Select one of the repeated objects in your artwork using the Selection tool. Illustrator highlights similar objects automatically.
Last updated on
Oct 27, 2025
Learn how to use global editing in Adobe Illustrator to apply changes to multiple similar objects at once.
Try it in the app
Use the Properties panel to edit similar objects in a few simple steps.
If your design includes repeated objects like logos or shapes, you don’t need to edit each separately. Use global editing in Illustrator to quickly modify all matching objects and keep your design consistent.
Select the Global Edit Options dropdown menu next to the Start Global Edit in the Quick Actions section of the Properties panel. Global editing works only on duplicated similar objects and doesn’t support images, text, masks, links, plugins, or multiple selections.
Tip
You can also select the Global Edit Options dropdown menu in the Control panel.
In the Global Edit Options dropdown, use the Match section to find objects with similar appearance or size:
- Select Appearance to find objects with the same fill and stroke. This option is enabled by default with plug-in or mesh art selections.
- Select Size to find objects of the same size.
Use the On Artboards section to search for similar objects across specific artboards:
- In the Select dropdown menu, choose to find similar objects across all the artboards or specific ones.
- In the Range field, specify a range of artboards to find similar objects. The range can be defined as 1, 2, 3, or 4-7.
- Select Include Objects On Canvas to find similar objects within and outside the artboards, which is the default setting. Deselect it to limit the search objects within the artboards only.
The Result(s) section displays the total number of objects selected for global editing.
Select Start Global Edit in the Quick Actions section of the Properties panel.
Make your desired changes. Everything updates at once across similar groups. Global editing scales change proportionally across all matched objects. For example, reducing the height of a 100-point object to 50 points also resizes a 20-point object to 10 points.
To stop editing, select Stop Global Edit in the Quick Actions section of the Properties panel or press Esc.
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