.pgp, add a line in the form LETTERS, *COMMAND, and reload it. Details are in the aliases article.