Pencil tool styles

Last updated on 7 August 2026

Learn about Pencil tool options for controlling path creation and editing in Adobe InDesign.

Access these settings by double-clicking the Pencil tool in the Tools panel.

Option	Description
Fidelity	Controls how far the pointer must move before a new anchor point is added. Higher values create smoother paths. Lower values follow movement more closely.
Smoothness	Controls the amount of smoothing applied to the path. Higher values create smoother curves. Lower values preserve more detail.
Keep Selected	Keeps the path selected after drawing.
Edit Selected Paths	Allows modification or merging of a selected path when drawing near it.
Within	Defines how close the pointer must be to an existing path to edit it. Available only when Edit Selected Paths is selected.

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