3Ds Max Hotkeys the Users Must Know [139]
Published on 11 March 2025
Table of Contents
Introduction
3Ds Max is perhaps the oldest 3D program in use.
Doubtless, it has a huge user base and there is a saying among the 3d modellers, animators and 3D generalists, that the program has the most convenient UI among all the other 3d programs to start with.
With hundreds of features, pop ups, dialogue box, it’s obvious for the users to turn to its keyboard shortcuts for a faster operation. In this piece, as with DaVinci & Blender Hotkeys before, we’ll be going through different keyboard shortcuts of 3Ds Max.
Let’s get started.
1. 3Ds Max Hotkeys – General Workspace
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Q | Select Object Tool |
| 2. | W | Move Tool |
| 3. | E | Rotate Tool |
| 4. | R | Scale Tool |
| 5. | Ctrl + Z | Undo |
| 6. | Ctrl + Y | Redo |
| 7. | Ctrl + A | Select All |
| 8. | Ctrl + D | Deselect All |
| 9. | Ctrl + I | Invert Selection |
| 10. | Spacebar | Toggle Selection Lock |
| 11. | H | Open Select by Name Dialog |
| 12. | M | Open Material Editor |
| 13. | 7 | Display Polygon Count |
| 14. | 8 | Open Environment and Effects Dialog |
| 15. | 9 | Open Render Setup Dialog |
| 16. | F3 | Toggle Wireframe/Shaded View |
| 17. | F4 | Toggle Edge Faces |
| 18. | G | Toggle Grid Display |
| 19. | X | Toggle Transform Gizmo |
| 20. | Z | Zoom to Selected Object |
| 21. | Alt + W | Maximize Viewport Toggle |
| 22. | Ctrl + C | Create Camera from View |
| 23. | Alt + X | Toggle Expert Mode |
| 24. | Ctrl + S | Save Scene |
| 25. | Ctrl + O | Open Scene |
| 26. | Ctrl + N | New Scene |
| 27. | Ctrl + P | |
| 28. | Ctrl + F | Cycle Selection Method (Rectangular, Circular, Fence, etc.) |
| 29. | Ctrl + T | Open Transform Toolbox |
| 30. | Shift + G | Hide/Unhide Geometry |
| 31. | Shift + L | Hide/Unhide Lights |
| 32. | Shift + C | Hide/ unhide Cameras |
| 33. | Shift + S | Hide/ Unhide Shapes |
| 34. | Shift + H | Hide/ Unhide Helpers |
| 35. | Shift + P | Hide/Unhide Particle Systems |
| 36. | Shift + W | Hide/Unhide Space Warps |
| 37. | Shift + F | Toggle Safe Frames |
| 38. | / | Play Animation |
| 39. | Esc | Cancel Current Operation |
2. View Port Navigation – 3Ds Max Shortcuts
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 40. | Alt + Middle Mouse Button | Pan View |
| 41. | Middle Mouse Button | Rotate View (Orbit) |
| 42. | Ctrl + Alt + Middle Mouse Button | Zoom View |
| 43. | Ctrl + R | Rotate View (Orbit) |
| 44. | I | Pan View to Cursor |
| 45. | [ | Zoom In |
| 46. | ] | Zoom Out |
| 47. | Ctrl + Shift + Z | Zoom Extents All |
| 48. | Z | Zoom Extents Selected |
| 49. | Alt + Z | Zoom Mode |
| 50. | Shift + Z | Undo Viewport Change |
| 51. | Shift + Y | Redo Viewport Change |
| 52. | Ctrl + W | Zoom Region |
3. Modelling Hotkeys of 3Ds Max
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 53. | 1 | Vertex Sub-object Level |
| 54. | 2 | Edge Sub-object Level |
| 55. | 3 | Border Sub-object Level |
| 56. | 4 | Polygon Sub-object Level |
| 57. | 5 | Element Sub-object Level |
| 58. | Ctrl + Shift + B | Bevel |
| 59. | Shift + E | Extrude |
| 60. | Ctrl + Shift + E | Connect Edges |
| 61. | Ctrl + Shift + C | Cut |
| 62. | Ctrl + Shift + T | Target Weld |
| 63. | Ctrl + Shift + B | Bridge |
| 64. | Ctrl + Shift + P | Poke |
| 65. | Ctrl + Shift + Q | Quick Slice |
| 66. | Ctrl + Shift + X | Detach |
| 67. | Ctrl + L | Loop Selection |
| 68. | Ctrl + Shift + L | Ring Selection |
| 69. | Alt + C | Cut Tool |
| 70. | Alt + P | Cap Polygons |
| 71. | Alt + E | Extrude Along Spline |
| 72. | Alt + X | See-Through Mode |
| 73. | Shift + Drag | Clone Object |
| 74. | Alt + Shift + A (Customize> Customize User Interface > Assign) | Swift Loop |
4. 3Ds Max Hotkeys for Animation
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 75. | K | Add Keyframe |
| 76. | Ctrl + Alt + C | Open Curve Editor |
| 77. | Ctrl + Alt + D | Open Dope Sheet |
| 78. | Ctrl + Alt + S | Open Schematic View |
| 79. | Ctrl + Alt + T | Open Track View |
| 80. | Ctrl + Alt + V | Open Motion Panel |
| 81. | Ctrl + Alt + X | Open Parameter Editor |
| 82. | Ctrl + Alt + Z | Open Time Configuration |
| 83. | Ctrl + Alt + F | Open Filter Dialog |
| 84. | Ctrl + Alt + G | Open Ghosting Dialog |
| 85. | Ctrl + Alt + H | Open Hierarchy Panel |
| 86. | Ctrl + Alt + I | Open IK Solver |
| 87. | Ctrl + Alt + J | Open Joint Parameters |
| 88. | Ctrl + Alt + K | Open Key Info Dialog |
| 89. | Ctrl + Alt + L | Open Link Info Dialog |
| 90. | Ctrl + Alt + M | Open Motion Mixer |
| 91. | Ctrl + Alt + N | Open Noise Controller |
| 92. | Ctrl + Alt + O | Open Object Properties |
| 93. | Ctrl + Alt + P | Open Preferences |
| 94. | Ctrl + Alt + Q | Open Reaction Manager |
| 95. | Ctrl + Alt + R | Open Render Dialog |
| 96. | Ctrl + Alt + S | Open Schematic View |
| 97. | Ctrl + Alt + T | Open Track View |
| 98. | Ctrl + Alt + U | Open Units Setup |
| 99. | Ctrl + Alt + V | Open Viewport Configuration |
| 100. | Ctrl + Alt + W | Open Workspace Dialog |
| 101. | Ctrl + Alt + X | Open Parameter Editor |
| 102. | Ctrl + Alt + Y | Open Layer Manager |
| 103. | Ctrl + Alt + Z | Open Time Configuration |
5. 3Ds Max Hotkeys for Rendering
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 104. | F9 | Render Last |
| 105. | F10 | Open Render Setup Dialog |
| 106. | Shift + Q | Quick Render |
| 107. | Ctrl + Shift + Q | Render Production |
| 108. | Ctrl + Shift + R | Render Iterative |
| 109. | Ctrl + Shift + S | Render Scene Dialog |
| 110. | Ctrl + Shift + T | Render to Texture |
| 111. | Ctrl + Shift + V | Render Viewport |
| 112. | Ctrl + Shift + W | Render Window |
| 113. | Ctrl + Shift + X | Render to Print |
| 114. | Ctrl + Shift + Y | Render to RAM Player |
| 115. | Ctrl + Shift + Z | Render to File |
6. 3Ds Max Hotkeys for Snapping & Alignment
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 116. | S | Toggle Snapping |
| 117. | A | Toggle Angle Snapping |
| 118. | Ctrl + Shift + S | Open Snapping Settings |
| 119. | Alt + A | Align Tool |
| 120. | Alt + N | Normal Align |
| 121. | Alt + S | Snap to Grid |
| 122. | Alt + F | Snap to Face |
| 123. | Alt + V | Snap to Vertex |
| 124. | Alt + B | Snap to Edge |
| 125. | Alt + G | Snap to Pivot |
7. 3Ds Max Hotkeys for Miscellaneous Operations
| Sl No | Commands | Functions |
|---|---|---|
| 126. | F1 | Help |
| 127. | F2 | Toggle Shade Selected Faces |
| 128. | F5 | Restrict to X Axis |
| 129. | F6 | Restrict to Y Axis |
| 130. | F7 | Restrict to Z Axis |
| 131. | F8 | Cycle Restrict Plane (XY, YZ, ZX) |
| 132. | F11 | MAXScript Listener |
| 133. | F12 | Transform Type-In Dialog |
| 134. | Ctrl + V | Clone Object |
| 135. | Ctrl + Shift + N | New Scene |
| 136. | Ctrl + Shift + O | Open Scene |
| 137. | Ctrl + Shift + S | Save Scene As |
| 138. | Ctrl + Shift + Z | Undo Viewport Change |
| 139. | Ctrl + Shift + Y | Redo Viewport Change |
Conclusion
This list covers most of the default hotkeys in 3ds Max.
However, you can customize hotkeys in the Customize User Interface dialog under the Customize menu.
3Ds Max is one of the most powerful 3D programs in use. Especially, in the areas of architectural presentation or walk through, environment and product modelling, it offers an ocean of tools and functions. And it’s a no-brainier that one must have the hotkeys in his finger tips to make a faster walk around.
With different mapping channels and modelling tools, it’s just a matter of a few days while practicing with these hotkeys, that could elevate you from a nervous beginner to a seasoned pro.
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