The qleader command in AutoCAD: fast notes that come apart later

On a structural drawing there are nearly as many notes as dimensions: concrete grades, bar types, member marks, construction instructions. Each one is an arrow pointing at something, a kink, and a line of text.

The qleader command in AutoCAD draws exactly that, very fast, which is why so many drawing offices still use it. But it leaves behind a problem nobody notices until the drawing has to be edited. For the full presentation toolkit see our AutoCAD for Construction course.

Where to start it

Read from the acad.cuix interface file and the acad.pgp file of the 2027 release, for the default workspace.

Three empty rows. The command appears nowhere at all in the 2027 interface; typing its name is the only way in. That is Autodesk saying it is a legacy command, kept for compatibility.

And not only through the interface. Autodesk's QLEADER page says it outright: "In most cases, it is recommended that you use the MLEADER command to create leader objects." The sections below show why that advice is sound.

Its replacement is the opposite:

The steps on the command line

Copied verbatim from AutoCAD 2027.

Command: QLEADER
Specify first leader point, or [Settings] <Settings>: 1600,1600
Specify next point:  2000,2000
Specify next point:  2400,2000
Specify text width <0.0000>: 0
Enter first line of annotation text <Mtext>: cot c1
Enter next line of annotation text:

After three points it moves on to the text and stops asking for points. That three is not fixed in the command but a setting, and the section below says where to change it.

Step four trips up newcomers. Entering 0 means no width limit, so the note runs on a single line. Entering a figure makes the text wrap when it reaches that width, which helps for long notes on a narrow sheet. To stop being asked at all, turn off Prompt for width in the settings dialog.

One note, two loose objects

This is the most important thing in the article, and only measuring shows it.

Draw a three-point leader with one line of text, then count what is in the drawing:

Now move only the leader 600 to the right:

The text stayed exactly where it was. The arrow went one way and the note stayed behind. Put another way, an annotation leader and its content are not attached to each other at all.

In practice this surfaces during editing. Drag a member somewhere else, catch the note with a crossing window, but the window touches the leader and misses the text — so the arrow follows the member and the words stay behind. On a drawing dense with notes, that kind of error is very hard to spot by eye.

The mleader command does the same job with one object

The same test with the newer command:

A single object, so selecting picks up the whole thing, moving moves the whole thing, deleting removes the whole thing. There is no way for the words to part company with the arrow.

MLEADER also brings things the old command never had: shared leader styles, several arrows collected onto one note, and a ribbon button. Dimensioning and presentation are covered in our article on dimensions in AutoCAD.

What is in the leader settings

Press Enter at the first prompt and a dialog headed Leader Settings opens, with three tabs.

The Annotation tab chooses what goes on the end of the leader: MText, Copy an Object, Tolerance, Block Reference, or None. Block Reference is the interesting one for construction work — it attaches a block to the end of a leader, which is how a member mark with an arrow gets built.

The same tab carries three boxes: Prompt for width decides whether step four is asked at all, Always left justify forces the text left, and Frame text draws a box around it.

The Leader Line & Arrow tab is where that three gets changed:

Clear No Limit and change the Maximum to allow more kinks. The two Angle Constraints boxes force the first or second segment to a fixed angle — set the second to Horizontal and every note in the drawing gets a perfectly level tail.

The Attachment tab decides where the text attaches to the tail, separately for text on the left and on the right. The defaults are Middle of bottom line on the left and Middle of top line on the right.

Those two different defaults are exactly why some drawings look uneven. When the leader points left the text hangs off its last line; when it points right, off its first. With a one-line note nothing shows, but with three or four lines the two sides sit at visibly different heights. To even them up, set both columns to the same row, usually Middle of multi-line text.

The Underline bottom line box at the foot underlines the last line of the note. Some older drawing standards present material notes that way, so it is the box to find when a new sheet has to match an existing set.

Leader notes: which command

The short answer for most readers: use MLEADER on new drawings. The only reason left for the old command is matching an existing set, because mixing the two types in one drawing makes editing genuinely confusing.

One thing to watch when a drawing arrives from elsewhere: the two kinds of note look identical. To tell them apart, click one — if the leader highlights but the text does not, it is the legacy kind. Selection is covered in our article on selecting objects in AutoCAD.

There is a reasonable case for converting a whole drawing over, and an equally reasonable case for leaving it alone. Converting gives every note the same behaviour and removes a standing source of errors, but it means checking each one afterwards, because position and attachment rarely come across exactly. Leaving it alone costs nothing today and keeps the risk. The decision usually comes down to how much more editing the drawing has ahead of it: a set going into construction is worth converting, an archive drawing is not.

Whichever way it goes, the rule worth writing into an office standard is simple. New work uses the newer command; the qleader command in AutoCAD stays available for the drawings that already depend on it, and for nothing else. Half the confusion around leaders in a mixed drawing comes from nobody having decided that in advance.

Four things people say that are not true

Frequently asked questions

What is the alias?

LE. There is no ribbon button and no menu item.

Why does the text stay behind when I move the note?

Because this kind of note is two separate objects. Select both, or use MLEADER instead.

Where do I change the number of segments?

Press Enter at the first prompt to open Leader Settings, go to the Leader Line & Arrow tab, clear No Limit and change the Maximum.

How do I make every tail horizontal?

On the same tab, set Angle Constraints for the Second Segment to Horizontal.

Can a block go on the end of a leader?

Yes. On the Annotation tab choose Block Reference and give the block name.

Should I use the old command or MLEADER?

On new drawings use MLEADER, because it keeps the leader and the text in one object. Keep the old one only where an existing set has to be matched.