Select, move and resize
Pick layers on the canvas, move and resize them precisely, and let the guides line them up.
With the Move tool (V) you select, move, resize and rotate layers. This is most of what you do in the designer.
Select
| Do this | Result |
|---|---|
| Click a layer | Selects the top-level layer under the pointer |
Cmd/Ctrl+click | Selects the deepest layer, even inside a group or frame |
Shift+click | Adds the layer to the selection, or removes it |
| Drag on empty canvas | Draws a selection box around the layers it touches. Hold Shift to add to the current selection |
Click empty canvas, or Esc | Clears the selection |
| Double-click | Steps into a group or frame, edits the points of a path, crops an image, or starts typing in text |
Enter or Shift+Enter | Steps into the selected layer's children, or out to its parent. On text, Enter starts typing |
Locked layers cannot be clicked on the canvas. Unlock them in the Layers panel first.
Move
Drag a layer to move it. Positions are whole pixels.
- Hold
Shiftto keep the move on one axis. - Hold
Altwhile you drag to move a copy and leave the original where it is. - Press the arrow keys to nudge by 1 pixel, or
Shiftand an arrow to nudge by 10. - Drop a layer onto a frame to move it inside that frame.
For exact numbers, type them in Position in the Design tab. See Position, rotation and skew.
Resize and rotate
- Drag a handle on the selection to resize it. Hold
Shiftto keep the proportions. - Several layers resize together as one box.
- Drag from a spot right outside a corner to rotate. Hold
Shiftto turn in steps of 15 degrees.
Resizing a group scales everything in it. Resizing a frame changes the frame, and the layers inside follow their own Resizing and Constraints. See Frames.
Guides and distances
Smart guides appear as you drag. A layer snaps to the left, centre and right, and the top, middle and bottom, of the other layers and of the page edges once it is within 6 screen pixels. A line shows what it snapped to.
To measure, select a layer, hold Alt and move the pointer over another layer. The distances between them appear on the canvas. Hover a frame that holds the selected layer to see the distance to each of the frame's edges.
Try it
On the sale card, drag the Price a little to the right and watch the smart guides snap it to the Title's edge. Hold Alt and drag it to make a copy. Press Cmd/Ctrl+Z to remove the copy. Then select the Badge, hold Alt and hover the Price to read the gap between them.
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Updated 1 Nov 2026