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SOLIDWORKS Keyboard Shortcuts

SOLIDWORKS keyboard shortcuts help engineers, designers, and students work faster by reducing the need to repeatedly navigate through menus and toolbars.

Shortcuts are especially useful for frequently performed tasks such as:

• Creating sketches
• Selecting modeling tools
• Rotating and viewing models
• Zooming and panning
• Managing drawings
• Switching between views
• Opening common commands

SOLIDWORKS also allows users to customize keyboard shortcuts through the Keyboard section of the customization settings.

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Essential Shortcuts

These are some of the most useful shortcuts to learn first.

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl + N	New document
Ctrl + O	Open document
Ctrl + S	Save
Ctrl + Shift + S	Save As
Ctrl + P	Print
Ctrl + Z	Undo
Ctrl + Y	Redo
Ctrl + C	Copy
Ctrl + V	Paste
Ctrl + X	Cut
Delete	Delete selected item
Esc	Cancel/exit current command
Ctrl + A	Select all
Ctrl + F	Search SOLIDWORKS commands

Tip: Some shortcuts can vary depending on the SOLIDWORKS version, keyboard customization, and active environment.

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Modeling Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts can make 3D part and assembly modeling significantly faster.

Shortcut / Key	Function
S	Shortcut Bar
D	Confirmation Corner / shortcut behavior in applicable contexts
Ctrl + B	Rebuild
Ctrl + Q	Force rebuild
Ctrl + Tab	Switch between open documents
Spacebar	Orientation / View Selector
M	Move component in applicable assembly workflows
Alt + drag	Move/rotate selected geometry or components in applicable contexts
Ctrl + drag	Copy selected items/components in applicable contexts

The S Key

The S key is particularly useful.

Pressing S opens the SOLIDWORKS Shortcut Bar, providing quick access to commands relevant to the current task.

For example, while working on a part, it can provide rapid access to tools such as:

• Sketch
• Extruded Boss/Base
• Extruded Cut
• Fillet
• Chamfer
• Hole Wizard

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View & Navigation Shortcuts

Efficient model navigation is essential when working with complex 3D designs.

Shortcut	Function
Spacebar	View Orientation / Orientation Selector
Ctrl + 1	Front view
Ctrl + 2	Rear view
Ctrl + 3	Left view
Ctrl + 4	Right view
Ctrl + 5	Top view
Ctrl + 6	Bottom view
Ctrl + 7	Isometric view
F	Zoom to fit
Z	Zoom in
Shift + Z	Zoom out

Mouse Navigation

SOLIDWORKS is heavily optimized for mouse-based navigation.

Common controls include:

Middle mouse button → Rotate model

Middle mouse + Ctrl → Pan in applicable viewing workflows

Mouse wheel → Zoom

Exact mouse behavior can vary depending on settings and the active SOLIDWORKS environment.

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Sketch Shortcuts

Sketching is one of the most important parts of SOLIDWORKS modeling.

Shortcut	Function
S	Shortcut Bar
L	Line
C	Circle
R	Rectangle
A	Arc
P	Point
D	Smart Dimension in applicable sketch workflows
Esc	Exit/cancel current command
Ctrl + Z	Undo
Ctrl + A	Select all

Useful Sketch Workflow

Instead of repeatedly selecting commands from the toolbar:

Press S → Select sketch tool → Create geometry → Apply dimensions → Add relations

This can significantly speed up sketch creation.

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Drawing Shortcuts

SOLIDWORKS drawings require frequent view and annotation operations.

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl + N	New document
Ctrl + S	Save
Ctrl + P	Print
Ctrl + C	Copy
Ctrl + V	Paste
Delete	Delete selected item
Esc	Cancel current command
S	Shortcut Bar

Common drawing tasks include:

• Creating drawing views
• Adding dimensions
• Adding annotations
• Creating section views
• Creating detail views
• Working with BOMs
• Adding balloons

Many of these commands can also be assigned custom keyboard shortcuts.

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Assembly Shortcuts

Assembly designers can also benefit from keyboard shortcuts.

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl + Tab	Switch between open documents
S	Shortcut Bar
Spacebar	View Orientation
M	Move Component in applicable workflows
Alt + drag	Manipulate components in applicable workflows
Ctrl + drag	Copy components in applicable workflows

For large assemblies, customizing frequently used commands can save considerable time.

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Shortcut Bar

One of the most useful SOLIDWORKS productivity features is the Shortcut Bar.

Press:

S

The available commands change depending on the active environment.

For example:

Part Modeling

You may access:

• Sketch
• Extruded Boss/Base
• Extruded Cut
• Fillet
• Chamfer
• Shell

Assembly

You may access:

• Insert Components
• Mate
• Move Component
• Rotate Component

Drawing

You may access:

• Model View
• Section View
• Detail View
• Projected View

This makes the S key one of the most valuable shortcuts to learn.

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Rebuild Shortcuts

When you modify a model, SOLIDWORKS may need to rebuild the feature tree.

Ctrl + B

Performs a standard rebuild.

Ctrl + Q

Performs a Force Rebuild, rebuilding the model more thoroughly.

This can be useful when:

• Features are not updating as expected
• Equations have changed
• Configurations need rebuilding
• You want to verify the feature tree

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Frequently Used View Commands

For efficient modeling, learn these basic view controls:

Isometric View

Ctrl + 7

Useful for quickly returning to a standard 3D perspective.

Zoom to Fit

F

Fits the model or drawing content into the graphics area.

View Orientation

Spacebar

Opens the view-orientation controls.

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How to Customize SOLIDWORKS Shortcuts

You can create your own keyboard shortcuts for frequently used commands.

Step 1

Open SOLIDWORKS.

Step 2

Go to:

Tools → Customize

Step 3

Open the:

Keyboard

tab.

Step 4

Search for the command you want.

For example:

Fillet

Chamfer

Hole Wizard

Measure

Step 5

Assign a keyboard shortcut.

Choose a key combination that is easy to remember and does not conflict with an existing shortcut.

Step 6

Click OK.

Your customized shortcut can now be used.

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Recommended Shortcuts to Learn First

If you are a beginner, don’t try to memorize everything at once.

Start with:

Shortcut	Why Learn It?
S	Opens Shortcut Bar
Ctrl + S	Save
Ctrl + Z	Undo
Ctrl + Y	Redo
Ctrl + Q	Force rebuild
F	Zoom to fit
Spacebar	View orientation
Ctrl + 1–7	Standard views
L	Line
C	Circle
R	Rectangle
D	Dimension in applicable sketch workflows
Esc	Cancel command
Ctrl + Tab	Switch documents

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SOLIDWORKS Shortcut Cheat Sheet

General

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Modeling

Views

Spacebar → View Orientation

Ctrl + 1 → Front

Ctrl + 2 → Rear

Ctrl + 3 → Left

Ctrl + 4 → Right

Ctrl + 5 → Top

Ctrl + 6 → Bottom

Ctrl + 7 → Isometric

F → Zoom to Fit

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Sketching

L → Line

C → Circle

R → Rectangle

A → Arc

P → Point

D → Smart Dimension in applicable sketch contexts

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the most useful SOLIDWORKS shortcut?

S is one of the most useful because it opens the Shortcut Bar and provides context-sensitive access to frequently used commands.

2. What is the shortcut for rebuild in SOLIDWORKS?

Ctrl + B performs a rebuild, while Ctrl + Q performs a Force Rebuild.

3. What is the shortcut for isometric view?

Ctrl + 7 switches to the standard isometric view.

4. What is the shortcut for zoom to fit?

F is commonly used for Zoom to Fit.

5. Can SOLIDWORKS shortcuts be customized?

Yes. Go to Tools → Customize → Keyboard to view and modify keyboard shortcuts.

6. Do SOLIDWORKS shortcuts work in every environment?

Not necessarily. Some shortcuts are context-sensitive, and available commands can differ between part, assembly, sketch, and drawing environments.

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Conclusion

Learning SOLIDWORKS keyboard shortcuts can significantly improve modeling speed and productivity.

The most valuable shortcuts for beginners are:

S → Shortcut Bar

Ctrl + S → Save

Ctrl + Z → Undo

Ctrl + Q → Force Rebuild

F → Zoom to Fit

Spacebar → View Orientation

Ctrl + 1–7 → Standard Views

L → Line

C → Circle

R → Rectangle

Once these become familiar, you can customize additional shortcuts for the commands you use most frequently. This can make your part modeling, assemblies, sketches, and drawings much faster and more efficient.

SOLIDWORKS Design Help: Customizing Keyboard Shortcuts: Official Dassault Systèmes documentation on assigning custom hotkeys, searching command lists, and exporting key mappings.

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