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How do I fix the move tool in Illustrator?

Last updated on May 7, 2023 @ 7:43 am

If you are having problems with the move tool in Illustrator, there are a few things that you can do to try to fix the issue.

1. Make sure that the move tool is enabled.

You can do this by going to the toolbar menu on the left and selecting either the Selection Tool or the Direct Selection Tool. If the tool is not enabled, you can either turn on the tool by selecting it from the toolbar or you can use the keyboard shortcuts, “V” to enable the Selection Tool and “A” to enable the Direct Selection Tool.

NOTE: The move tools available in Illustrator are the Selection Tool and the Direct Selection Tool.

2. Check the move tool preferences.

Another thing that you can do is to make sure that the Selection Tool preferences are set to the appropriate settings. You can do this by going to the Edit menu and selecting Preferences > Selection & Anchor Display from the list of options.

PRO TIP: If you are having trouble with the move tool in Illustrator, it is probably because the “snap to” options are turned on. To fix this, go to the “View” menu and uncheck the “Snap to Grid” and “Snap to Points” options.

To fix the move tool, go to the Selection section of the Preferences window. From there, uncheck the “Object Selection by Path Only” option. Once done, click on the “OK” button to save your changes to the Selection Tool preferences.

3. Make sure that the object’s bounding box and edges are enabled.

If the tool is still not working, you can try to check if the bounding box or edges is enabled in the View menu. To enable the bounding box for the object, simply go to View > Show Bounding Box.

The bounding box of your object should now be shown when you select the Selection Tool to move the element.

On the other hand, to enable the edges for the object, simply select the “Show Edges” option from the View menu.

This will enable the edges around your object when you use the Direct Selection Tool to move or adjust the element.

If none of these solutions work, you may need to call an Illustrator expert to help you fix the move tool in Illustrator.

Drew Clemente

Drew Clemente

Devops & Sysadmin engineer. I basically build infrastructure online.