Illustrator (Desktop) Feature Requests
When entering a new feature request, please provide:
- Description
- Why is this valuable to you?
4420 results found
-
Add Preview tick to 'Free distort' effect dialogue window
Using 'Free distort' is very inconvenient, because it works in small dialogue window that doesn't show actual artwork.
'Preview' tick could solve this problem (although I'd rather prefer 4 interactive points.)
AT LEAST! It should be live long ago, without separate dialogue!23 votes -
Customizable Background and Wireframe Color for View > Outline mode
It would be really helpful for those of us working in low-light environments to have an inverted / low-contrast option for the 'Outline' view.
As it is, working on an all-white screen is very fatiguing. Having a simple switch to change the display from light to dark would be a welcomed QoL improvement.
I've attached two images showing how I see this implemented.
When "invert" is active I'd prefer the background not be pure-black but a dark shade of grey (shown as #1E1E1E here).
Another option could be to make the alternate mode adaptive, where the color scheme matches the…
23 votes -
Create a guide trimmed to an artboard
There is a almost unknown way to create guides limited to an artboards — you have to pick the Artboard Tool first, and then drag a guide out of rulers. The resulting guide will be limited to the artboard’s dbounds.
However, we think about it somewhere in the middle of dragging a guide, using other tools... too late in a process!
Can we get a modifier to hold while a guides is dragged out to toggle the global/local guide mode on the fly? Alt is taken to switch horizontal/vertical (and it’s cool), but Shift and Ctrl/Cmd are free and do…
22 votes -
Batch apply action to selected items
It strikes me as absolutely bizarre that you can't apply an action to multiple objects in turn. You can batch apply actions to files. You can apply actions to selected objects. You can apply actions to a selected group of objects I think? But you can't batch apply actions to groups of objects. I have about 300 really short little lines in an infographic that I need to be the same length. They're fairly spread out and any anchor selection based approach would take 2 hours. What an incredible hassle.
22 votes -
Text editing - missing keyboard shortcuts
Some text editing shortcuts would be very welcome:
Ctrl + End: go to the end of the text
Ctrl + Home: go to the beginning of the text
Ctrl + Delete: delete all characters of a word to right
Ctrl + Backspace: delete all characters of the word to left22 votes -
Support SVG text-anchor styling on import
I often copy SVGs that I created with JavaScript (through D3.js) from a browser into Illustrator to continue working on it there. However, the text-anchor setting (left, middle or right aligned) does not come through and it is always left aligned, although the position might seem like it is middle or right aligned. Once you choose a different font or font-size, the mismatch between the original text align and what Illustrator has made of it becomes very apparent and can be quite the chore to adjust.
It would be great if Illustrator would properly handle the text-anchor style setting of…
22 votes -
Screen recording / timelapse for showing work progress or tutorial steps
Wondering if you guys could incorporate a timelapse tool inside the app to record the artwork being done?
22 votes -
Make an option to disable auto-selection of artboards, when clicked inside
AI now selects artboard whenever mouse is clicked within in (with any tool). While it's a great general behaviour, I'd like to be able to disable it.
I have to work with overlapping artboards (which, by the way, sometimes prevent AI from correctly selecting the artboard clicked—it depends on artboards' order). When object is copied, AI remembers it's coordinates. Then, when I go to the object I need to place my copied art over and press Ctrl+F, AI pastes the object in the same coordinates. Sounds OK, but when I clicked that underlying object, AI moved the focus from initial…
22 votes -
Make symbols work in brushes
When you save symbol as brush, it stops being symbol.
This makes impossible live update of the brush, when brush changes as soon as you make changes.
This video shows such live update (after Spiro part):
https://youtu.be/3OaLZuFZxdk
Making symbols stay symbols in brushes seems to be the easiest way of having such a behavior in AI.22 votes -
Keyboard shortcut to fit artboard to selection
Currently you must have content selected to fit it to art board in focus. This workflow adds extra interaction cost by having to remember to first select before hitting the drop-down menu to fit it. Selecting the content and art board and striking a key command would make this a lot more efficient.
22 votesIllustrator has two commands to fit artboards.
One of them, 'Fit to Selected Art', requires a selection — obviously.
The other one, 'Fit to Artwork Bounds' — does not, but works for the entire artwork.
You can insert the one that you need in an action, using the 'Insert menu item...' command from the Actions panel’s flyout menu, and assign a hotkey to the action.
However, I believe the request is not about a hotkey, but a way to let Illustrator to 'Fit to the contents of artboard' command? Please comment back to make it clear.
-
Show how many artboards are selected
Since we can have multiple artboards selected and this selection isn't very noticeable (which should be fixed too), why not to show how many artboards are selected?
Just say how many in empty 'Name:' field, since it shows nothing when more is one artboard is selected, in brackets or different color.22 votes -
Increase contrast between selected font and other fonts in Font list in Character palette
Not long ago the contrast between current font and other fonts in list in Character menu was quite sufficient (see image 1). Now it's barely visible (image 2). It makes locating current font in list rather difficult.
Please reconsider colors chosen.
22 votesThe contrast is much better in recent versions
-
Last used script
Please, add a command inside File > Scripts (above the line) to execute last accessed script. A have tons of these and not all of them are bound to shortcuts and smarty palettes. Sometimes I have to apply same script several times and have to dig in all 4-5 folders inside to get right one.
And, please, make it shortcut-able.
22 votes -
Illustrator support on Huion tablets
Illustrator is not compatible with huion tablets. The cursor moves when pen moves but no ink comes out when press down. This works in ALL other products (e.g photoshop) except illustrator. Several people have reported this issue.
22 votes -
Bounding box not visible / non-existent for Graphs
The bounding box is non-existent for graphs drawn in illustrator. Have tried turning on/off "hide edges" under view, restarting, shutting down, but nothing is working. Scaling tool is useless too as the bounding box remains invisible.
22 votesScaling of GRAPH object using bounding box or transform panel is not allowed in earlier versions also.
Therefore I am moving the thread to Feature Request.Workaround: Using the menu Object >> Transform the Graph object can be transformed.
Thanks & Regards,
Raghuveer -
Make incrementation looped in angle value fields for Move, Rotate and other dialogs
Problem Description:
AI can do math in fields and that is awesome.
But I always swear a little when I use angle fields.For example:
1. Move an art with Move dialogue at 10mm and 360 degrees
2. Select another object and invoke dialogue again
3. Type in '+30' in angle, so it would become '360+30'
4. Press Tab or EnterActual Result:
AI says DING (or whatever sound is set for it in your OS) and does nothingExpected Result:
AI should turn this typed value into '30', that is make one revolution and don't bother me, as a…22 votes -
Reversing order of objects
Sometimes it's useful to change order of selected objects, making bottom-most go topmost and vice versa.
I understand possible complications — what would AI do when selected objects have other unselected objects between them (meaning order)?
For example, I have these objects in Layers:
A
1
B
C
2
3
I select 1,2,3 and do proposed 'Reverse order' command.
I expect order to become this:
A
3
B
C
2
1
I see two fitting places for this command: Layers palette menu or Object > Arrange
It's scriptable, but I would like to have it by default.22 votes -
Adding 'Gradient Feather' function similar to InDesign would be great.
It makes masking in Ai a lot more convenient.
22 votes -
Disable all "Generative AI" marketing popups
Whenever I use Illustrator lately, I'll be in the middle of editing a document when this annoying feature popup appears. Literally right in the middle of me trying to get work done.
Please give me a way to disable this altogether. I have no interest in this feature. Please stop pushing it to me.
21 votesTwo related requests:
1. An ability to disable Text to Vector Graphic feature and any other generative options — http://illustrator.uservoice.com/forums/333657/suggestions/47462738
2. Remove Text to Vector from Properties panel — http://illustrator.uservoice.com/forums/333657/suggestions/47638688
Please upvote them, if you agree.
-
Calculate the bounds in Document Raster Effects Settings automatically
As for today, if you apply a Gaussian Blur or a Drop Shadow effect to a shape — with a large enough value — it often gets cropped.
A workaround exists — to go in Effect > Document Raster Effects Settings dialog and increase the 'Add' value, thus increasing the bounds of the image generated.
...but why is this still a problem that we, users, should take care of, really? Ai knows how large is the blur, it knows the resolution, yet it can’t calculate the tight bounds automatically. Like what, is there at least one user who’d like their…
21 votes
- Don't see your idea?