A structural drawing holds hundreds of circles: piles, bolt holes, bars. When you need only the holes above a certain size, to change their layer or delete them, a window catches the small ones too. The filter command in AutoCAD solves exactly that: you set a condition first, then sweep the whole area, and only the objects that meet the condition are kept.
This article tries FILTER in AutoCAD 2027 with the acadiso.dwt template and compares it with QSELECT, the quick-select command with the same goal. The image above shows the real dialogs. Selection in general is covered in selecting objects. For advanced drafting taught properly, the Institute runs an advanced AutoCAD course.
Starting FILTER, and using it mid-command
Type FILTER or the alias FI. The command has no button on the default ribbon; QSELECT does, at Home → Utilities → Quick Select. Both work through a dialog.
FILTER has one special strength: it runs in the middle of another command as a transparent filter, 'FILTER. At the Select objects: prompt of any command, type 'FILTER, set the condition, click Apply, and select as usual. The 2027 release reports each step:
Select objects: 'FILTER
Applying filter to selection.
>>Select objects: C
3 found
>>Select objects:
Exiting filtered selection.
Resuming SELECT command.The >> at the start of the line shows you are selecting in filter mode. Press Enter to leave it, and the original command continues with exactly the filtered objects.
The Object Selection Filters dialog
The object selection filters dialog has three areas, labelled exactly as in 2027:
| Area | Contents |
|---|---|
| Condition list (top) | One condition per line, e.g. Circle Radius > 150.000000 |
| Select Filter | Condition types (3dface, Arc, Arc Radius, Attribute, Block Name, Circle, Circle Radius, Color, Dimension, Hatch…); X:, Y:, Z: boxes with comparisons; buttons Add to List:, Substitute, Add Selected Object < |
| Named Filters | Current: box (default *unnamed), Save As: button, Delete Current Filter List |
Each box offers seven comparisons: =, !=, <, <=, >, >=, *. Edit Item, Delete and Clear List edit the condition list; Apply applies the filter and returns you to selecting.
Example: circles with a radius above 150
The drawing has 12 objects: five circles of radius 100, three of radius 300, four lines. The goal is the three large circles.
| Step | What you do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Type SELECT, then 'FILTER at the selection prompt |
| 2 | Under Select Filter, choose Circle Radius |
| 3 | In X: choose > and type 150 |
| 4 | Click Add to List: |
| 5 | Click Apply, then drag a crossing window over the whole drawing |
| 6 | Press Enter twice to leave filter mode and finish |
Result: the window crosses all 12 objects, AutoCAD reports 3 found, exactly the three radius-300 circles. The five small circles and four lines are dropped although they lie inside the window.
The same sweep without the filter would have selected all twelve objects, since the crossing window touches every one of them. The filter is what narrows twelve down to three, without any need to pick circles one by one or to draw careful windows around each large hole. On a real foundation plan with hundreds of holes of mixed sizes, that difference is the whole point of the command.
A detail worth noticing at step 4: after Add to List: with Circle Radius, the list shows two lines, not one: Circle Radius > 150.000000 and Object = Circle. AutoCAD adds the object-type condition itself, because a radius only means something for circles.
Named filters
The filter just set is called *unnamed in the Current: box. The Named Filters area has a name box beside Save As: for giving a filter a name, and Delete Current Filter List for removing the one selected. Named filters suit conditions you use often: all bolt holes of a certain size, all blocks of a certain name. QSELECT has no such area.
The Autodesk documentation on the Object Selection Filters dialog explains that the list also accepts the logical operators AND, OR, XOR and NOT for grouping conditions. That makes it possible to select large circles or blocks of a given name in one sweep.
The QSELECT command
The qselect command does a similar job in a different way, through these fields of the Quick Select dialog.
| Field | Options |
|---|---|
Apply to: | Entire drawing or Current selection |
Object type: | The object types present in the chosen scope |
Properties: | Color, Layer, Linetype, Linetype scale, Plot style, Lineweight, Transparency, Hyperlink, Thickness, Material, Center X, Center Y… |
Operator: | = Equals, <> Not Equal, > Greater than, < Less than, Select All |
How to apply: | Include in new selection set or Exclude from new selection set |
| Check box | Append to current selection set |
The Object type: list follows the scope. With Apply to: set to Current selection right after the three large circles had been selected, the list offered only Circle, because nothing else was in that selection. The two scopes on offer were exactly Entire drawing and Current selection. Working on the current selection is a quick way to narrow a first rough selection: select an area by window, then run QSELECT on the current selection to keep only the type and property you want.
Run QSELECT on an empty drawing and instead of the dialog AutoCAD shows a box titled Quick Select - No Objects Found. There has to be something to filter.
FILTER or QSELECT
FILTER | QSELECT | |
|---|---|---|
| Mid-command use | Yes, as 'FILTER | Runs as its own command |
| Workflow | Set the condition, then select | Pick the condition; it selects within the scope |
| Named, saved filters | Yes, Save As: | No |
| Several conditions at once | Yes, several lines in the list | One per run, with an option to append to the current set |
| Alias | FI | None |
In short, QSELECT is quick for one simple condition across the drawing, such as all text 2.5 high; FILTER suits several conditions, reuse, or filtering while another command is asking for objects. Using QSELECT to edit text in bulk is covered in editing text in bulk.
Moving all large holes to a layer: a worked order
- Type
CHPROP(or open Properties) and reach theSelect objects:prompt. - Type
'FILTER, chooseCircle Radius,>,150, clickAdd to List:. Check that the list has both lines, includingObject = Circle. - Click
Apply, then drag a crossing window over the whole plan. The command line reports how many objects were found. - Press Enter to leave filter mode;
CHPROPcontinues with just the large holes. - Change the layer property to the new layer.
The same order works with ERASE, MOVE, COPY or any command that asks for objects.
| Job | Best tool |
|---|---|
| All text 2.5 high across the drawing | QSELECT |
| Circles above radius 150, inside a running command | 'FILTER |
| A reusable filter with several conditions | FILTER with Named Filters |
| Everything similar to one sample object | SELECTSIMILAR, see the selection article |
Whichever tool you use, read the count the command line reports before acting on the selection. In the example it said 3 found for three large circles; a different number is the cue to check the condition before erasing or moving anything. The advantage of 'FILTER is that you do not have to select first and then run the command: you filter on the spot, inside the running command.
Three things often repeated that are not true
| Often repeated | What holds on the 2027 release |
|---|---|
| FILTER is a separate command you must run first | It works mid-command as 'FILTER at the selection prompt |
| You must add the object-type condition yourself | Adding Circle Radius adds Object = Circle automatically |
| QSELECT always opens its dialog | On an empty drawing it only reports No Objects Found |
Frequently asked questions
What does the filter command in AutoCAD do?
It selects only objects that meet a condition, such as circles above a given radius, when you sweep a window over the whole area.
Can I use FILTER while erasing or moving?
Yes. At Select objects: type 'FILTER, set the condition, Apply, then select.
How do I know I am selecting in filter mode?
The command line shows >> before Select objects:. Press Enter to leave; AutoCAD says Exiting filtered selection.
How do I keep a filter for later?
Type a name in the box beside Save As: in the Named Filters area and click the button.
How do FILTER and QSELECT differ?
FILTER sets conditions before selecting, can be saved and used mid-command; QSELECT selects straight away by one condition within a set scope.
Why does QSELECT say No Objects Found?
There are no objects in the scope it is applied to. Draw or open something and run it again; the Quick Select dialog then opens normally.