Tools Overview
All tools live in the toolbar at the top of the window. A few have single-letter shortcuts, which work while the canvas has focus and you aren't typing text.
| Key | Tool |
|---|---|
V or Space | Select |
C | Connector |
T | Text |
H | Pan |
Z | Zoom |
I | Copy Style |
U, R, P, M | UML Class, Relationship, Participant, Message (on UML pages) |
Press Esc in most tools to cancel and return to the Select tool.
Selection & Navigation
Select Tool
Shortcut: V or Space
- Click an item to select it
- Cmd+Click to add an item to the selection or remove it
- Drag on empty canvas to draw a selection rectangle; Cmd+drag adds to the current selection
- Drag selected items to move them; arrow keys nudge by 1 point (
Shiftfor 10) - Double-click a shape, image, or connector to show its floating action toolbar
- With an item selected, press
Tto edit its text, orCto start a connector from it Escclears the selection
Pan Tool
Shortcut: H
Drag to move the view. You can also scroll with a mouse wheel or trackpad in any tool.
Zoom Tool
Shortcut: Z
- Drag a rectangle to zoom into that area
- Right-click to zoom back out
Hold Option while scrolling to zoom around the pointer, or use View → Zoom In / Zoom Out (Cmd++ / Cmd+-) and Actual Size (Cmd+0).
Draw Menu
The Draw button in the toolbar opens the vector drawing tools:
Shapes
Rectangle, Circle, Rounded Rectangle, and Round End Rectangle — choose one and drag on the canvas to draw it.
Smart Shapes
Star, Block Arrow, and Ring Segment — parametric shapes inserted with a single click.
Lines & Paths
| Tool | How to draw |
|---|---|
| Line | Drag to draw a single straight line. Hold Shift to snap the angle in 15° steps |
| Arrow | Drag to draw a line with an arrowhead |
| Polygon | Click to place each corner. Click near the first point or press Return to close; double-click to finish; Backspace removes the last point |
| Path | Click to place corner points, or click and drag to pull out curve handles. Double-click to finish |
| Freehand | Drag to draw a smoothed freehand stroke |
Paths and polygons can be reshaped afterwards with node editing, and combined with boolean operations. See also Vector Drawing.
Connection Tools
Connector Tool
Shortcut: C
Drag from one shape to another to connect them. With a shape selected, pressing C starts a connector from that shape. See Connectors.
Sticky Spot Tools
The Sticky Spot Tools button offers three modes for working with a shape's connection points:
- Move Sticky Spot — drag an existing spot to a new position
- Add Sticky Spot — click a shape to add a spot
- Delete Sticky Spot — click a shape, then click the spot to remove
See Sticky Spots.
Content Tools
Text Tool
Shortcut: T
Click to place a text box, or drag to set its width, then type. See Text Tool.
Table Tool
Click or drag on the canvas to create a table. See Tables.
Sticky Note Tool
Click to drop a note, or drag to set its size. See Sticky Notes.
Artboard Tool
Drag to draw a fixed-size frame for exporting slides, posts, or pages. See Artboards.
Mind Map Tool (PRO)
Click on the canvas to drop a starter mind map, then grow it from the keyboard (Tab for a child, Return for a sibling). See Mind Maps.
Copy Style Tool
Shortcut: I
- Click the item whose style you want to copy
- Click each item you want to apply it to
- Right-click to pick a new source, or press
Escto return to the Select tool
See Copy & Apply Styles.
UML Tools
On UML pages, the toolbar shows a UML menu:
| Section | Tools |
|---|---|
| Class Diagram | Class (U), Relationship (R) |
| Sequence Diagram | Participant (P), Message (M), Activation, Fragment |
See UML Class Diagrams and UML Sequence Diagrams.
ASCII Tools
ASCII pages have their own set of drawing tools for the character grid. See ASCII Diagrams.
Other Toolbar Items
- Icons — opens the icon library panel (
Option+Cmd+I) - Align, Distribute, and Arrange menus — see Alignment
- Show Grid, Snap to Grid, Rulers, Smart Guides, and Show Page Layout toggles
- Autostyle menu — see Autostyles
Tool States
Most tools stay active until you choose another one. The shape, Text, Table, and Mind Map tools switch back to the Select tool after one use, so you can immediately adjust what you just created.