At the top of the canvas, you'll see the More menu icon (•••), the avatars of active collaborators, the Present button, and the Share button.
More menu
Clicking the More menu icon (•••) at the top of the canvas in Freehand opens a dropdown menu with these options:
- Snap to objects: Align objects with neighboring elements when moving them on your Freehand. You can snap them to the top, bottom, right, left, or center of another object and with equal spacing between them.
- Version history: Revert to a previous version of the freehand document you're working in.
- Export to image: Export the entire freehand document as a still image—complete with sticky notes.
- Save as template: Save your freehand as a custom template the rest of your team can use to kick off new freehand sessions.
- Keyboard shortcuts: Open a list of the available keyboard shortcuts. Learn more here: Freehand keyboard shortcuts
- Get help: Access product documentation for Freehand.
- See what's new: Open the Freehand release notes with the latest updates.
- Send feedback: Get help from InVision
- Create new Freehand: Create a new freehand document from scratch, without needing to first leave the freehand you were working in.
Toolbar
As you navigate your freehand, change zoom levels, and pan the canvas, you'll notice the Freehand toolbar remains visible at the bottom of the screen, so your primary tools are always right there as you work.
Use this table for a quick overview of the tools you'll see in the Freehand toolbar, along with their respective icons, shortcuts, and functions. Then, learn details about each tool in the Contextual menus section below.
At the bottom of the screen, you'll notice the Freehand toolbar with the following icons.
|
Icon |
Tool Name |
Shortcut |
Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Select objects to edit, resize, or move. |
|
|
|
Pencil: Eraser: |
Pencil: Draw any shape on the canvas. Eraser: Erase entire objects by dragging the eraser over them. To use, click the Pencil tool and select the eraser tool. |
|
|
|
|
Enter text on the canvas. |
|
|
|
|
Quickly draw basic shapes: squares, circles, diamonds, parallelograms, pills, triangles, or lines. |
|
 |
Sticky note | N or 5 |
Add color-coded notes anywhere on the canvas. |
 |
Frames | F or 8 |
Create frames to organize your content. |
 |
Boards | B or 7 |
Create boards to organize your cards. |
 |
Reactions | U or 9 |
Add one of seven animated emojis to the canvas. |
 |
Commenting | C |
Use the comment tool to share your ideas and offer feedback. |
| ••• |
More |
N/A |
Access the Upload tool, the Insert Template option, the Embed tool, and Freehand add-ons. |
Contextual menus
Depending on which tool you are using and/or which type of object you have selected, you'll notice different contextual menus that include the additional fine-tuning tools described below.
With two or more objects selected, you can arrange them in various ways on the canvas. Learn more here: Arranging two or more objects
Pointer tool
The pointer tool (
) lets you select an object or group of objects, including lines, shapes, text boxes, images, and sticky notes. Whether working with one object or a group, you'll move it by dragging and dropping it elsewhere on the canvas. To scale any object or group of objects you have selected, drag a corner of the bounding box in any direction.
To edit existing objects, you need to switch the pointer tool in order to select them.
With an object or group of objects selected, you'll see additional tools in the contextual menu that appears above the object(s):
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Text type |
N/A |
Convert a text box to a sticky note or vice versa. |
|
|
Color |
|
Select your color, opacity, and whether to fill the object. |
|
|
Text style |
|
Select one of the 3 options to modify the selected text. |
|
|
Text alignment |
|
Select one of the 3 options to change text alignment. |
|
|
Line weight |
|
Select one of 3 line-weight options. |
|
|
Line caps |
|
Select one of 4 caps for both the start-point and end-point of your line:
|
 |
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
) at the bottom of the screen.Pencil tool
The pencil tool (
) lets you draw on your canvas. To draw straight lines, hold Shift while you click and drag. If you're using a Windows machine, hold Alt while you click and drag. To access the eraser tool, click the pencil tool ().
With a pencil-drawn object selected, you'll see additional tools in the contextual menu that appears above the object:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Color |
|
Select your color, opacity, and whether to fill the object. |
|
|
Line weight |
|
Select one of 3 line-weight options. |
|
|
Line caps |
|
Select one of 4 caps for both the start-point and end-point of your line:
|
|
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
Text tool
The text tool (
) allows you to enter text on your canvas. Click anywhere on the canvas and begin typing. Use the text tool to leave feedback on individual screens, flows, or specific features. Pressing Shift + Enter creates a line break.
If you want to insert an hyperlink in your freehand, copy the URL you want to link to, select the text you want to hyperlink, and type Command + V (on Mac) or Ctrl + V (on Windows) to paste the URL. The selected text will be converted into a link.
Switch to the pointer tool to reformat your text or drag it to a different point on the canvas.
With a text box selected, you'll see these additional tools in the contextual menu:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Text type |
N/A |
Convert a text box to a sticky note or a card. |
|
|
Color |
N/A |
Edit the text color. |
|
|
Lists |
|
Select one of the 2 options to modify the list formatting. |
|
|
Text style |
|
Select one of the 3 options to modify the selected text. |
|
|
Text alignment |
|
Select one of the 3 options to change text alignment. |
|
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
Shape tool
Use the shape tool (
) to quickly draw basic shapes. Click the shape tool to reveal and select a shape, straight line, or arrow. Then, click anywhere on the canvas and drag your mouse to add a shape.
To create a perfect square, circle, or angled line, hold Shift while using the shape tool.
With a shape selected, you'll see the following tools in the contextual menu that appears above the shape:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Color |
|
Select your color, opacity, and whether to fill the object. |
|
|
Line weight |
|
Select one of 3 line-weight options. |
|
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
Line tool
The line tool (
) lets you draw a straight line on the canvas. You can change the color, weight, and line caps.
With the line selected, you'll see additional tools in the contextual menu that appears above the line:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Color |
|
Select your color, opacity, and whether to fill the object. |
|
|
Line weight |
|
Select one of 3 line-weight options. |
|
|
Line caps |
|
Select one of 4 caps for both the start-point and end-point of your line:
|
|
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
Sticky Note tool
Use the sticky note tool (
) to add notes anywhere on the canvas.
With a sticky note selected, you'll see the following tools in the contextual menu that appears above the note:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Text type |
N/A |
Convert a sticky note to a text box or card. |
|
|
Color |
N/A |
Select your color, opacity, and whether to fill the object. |
|
|
Lists |
|
Select one of the 2 options to modify the list formatting. |
|
|
Text style |
|
Select one of the 3 options to modify the selected text. |
|
|
Text alignment |
|
Select one of the 3 options to change text alignment. |
|
Lock |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
Frames tool
Use to frames tool (
) to organize your content in frames. Then, present your frames using the walkthroughs tool. Learn more here: Frames and walkthroughs in Freehand.
Boards tool and cards
Use cards to capture ideas, tasks, goals, etc. And then, use boards to organize your cards in columns (e.g., by assignee or project card status). Cards and boards are customizable, so you can adapt them to different projects and workflows. Learn more here: Cards and boards in Freehand.
Reactions tool
Use the reactions tool () to add one of the available emojis anywhere on the canvas and to tie them to specific elements in your freehand. After adding a reaction, the tally mark next to it will increase each time another collaborator clicks the reaction; that makes reactions perfect for voting during Freehand sessions. For example, your team might use reactions to vote on the best ideas from a brainstorming session.
To tie a reaction to a specific element in the canvas, select the reaction tool in the toolbar, hover over a specific element, and click on it.
To move a reaction to a different position in the canvas or to tie them to a different object, click and drag the reaction to the new position.
Comment tool
Use the comment tool (
) to share your ideas and feedback in a freehand. Learn more here: Commenting in Freehand.
Upload tool
Click the More tools icon (•••) in the toolbar to access the upload tool. The upload tool (
) lets you upload images and PDFs directly to the canvas. Once you upload a file, switch to the pointer tool to resize your file or drag it to a different point on the canvas. Learn more here: Uploading an image or PDF to Freehand.
With a file selected, you'll see the following tools in the contextual menu that appears above it:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Size |
N/A |
Select whether to display the file at half size or original size. |
 |
Download |
N/A |
Download the file. |
|
Lock |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
| ••• |
More options |
N/A |
Reveal the following options:
|
At the moment, it's not possible to rotate or crop images directly in Freehand.
Arranging two or more objects
You can arrange multiple objects in various ways on the canvas. With the pointer tool () selected, hold Shift and click on each object you want to select (or click and drag around the items you want to select).
With two or more objects selected, you'll see the following tools in the contextual menu that appears above it:
|
Icon |
Purpose |
Shortcuts |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Align |
N/A | With two or more objects selected, refine the alignment of objects in the group. |
 |
Group objects |
|
With two or more objects selected, create an object group. |
|
Lock object |
N/A |
Lock an object or object group on the canvas to prevent other collaborators from moving or editing it. |
 |
Arrange to grid |
N/A |
With two or more objects selected, click the icon and, without releasing the click, drag the mouse to arrange the objects as wanted along the grid. You'll see the Arrange to grid icon in the top-right corner of the object group rather than in the contextual menu. |
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