Shortcuts

If you're using a Mac, keyboard shortcuts are the fastest way to speed up your workflow. Many of them are context-dependant based on what you’ve selected and what you’re doing, but you’ll find the full list below.

Pro Tip – Vectornator Shortcuts work seamlessly across all your devices, whether you are using Vectornator for Mac or on your iPad.

File Menu Shortcuts

These shortcuts allow you to quickly manage your documents.

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~key~ ⌘N ~key~ | New

~key~ ⌘W ~key~ | Close

~key~ ⌘S ~key~ | Save

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Undo & Redo on Mac

On Mac, you can Undo your last action by going to Edit > Undo from the top Menu Toolbar or by using these shortcuts:

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~key~ ⌘Z ~key~ | Undo

~key~ ⇧⌘Z ~key~ | Redo

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⚠️ You can undo your actions in Vectornator up to 10,000 times; all the way back to the blank canvas that you started with, even after closing the document and re-opening it.

Navigational Shortcuts

These shortcuts save you from wasting time panning and zooming on your canvas.

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~key~ ⌘0 ~key~ | Zoom to fit. Scale and position your view to show everything on the canvas.

~key~ ↑ ~key~ or ~key~ ⌘+ ~key~ | Zoom in

~key~ ↓ ~key~ or ~key~ ⌘- ~key~ | Zoom out

~key~ Spacebar + drag ~key~ | Pan around the canvas. This activates the Hand Tool ~key~ H ~key~.

~key~ FN + F ~key~ | Enter / Exit Full Screen.

~key~ ⌘ . ~key~ | Hide Interface to activate Focus Mode

~key~ ⌥⌘2 ~key~ | Toggle the Inspector Panel on the right

<key>⌥⌘1<key> | Toggle the Layers Panel on the left

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Pro Tip – On Mac, you can zoom in and out using the same pinch gestures you use on iPad on the trackpad, or by clicking on the Zoom button inside the Top Toolbar and using your mouse’s scroll wheel.

Tools Shortcuts

On macOS, all of the key command shortcuts for the individual tools are available in the Menu Bar > Tools.

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~key~ V ~key~ | Selection Tool

~key~ A ~key~ | Node Tool

<key>C<key> | Scissors Tool

<key>P<key> | Pen Tool

<key>N<key> | Pencil (Freehand) Tool

<key>B<key> | Brush Tool

<key>T<key> | Text Tool

~key~ E ~key~ | Eraser Tool

~key~ I ~key~ | Eyedropper

~key~ M ~key~ | Shape Builder Tool

<key>H<key> | Hand (Pan around canvas) – Requires >iOS 13.4 and macOS system.

<key>R<key> | Rectangle

<key>L<key> | Line

<key>O<key> | Circle

~key~ ⇧⌘P ~key~ | Previous Tool

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Pro Tip – You can customize your Vectornator Tools shortcuts via your Mac System Preferences.

Pen Tool Shortcuts

Vectornator supports specific shortcuts when you draw with the Pen Tool that allow you to quickly define the type of Bezier Node you're creating. In this way you can easily control your path's curves.

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Pen Tool + ~key~ ⌥ ~key~ | Change the previous node into a disconnected type.
A disconnected node has handles that can move independently and change the direction and arc of the next curve.

Pen Tool + <key>⇧<key> | Constrain the angle of the segment to multiples of 45° on both of your node handles.

Pen Tool + <key>⇧⌥<key> | Enable 45º snapping on only one handle.

<key>esc<key> or Double-Click on the endnode | Ends the path and allows you to start a new path without switching tool.

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Organizing Shapes Shortcuts

Use these shortcuts to organize the elements on your canvas.

Select multiple shapes at once

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<key>⇧ + click <key> | Multi-Select

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Grouping Shapes

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~key~ ⌘G ~key~ | Group

~key~ ⇧⌘G ~key~ | Ungroup

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Moving Shapes

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<key>⇧R<key> | Rotation

<key>⇧S<key> | Scaling

<key>⇧ + drag<key> | Move shape along the X or Y axis

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Duplicating Shapes

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<key>⌘D<key> | Duplicate & Transform Again

<key>⌥ + drag<key> | Duplicate shape

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Resizing Shapes

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<key>⇧ + resize<key> | Resize keeping the aspect ratio

<key>⌥ + resize<key> | Resize from the center

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Learn – Easily draw perfect circles and squares ➞

Editing Shapes Shortcuts

The following shortcuts apply when you’re editing multiple shapes together:

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<key>⌘7<key> | Mask

<key>⇧⌘7<key> | Unmask

<key>⌃⇧C<key> | Combine

<key>⌃⇧S<key> | Separate

<key>⌃⇧R<key> | Reverse

<key>⌃⇧J<key> | Join Paths

<key>⌃⇧A<key> | Add Anchor Points

<key>⌃⌘O<key> | Outline

<key>ESC<key> | Finish a Path when using the Pen Tool

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Boolean Shortcuts

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<key>⇧⌘+<key> | Unite

<key>⇧⌘-<key> | Subtract

<key>⇧⌘E<key> | Exclude

<key>⇧⌘I<key> | Intersect

<key>⇧⌘\<key> | Divide

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Text Shortcuts

The following shortcuts apply when you’re editing any text element of your document.

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<key>T<key> | Create a new Text Box

<key>⌘B<key> | Bold

<key>⌘I<key> | Italic

<key>⌘U<key> | Underline

<key>⌘⇧X<key> | Strikethrough

<key>⌃⌘O<key> | Outline Text

<key>⌃⌘T<key> | Text on Path (This works only when you select a Text Box + a single Path.)

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Pro Tip – All the Keyboard Shortcuts can be used with the Apple Magic Keyboard or any external keyboard paired to your iPad.

Top Keyboard Shortcuts to get started

To make things easier, we’ve put together a video to focus on the main building blocks of any creative project in Vectornator - the fundamental things, like how to rotate objects, how to duplicate them, or select more than one of them at a time with the help of shortcuts.

These shortcuts cover the most common actions and features you’re likely to use and that will give your workflow a serious boost. The first thing we’re going to do is create one simple shape. This basic square will teach us all we need to know, as all the elemental tools, functionalities, and gestures to get started with Vectornator on Mac.