Format Painter
Copy a compatible object’s appearance and apply supported fields to another object.
Format PainterFormat Painter is a one-button shortcut in the top bar that copies the style of your selected object — contour, fill, photoreal material, and text/arrow styles — and immediately activates apply mode so you can click a target without any extra steps. It uses the same engine as the Style Painter tool but skips the manual source-pick phase by reading your current selection. Use it to quickly carry one shape's look onto another without visiting the inspector on each one.
Select the source object
Click the object whose style you want to copy. A compatible drawing object can be used as a source — polygons, paths, plant areas, hardscape shapes, or annotation shapes. The captured style includes the Contour style (color, weight, pattern), the Fill (solid color, opacity, or photoreal material), and any text and arrow styling. The Semantic/Surface Class itself is not copied.
Click the Format Painter button in the top bar
With exactly one object selected, click the paintbrush icon (Format Painter) in the top bar. The app immediately captures the style from that object and switches the cursor to apply mode — you do not need to confirm a source. The paintbrush button highlights to indicate Format Painter is active and ready to paint. If nothing (or more than one object) is selected when you click, Format Painter starts in pick-source mode and waits for you to click the source object first.
Click the target object
Move your cursor over the canvas and click the object you want to receive the copied style. The copied style — contour, fill, photoreal material, and text/arrow styling — is applied immediately. When you started from the top-bar paintbrush button, Format Painter exits after this first apply and returns the cursor to the normal selection tool.
Paint several objects in one pass
To keep applying the same style to object after object, right-click the source and choose Format Painter from the context menu instead of using the top-bar button. That entry keeps the tool active after each apply (a "Sticky" badge appears in the panel) until you press Escape. The top-bar button starts the single-target painter workflow. Paste Style instead applies the copied style directly to the current eligible selection; it does not start a target-click stage.
Exit Format Painter
To leave Format Painter mode press Escape, click the paintbrush button in the top bar again, or click on any drawing tool in the left toolbar. Applied changes are committed as editing commands and are individually undoable with Ctrl+Z (Windows) or Cmd+Z (Mac).
Keyboard Shortcuts
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Escape | Exit Format Painter |
Only compatible appearance fields are applied. Locked, unavailable or incompatible targets remain unchanged, and the editor can explain why a property was not applied. Painting appearance does not move or resize the target.
To carry a finished hardscape or plant area style across several shapes, right-click a well-styled example and choose Format Painter, then click each similar shape in turn while it stays in sticky mode. This is faster than opening the inspector on each object individually.
Format Painter replaces the copied style axes on each target object. Any custom contour, fill, or photoreal material the target had before will be overwritten. To set just one property — for example, only the contour color — use the inspector's Style accordion on the target instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Format Painter and Style Painter?
Format Painter is a shortcut button in the top bar that uses the currently selected object as the style source and jumps straight to apply mode. Style Painter is the same engine opened from the command palette (search for Format Painter) or the right-click context menu — it can start with a source-pick step so you can choose the source interactively, even if nothing is selected. Both apply the same set of style properties to targets.
Which style properties does Format Painter copy?
Format Painter copies the visual style: contour color, contour weight, contour pattern, fill color, fill opacity, fill material (including the photoreal material), and text/arrow styling. It does not copy the Semantic/Surface Class, nor size, position, shape, or z-order.
Can I undo a Format Painter operation?
Yes. Each click that applies a style to a target is recorded as a separate undo step. Press Ctrl+Z (Windows) or Cmd+Z (Mac) to revert the most recently painted target, and repeat to undo earlier applications one by one.
What happens if I click Format Painter with nothing selected?
The Format Painter button is always clickable. With exactly one object selected, clicking it captures that object's style and jumps straight to apply mode. With nothing selected — or with more than one object selected — it instead starts in pick-source mode and waits for you to click the single object whose style you want to copy.
Does Format Painter work across layers?
Yes. You can paint onto objects on any unlocked layer regardless of which layer the source object lives on. Objects on locked layers cannot receive a style — they are not clickable while a layer is locked.