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AutoCAD Commands – The Essential List

Updated . May 22, 2022

Isobel Published . Sep 24, 2018

CAD, Tips and Advice for Users

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We probably don’t have to tell you that AutoCAD is one of the leading CAD programs
available on the market today. Whether you are in computer-aided design as a business
or a hobby, it’s likely you rank this particular software fairly highly (if not top) in terms of
its design capabilities.

If you’ve taken the plunge and purchased AutoCAD for yourself (although there are
plenty of free CAD programs), you’ll soon find that besides the sophistication of the
technology, advanced user interface, and sheer range of available tools that can be a
little overwhelming at first, it is also possible to learn AutoCAD basics in a short time
span.

For this article, we’re going to assume that you’ve had the opportunity to go through
the history of AutoCAD, purchased and installed AutoCAD software, played around with
it and gotten comfortable with the interface, and established which tools are most
useful for your line of work.

Got the basics firmly under your belt? Great! Now it’s time to take advantage of the
AutoCAD commands. Yes, the folks behind the software know that there’s a lot to take
in, so they created handy shortcuts that enable you to navigate the controls with ease.
Once a few of these commands become second nature, you’ll be producing work in the
most efficient way possible.

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About AutoCAD
What are AutoCAD commands?
AutoCAD commands: The essentials
Basic actions
Drawing
Modifying
3D

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AutoCAD commands: Final thoughts

About AutoCAD
AutoCAD is the flagship product of the
software company Autodesk. Created in
1982 to enable the production of high
quality 2D and 3D technical drawings, it
was actually the first CAD software
developed for PCs.

Though initially designed to cater to the

mechanical engineering industry, the
capabilities of AutoCAD have since
expanded to suit a wide range of
professionals including architects and
animators.

Today, AutoCAD is considered to be one of the leading design programs available and
has grown to be the most widely used CAD software out there. With new applications
facilitating mobile-friendly options and the use of cloud storage services, the software
continues to evolve by integrating technological advancements.

What are AutoCAD commands?

At the bottom of the drawing screen in AutoCAD, you’ll find the command window.
Trust us: this handy little box is a lifesaver when you have lots of work to do and you’re
up against a deadline.

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Examples of AutoCAD commands that come with shortcuts

In the most basic terms, commands and shortcuts are words or letters that you type
into the command window to produce an action. For example, if you wish to draw an
arc, rather than searching for an arc among the tools, you could just use a command. In
this case, type ‘ARC‘ or even ‘A‘ into the command window, press Enter, and an arc will
appear. 

Some commands come with shortcuts (a single letter alternative), while actions that
are a little less common tend to require a command that is 3 or more letters long.
AutoCAD recognizes hundreds of commands and, once you get more advanced, you
can even customize the toolbar—adding or prioritizing the commands you find to be
the most useful.  

AutoCAD commands: The essentials

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As you can imagine, given the vast capabilities of AutoCAD, there is a huge AutoCAD
command list that users can use to make their work easier when using the software.
Whether you’re sketching designs, drawing up blueprints, or producing 3D models,
there will be commands available to make the job easier. In the interest of saving time
and space, this guide provides a list of AutoCAD commands that we deem to be the
most useful. So, let’s get started! 

Basic AutoCAD commands

Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the commands used in drawing and modifying, it’s
important to first grip the basic AutoCAD commands that you require to get started
with the software. From pasting to spell check, here’s a selection of commonly used
commands:

SHORTCUT/ DESCRIPTION
COMMAND

AUDIT Check and remove errors from your work

BEDIT/ BE Open the block definition in the Block Editor

BCLOSE/ BC Close the Block Editor

CLOSEALL Close all of the open windows in AutoCAD

CLOSEALLOTHER Close all open windows except for the one you are
currently working on

CO/ COPY Copy objects or text

COLOR/ COL Set the color for new objects

DI/ DISTANCE Find the distance between two points in a drawing  

ERASE/E Remove or erase objects from a drawing

ETRANSMIT/ ZIP Create a Self-Extracting or Zipped file

I/ INSERT Insert (existing block or drawing as a block)

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LIST Access the properties of the different objects

within a drawing

MATLIB Import or export materials from a library

MULTIPLE Repeat any command without having to press Enter

each time (Press Esc key to cancel)

OOPS Restore the last object you deleted

OP/ OPTIONS Open the options window (contains the settings for
AutoCAD)

PASTECLIP Paste copied objects from the clipboard into your

work

PREVIEW See how your work will be presented when printed

QSAVE Autosave the file you’re working on

RECOVERALL Recover and repair a corrupted or damaged

drawing

RO/ ROTATE Rotate an object

SAVEALL Save all of the open drawings in AutoCAD

SP/ SPELL Perform a spell check on selected text

ST/ DDSTYLE Open the text style window

TIME Access information such as the date you created a

certain piece of work, or time spent editing a
drawing

Drawing

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This software is specifically designed with technical drawing in mind, so you’ll find a
wide range of geometric shapes and sketching capabilities at your disposal when
working in AutoCAD. To save yourself the time of scrolling through the library every
time you need a particular line or solid, learn some of these commands:

SHORTCUT/ DESCRIPTION
COMMAND

A/ ARC Create an arc

AREA Find the area of closed or open shapes in a drawing

AR/ ARRAY Make a rectangle, polar, or path array

B/ BLOCK Create a block

BCOUNT Count the number of blocks in your drawing

C/ CIRCLE Create a circle

DS/ DDOSNAP Open the Drafting Settings window

ELLIPSE Make an ellipse with the major and minor axis

GROUP Group multiple objects into a single unit

HIDEOBJECTS Hide selected objects in a drawing

HIGHLIGHT Highlight a selected object in a drawing

ISOLATE Hide all objects in a drawing except the one you have
selected

L/ LINE Create a simple line

MI/ MIRROR Produce a mirror copy of an object

MLINE Create multiple parallel lines

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PL/ PLINE Make a polyline

PO/ POINT Create a single point within a drawing

POL/ POLYGON Produce a polygon (you select the number of sides,

from 3 to 1024)

QSELECT Make a particular selection from your drawing

according to applied filters, i.e – select all lines below
a particular length

REC/ Create a rectangle

RECTANGLE

SKETCH Draw a freehand sketch within a piece of work

SPLINE Create a smooth curve that passes through or near

specified points

XLINE/XL Create a line of infinite length

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Modifying
Your first draft is complete—now it’s time to play around with the properties and tweak
your designs where necessary. For this stage, the following commands are sure to
come in handy:

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SHORTCUT/ DESCRIPTION
COMMAND

ADCENTER/ADC Insert or manage content such as blocks, hatch

patterns, and xrefs

ALIGN/AL Align objects with other objects in 2D and 3D

BASE Alter the base point of a drawing without

changing its origin

BPARAMETER/ PARAM Add a parameter with grips to a dynamic block

definition

BREAK Create a break (or gaps) in objects at one or two

points

BSAVE Save the current block definition

BURST Explode a block but retain its attribute settings

and layer definition

CHA/ CHAMFER Add slanted edges to sharp corners of objects

COPYBASE Copy an object according to a base point

DIVIDE Divide objects into multiple equal parts

F/ FILLET Add rounded corners to the sharp edges of

objects

LA/ LAYERS Open the Layer Properties Manage Palette

(which allows you to tweak the settings for
layers)

MA/ Copy the properties of one object onto another

MATCHPROPERTIES

MOCORO Move, copy, rotate and scale an object in one

command

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OVERKILL Remove overlapping or unnecessary objects

from your work

PURGE Remove unused objects from a drawing

SC/ SCALE Change the scale of an object

SCALETEXT Change the scale of text

TEXTFIT Alter the size of a piece of text so that it fits into

the required space

TEXTTOFRONT Bring annotations to the front

TORIENT Change the orientation of the text

TR/ TRIM Trim a shape or line

UNITS Alter the unit settings of your drawing

X/ EXPLODE Break up an object into its individual

components—i.e., a polyline into simple lines

XBIND/ XB Bind the definitions of named objects in an xref

to the current drawing

3D
Fear not—the commands are not exclusive to 2D work! If you’re taking your AutoCAD
project to another dimension, there are plenty of commands that can speed up the
process. Here’s a brief taster:

SHORTCUT/ DESCRIPTION
COMMAND

3DALIGN Align a 3D object with another 3D solid

BOX Create a 3D box

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FLATSHOT Convert a 3D drawing into a 2D image and view it from

multiple angles

HELIX Create a helix

IMPRINT Imprint a 2D drawing onto the face of a 3D surface

within your work

INTERFERE Locate points in a drawing where 3D solids intersect

with one another 

POLYSOLID Create a 3D wall-like object

REVOLVE/ REV Create a 3D solid or surface by sweeping/revolving a

2D object around an axis

RENDER/ RR Create a photorealistic image of a 3D solid or surface

model

SECTIONPLANE Section 3D objects along different planes 

SOLID/ SO Create solid-filled quadrilaterals and triangles

SUBTRACT/ SU Combine or bring together selected 3D solids,

surfaces, or 2D regions by eliminating whatever is in
between them

SURFPATCH Fill open areas of a surface

SURFTRIM Trim surfaces within a piece of work

AutoCAD commands: final thoughts

The above list of AutoCAD commands should help make it easy when working with the
AutoCAD software and also improve the overall productivity. While a majority of

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beginners only master the basic AutoCAD commands, mastering the entire AutoCAD
command list gives you an upper hand when it comes to working with AutoCAD.

Once your AutoCAD expertise rises and you reach the level where you’re able to
customize the quick access toolbar, you’ll end up with a program tailored to your
particular style of work. 

While our list is fairly comprehensive, should you wish to find more, Autodesk includes
a full guide to shortcuts on their website. 

MORE ON AUTOCAD:

Top Tips & Tricks For AutoCAD Newbies

Bethany . March 8, 2017

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Isobel

I’ll be covering a range of topics, from conversion tips to the latest tech news.
When I’m not exploring the world of CAD, you’ll find me discovering new
restaurants or exhausting my Netflix subscription.

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