Keyboard Shortcuts and Mouse Actions for Simulink Modeling

You can use keyboard shortcuts and mouse actions to model systems in Simulink^®. To open this page from a model, press Shift+? or click Keyboard Shortcuts on the navigation bar.

Note

When you use the keyboard shortcuts on macOS:

• Press command (⌘) instead of Ctrl.

• Press option instead of Alt.

View Keyboard Shortcuts in Editor

When you are in any of these modes, you can view a hints panel that displays keyboard shortcuts specific to the active mode.

Mode	Definition	How to Enter Mode	How to View Hints Panel
Keyboard Selection	Use the arrow keys to select a different block.	Select a block in your model. Press M to switch from movement mode (the default) to selection mode.	The hints panel appears when you enter selection mode.
Movement	Move a block by dragging it with the pointer.	Drag a block with the pointer.	The hints panel appears when you enter movement mode.
Keyboard Movement	Use the arrow keys to move the selected block.	When you open Simulink, you are in movement mode by default. To switch from selection mode to movement mode, press M.	The hints panel appears when you use the arrow keys to move a selected block.
Signal tracing	Trace the signal line to the signal source or destination. See Highlight Signal Sources and Destinations for details.	Click a signal in your model. Pause on the ellipsis that appears. In the action bar that expands, click either Highlight Signal to Source or Highlight Signal to Destination .	The hints panel appears when you enter signal tracing mode.
Pan and zoom	Pan to move the view over the model. Zoom to change how close the model appears.	When you open Simulink, you are in pan and zoom mode by default.	Press the space bar until the hints panel expands. If the hints panel is minimized, press the space bar until the ? button appears. To hide the hints panel, click the canvas.
Resize	Change the size of a block.	Pause on a block resize handle.	The hints panel appears when you enter resize mode.

To minimize the hints panel, press ? on your keyboard. When the hints panel is minimized, only the ? button is visible.

To restore the hints panel, press ? on your keyboard.

Minimizing or restoring a hints panel in one mode does not affect the hints panels of other modes. Expanded hints panels remain expanded and minimized hints panels remain minimized across MATLAB^® sessions.

For example, to see the Keyboard Selection hints panel for selection mode:

1. Select a block in your model.

2. Press M. The minimized hints panel appears in the lower right of the model window.

3. To restore the hints panel, press ? on your keyboard.

Perform File and Clipboard Actions

Task	Shortcuts
Open model	Ctrl+O
Create model	Ctrl+N
Print model	Ctrl+P
Save all modified models in current model hierarchy	Ctrl+S
Save current referenced model	Ctrl+Shift+S
Close model	Ctrl+W
Cut	Ctrl+X
Copy	Ctrl+C
Paste	Ctrl+V
Undo	Ctrl+Z
Redo	Ctrl+Y, Ctrl+Shift+Z (Simulink Online™)
Find search string	Ctrl+F

Zoom and Pan

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Fit diagram to window	Space bar
Fit selection to window	Space bar + F
Zoom in	Ctrl+Plus (+) or space bar + Plus (+)
Zoom out	Ctrl+Minus (-) or space bar + Minus (-)
Zoom to 100%	Ctrl+0, Alt+1, or space bar + 0
Zoom with scroll wheel	Scroll wheel Ctrl + scroll wheel when Scroll wheel controls zooming is cleared
Zoom in on model element	Drag the Zoom button from the palette to the element.
View portion of block diagram visible in model window relative to full block diagram with miniature map	Zoom or pan to part of the model. When only part of the model is visible, press the space bar until the miniature map appears.
View different portion of model	Click the destination in the miniature map.
Pan	Drag the highlighted area in the miniature map. Drag with middle button. Space bar + drag. When a scroll bar is shown, to move the scroll bar with your keyboard, press Space bar + left, right, up, or down arrow.
Pan vertically	Ctrl + scroll wheel
Pan horizontally	Shift + scroll wheel
Pan by page	Shift + space bar + left, right, up, or down arrow

Navigate Model

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Open model	Double-click. Enter
Change tabs	Ctrl+Shift+Tab
Enter selected subsystem, referenced model, or Stateflow® chart	Enter
Go to parent of selected subsystem, referenced model, or Stateflow chart	Esc
Go to last viewed component in model hierarchy navigation history	Ctrl+[
Go to next viewed component in model hierarchy navigation history	Ctrl+]
Look under block mask	Ctrl+U
For linked blocks, go to library of parent block	Ctrl+L
Open the Model Explorer	Ctrl+H

Select and Move Model Elements

Selected elements have a solid blue outline. The most recently selected element has blue corner brackets in addition to the outline. To represent the cursor when you use the keyboard for selection, a blue box with dashed lines surrounds the element.

By default, the model is in movement mode. To switch to selection mode, press M.

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Toggle between movement and selection mode	M
Select all blocks, lines, and annotations	Ctrl+A
Clear selection	Ctrl+Alt+A
Select one or more model elements	Draw a selection box around the model elements you want to select. Start the selection box on an empty spot on the canvas.
Move any model element, including signal labels	Drag element.
Move selected elements	Drag one of the selected elements. Drag selection box. After selecting elements with the keyboard, in selection mode, press the left, right, up, or down arrow.
By default, when you move or resize a block with three or more ports, the shape of signal lines connecting to blocks with one or two ports does not change. Instead, the connected blocks move. Turn the functionality off.	Hold the space bar while you move or resize a block. When you release the space bar, the functionality turns back on.
Change selection to closest similar element in a direction	In selection mode, press the left, right, up, or down arrow.
Move cursor to closest element in a direction, regardless of similarity	In selection mode, press Ctrl+Shift + left, right, up, or down arrow.
Change selection to element at top-left of canvas	Ctrl+Home On macOS, press home.
Change selection to element at bottom-right of canvas	Ctrl+End On macOS, press end.
Change selection to leftmost element relative to cursor	Home On macOS, press control+left.
Change selection to rightmost element relative to cursor	End On macOS, press control+right.
Select additional adjacent elements	To select additional adjacent elements with the keyboard, in selection mode, press Shift + left, right, up, or down arrow. To select additional adjacent elements with the pointer, press Shift while dragging a selection box around the additional elements.
Select additional elements that are not adjacent	To select additional elements with the keyboard, in selection mode, press Ctrl + left, right, up, or down arrow and navigate to the element you want to select. Then, add the element to the selection by pressing Ctrl + space bar. On macOS, to add the current element to the selection, press command+shift + space bar or shift + space bar. To select additional elements with the pointer, press Shift and click.
Constrain movement of model elements to vertical and horizontal directions	Start dragging the element, then press Shift.

Add and Edit Model Elements

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Open or hide the Property Inspector	Ctrl+Shift+I On macOS, press command+option+O. Before R2023b: On macOS, press command+shift+I.
Open or hide the Component Interface View	Ctrl+Shift+V (since R2024b)
Open or hide the Type Editor	Ctrl+Shift+P (since R2023b)
Set main parameter for selected block	Alt+Enter
Add block to model at current location with the quick insert menu	Double-click the Simulink Editor canvas and start typing the block name, then select the block from the menu. Ctrl+Period (.) twice and start typing the block name, then press the down arrow to select the block from the list and press Enter to insert the block. On AZERTY keyboards, press Ctrl+Shift+Period (.) instead of Ctrl+Period (.).
Choose block to connect to signal line	Move your pointer over the unconnected end of a signal line. When your pointer is over the end of the signal line, it becomes a circle. Double-click the end of the signal line. Using the quick insert menu that appears, add a block. The new block is connected to the end of the signal line that you double-clicked. For information about how to use the quick insert menu, see Add Blocks to Models Using Quick Insert Menu.
Open the Library Browser	Ctrl+Shift+L
Add annotation to model at current location with the quick insert menu	Double-click the Simulink Editor canvas and type the annotation content, then select the annotation option. Ctrl+Period (.) twice and type the annotation content, then press the down arrow to select the annotation option and press Enter to insert the annotation. On AZERTY keyboards, press Ctrl+Shift+Period (.) instead of Ctrl+Period (.).
Copy selected model elements	Drag elements with the right mouse button. Ctrl + drag.
Copy selected model elements between Simulink Editor windows	Drag elements between windows.
Delete selected model elements	Delete or Backspace

Connect Model Elements

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Connect blocks with signal lines	Click a port. Click the blue chevron symbol that appears near a compatible port you want to connect to. Select the first block, then Ctrl + click a second block. Drag from port to port. Click a port and press Shift as you connect to the next port. Press Shift to make multiple, consecutive connections.
Branch signal line	Click a port, move the cursor near the line you want to branch, and then click after you see the preview. Select a line, move the cursor toward the element you want to connect with, and then click the blue chevron symbol that appears near the port. Ctrl + drag line. Right mouse button + drag.
Add ports to blocks that take multiple inputs	Drag toward the port from a compatible block or signal line. Drag from the edge of the block that you want to add the port to. Click the edge of the port, and then drag. Click the edge of the port, move the cursor over the signal type — signal, bus, or connector — from the menu, and drag.
Disconnect selected blocks	Press Shift, then drag block. After selecting blocks with the keyboard, press M then Shift + left, right, up, or down arrow.
Comment through selected blocks	Ctrl+Shift+Y
Comment out or uncomment selected blocks	Ctrl+Shift+X

Name Model Elements

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Rename selected model element	Click or double-click the label. Select the element and press F2. On macOS, press command+return instead of F2.
Name signal line	Double-click the signal and type its name.
Display name on branch of a named signal line	Double-click the branch.
Name every branch of a signal line	Right-click the signal, select Properties, and use the Signal Properties dialog box.
Delete signal label and name	Delete characters in the label, or delete the name in Signal Properties dialog box.
Delete signal label only	Right-click the label and select Delete Label.
Copy signal label	Ctrl + drag the signal label.
Edit port labels on subsystem blocks	Point to the port label and click the interactive cue (blue box surrounding the label). Select the port. Click the port label cue or press F2. To switch between block name and signal name when editing labels on signal ports, press Ctrl+1,2. To make successive port label edits on a subsystem block: Select a port on the block, edit the label, and press Enter. This action enables keyboard selection of ports. Use up or down arrow keys to select adjacent ports and press F2 for quick editing.

Format Block Diagram

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Automatically arrange model	Ctrl+Shift+A
Resize block, maintaining ratio of width and height	Shift + drag handle
Resize block about the center	Ctrl + drag handle
Route lines around blocks	Shift + drag while drawing
Rotate blocks clockwise	Ctrl+R
Rotate blocks counterclockwise	Ctrl+Shift+R
Flip blocks	Ctrl+I
Create subsystem from selection	Ctrl+G
Create subsystem or area from empty selection	To create the highlighted option, which you can change by using the arrow keys or mouse: Click inside the selection box. Press Enter. Press the number key associated with an option.
Change signal label font	Select the signal line (not the label), then on the Format tab, click the Font Properties button arrow, then click Fonts for Model.
Mask block	Ctrl+M
Refresh Model blocks	Ctrl+K

Perform Generic Actions

Task	Shortcuts and Actions
Perform generic action with the quick action search menu	Double-click the Simulink Editor canvas, select the Actions tab, and start typing the action name or description, then select the action from the list. Ctrl+Period (.) and start typing the action name or description, then press the down arrow to select the action and press Enter to perform it. On AZERTY keyboards, press Ctrl+Shift+Period (.) instead of Ctrl+Period (.).
Perform context-sensitive action	Before opening the quick action search menu, select a model element.

Simulate, Update, and Generate Code for Models

Task	Shortcuts
Start simulation	Ctrl+T or F5
Stop simulation	Ctrl+Shift+T
Update model	Ctrl+D
Open Configuration Parameters dialog box	Ctrl+E
Build model (for code generation)	Ctrl+B

Debug Simulations

Since R2023b

The keyboard shortcuts in the table are the same in the Simulink Editor, the Stateflow Editor, and the MATLAB Function Block Editor.

Task	Shortcuts
Step over	F10 On macOS, press shift+command+O.
Step in	F11 On macOS, press shift+command+I.
Step out	Shift+F11 On macOS, press shift+command+U.

Related Topics

• Library Browser Keyboard Shortcuts