Every graphical view in Revit has a rectangular crop region. The crop region decides how much of the model the view shows, and therefore how much room the view takes on a sheet.
A Revit crop view is the act of turning on and adjusting that region. This article works in Revit 2027: the two kinds of crop region, how to turn them on, how to size them to the paper, how to crop to a polygon, and the problems that lock a crop region. Producing drawing sets is taught in full in the Revit Architecture course.
A Revit crop view has two crop regions
According to Autodesk's help, a view can have two crop regions (Autodesk: About the Crop Region):
| Crop region | What it crops | How |
|---|---|---|
| Model crop | Model elements and detail elements such as detail lines and insulation | Cuts exactly at the boundary |
| Annotation crop | Symbols, tags, keynotes, dimensions | Touching any part of an annotation hides the whole annotation, so nothing is drawn half-cut |
An annotation that refers to an element cut away by the model crop does not show either, even when it sits inside the annotation crop. Grids and levels shorten their 2D extents to the edge of the model crop. Perspective views have no annotation crop.
Turn the crop on: three boxes in Properties and two buttons on the View Control Bar
Open a plan, click an empty spot so nothing is selected, and look at the Extents group in Properties.
| No. | Box | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crop View | On, and the view shows only what lies inside the crop region |
| 2 | Crop Region Visible | On, and the boundary is visible and selectable |
| 3 | Annotation Crop | Turns on the separate crop for annotation |
| 4 | Scope Box | With a scope box assigned, the crop follows that box |
Boxes 1 and 2 are independent. Clearing Crop Region Visible only hides the boundary; the view stays cropped while Crop View is on.
The first two boxes also have buttons on the View Control Bar at the bottom of the drawing area.
Clicking Show Crop Region ticks Crop Region Visible in Properties at the same time. The two routes are the same; use whichever is handier.
Revit crop region: drag the handles or type the size
Click the boundary to select the crop region. The model crop shows as a solid line with round handles at the middle of each side. If Annotation Crop is on, the annotation crop shows as a dashed line around it with its own handles. Drag a handle to enlarge or shrink the region.
With the crop region selected, the ribbon switches to a contextual tab with two panels for it.
For an exact size, click Size Crop. The Crop Region Size dialog opens.
The values in this dialog are paper sizes, not real building dimensions. According to Autodesk, the crop region in the view is the same size as it will be on the sheet (Autodesk: Resize Crop Regions Explicitly). The sample plan is at 1:55 with a crop width of 565 mm. On paper the view is 565 mm wide; in reality it covers 565 × 55 = 31,075 mm, about 31 m of building.
Reading it this way makes sheet layout quick. Type the free width and height left in the title block and the view fits exactly. Building title blocks is covered in title blocks in Revit.
For perspective views the dialog has two more modes. Field of view stretches the crop region to the values you type. Scale keeps the aspect ratio and changes only the image size on the sheet.
Revit edit crop: cropping to a polygon
A crop region does not have to be a rectangle. In a plan, elevation or section, select the crop region and click Edit Crop. Revit switches to the Modify | Edit Profile tab.
The crop boundary turns magenta and the model is shown halftone underneath.
Modify the existing lines, or delete them and sketch a new shape with the Draw tools. The boundary must be one closed loop that does not cross itself. Click the green tick to finish. To go back to a rectangle, select the crop region and click Reset Crop (Autodesk: Edit a Crop Region).
Autodesk notes that a non-rectangular crop can make PDF prints very large. Use it only when needed, for example a plan of one wing of an L-shaped building.
Rotating a view with the crop region
When a building sits at an angle on its site, rotate the view so the plan lies square on the sheet. Show the crop region, select it, and use Rotate on the Modify panel. The model rotates in the opposite direction to the crop region. If Rotate is greyed out, set the view's Orientation to Project North and try again (Autodesk: Rotate a View by the Crop Region).
Crop view in a 3D view is not a section box
A 3D view also has Crop View, but it crops only the frame, like trimming a photo. To cut the model and look inside, use the Section Box. The two are independent: a section box is not limited by the view's crop region. Orbiting and checking 3D views are covered in the Revit 3D view; scope boxes shared by many views are covered in scope boxes in Revit.
When the crop region cannot be changed
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Crop View is greyed out | A Scope Box is assigned to the view | Set Scope Box to None |
| The crop region selects but will not drag | A Scope Box is assigned, or a design option is active | Set Scope Box to None; set the active design option to Main Model |
| Nothing to select | Crop Region Visible is off | Turn on Crop Region Visible or Show Crop Region |
| The crop boundary prints | Crop Region Visible is still on for a view on a sheet | Clear Crop Region Visible, or tick Hide crop boundaries in Print Setup |
| A door tag inside the annotation crop does not show | The door has been cut away by the model crop | Enlarge the model crop until it contains the door |
In Revit 2027 the Hide crop boundaries box in Print Setup is unticked by default, so a visible boundary prints. Sources for the first two rows: Autodesk: Crop View greyed out and Autodesk: Unable to edit Crop Region.
A large plan split over several sheets uses dependent views: each dependent copy differs only in its crop region. Creating them is covered in hiding elements in Revit.
Frequently asked questions
Does clearing Crop Region Visible remove the crop?
No. It only hides the boundary. To show the whole model, clear Crop View.
Why does a 565 mm width fit a building over 30 m wide?
Because Size Crop uses paper sizes. At 1:55, 565 mm on paper is about 31 m in reality.
Is the annotation crop shown by default?
According to Autodesk, the annotation crop does not show by default in primary views, but does show by default in dependent views and callouts.
Can a 3D view be cropped to a polygon?
According to Autodesk's help, Edit Crop works in plans, elevations and sections. 3D views use a rectangular crop and the Section Box.
In short, a Revit crop view is a presentation tool: set the scale first, type the paper size with Size Crop, turn on Annotation Crop for annotations, and only then place the view on a sheet.