How to Change Artboard Size in Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator is all about artboards! You can’t create a design without an artboard and often you’ll have to resize it for different purposes. For example, a logo is designed for use in many different presentations, on a business card, company website, T-shirt, souvenirs, etc. 

Saving the logo as png or pdf when you want to print it on something is a must and certainly, you don’t want a large area of the empty background. The solution is to resize the artboard area and make it smaller. 

When I worked for an exhibition organizer, I had to resize the same design for different print materials like posters, brochures, banners, and event T-shirts. Some materials are horizontal and others are vertical, some are bigger, and some are smaller.

Honestly, resizing is a daily work routine for every graphic designer. You’ll hear your boss saying “I need this size for this, this size for that”, normal. Better learn it earlier than later. But let me show you that changing the artboard size is not that complicated and I’m always here to help 🙂 

Let’s dive in!

How to Create an Artboard in Adobe Illustrator

I assume you already know what an artboard is in Adobe Illustrator. It’s like a layer in Photoshop, a page in Indesign, and a paper when you are creating by hand. An artboard is an empty space where you create and show your design elements. 

When you create a new document in Illustrator, you are asked to choose or type in your preferred document (artboard) size. There are eight commonly used preset sizes that you can choose from. 

If you have a specific artwork size in mind, you can change the preset details such as size, measurement, color mode, etc on the right-hand side of the window, and click Create. 

3 Ways to Change Artboard Size in Adobe Illustrator

Not happy with your design? Too much or not enough empty space? Don’t worry. There’s always a way to make things work. You can change your artboard size using one of the following methods. 

Note: Screenshots are taken from the Illustrator CC Mac version, the Windows version might look slightly different. 

Method 1: Artboard Options 

This method allows you to change multiple settings of the artboard. 

Step 1: Select the artboard you want to resize on the Artboard panel. 

Step 2: Click on the artboard tool icon. You will see the blue bounding box. 

Step 3: A window will pop up, that’s the Artboard Options window. Change the Width and Height values accordingly. You can also change the artboard orientation from portrait to landscape. 

Step 4: Click Ok.

Method 2: Artboard Panel 

When you click on the Artboard tool, you can change the artboard size from the Artboard panel under Properties. 

Step 1: Click on the Artboard tool in the toolbar. 

Step 2: Select the artboard you want to resize. You will see the blue bounding box. 

Step 3: Change the artboard W (width) and H (height) size in the Artboard panel on the right-hand side of the Illustrator document.

Done. 

Method 3: Artboard Tool 

You can also manually resize the artboard using the Artboard tool (Shift + O). 

Step 1: Click on the Artboard tool in the toolbar or use the keyboard shortcut Shift + O.

Step 2: Select the artboard you want to resize. You will see the blue bounding box. 

Step 3: Click and drag the bounding box to freely resize your image. Hold the Shift key when you drag if you want to keep the same artboard proportion. 

Step 4: Release the mouse. Done.

More Doubts?

Here are more questions about changing the artboard size in Adobe Illustrator.

How do I see the size of my artboard in Illustrator? 

With the Artboard tool selected, click on the artboard, and you’ll the size value on the Transform panel on the right-hand side or top of the document window depending on your settings. 

Can I resize multiple artboards in Illustrator? 

Yes, you can change the size of multiple artboards at the same time. Hold the Shift key and select the artboards you want to resize and change the value using the methods you learned above.

What is the maximum artboard size in Illustrator?

There is a maximum artboard size in Adobe Illustrator. It supports artboard sizes as large as 227 x 227 inches but if your design is larger, you can always proportionally resize it when you send it to print. 

Wrapping Up

It’s normal to set a goal and then later want to change it a bit to achieve an even better goal. When you create an artboard you set a certain value that you think would work best, but then later during the process maybe you have better solutions. 

Why not change it a bit and make it better? 

Graduated from Creative Advertising major, worked more than eight years as a graphic designer focusing in branding and Illustration. Yes, Adobe Illustrator is my best friend and I’m passionate about art and design.