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Blender is a world full of shortcuts. Even in tutorials, we're often expected to quickly get used to them.
But it's good to have some of the essentials in one place so you can refer back to them from time to time.
So here are 10 basic Blender shortcuts.
1. Navigate the Viewport: Middle Mouse Button
The viewport is what you currently see on the screen.
Before you can build anything, you need to look around.
- Orbit: Hold the middle mouse button and drag.
- Pan: Shift + middle mouse drag.
- Zoom: Scroll the mouse wheel (or Ctrl + middle mouse drag).
2. Jump Between Views: Numpad 1, 3, 7, 0
In this 3D view, if you only want to view along a certain axis, there are shortcuts for that.
The numpad gives you instant standard views:
- 1: Front
- 3: Right side
- 7: Top
- 0: Camera view
If your keyboard doesn't have a numpad, or you're having difficulty remembering these, just use the backtick key (`). It will bring up a pie menu.
3. Add Something: Shift + A
If you want to add anything new, just press Shift + A.
This opens the Add menu, where you can create meshes, lights, cameras, and more. Hover over Mesh and pick a cube, sphere, or monkey. Yes, Blender includes a monkey head called Suzanne, and she is a tradition.
4. Move, Rotate, Scale: G, R, S
These three are the heart of Blender. Select an object, press the key, and then move your mouse:
- G: Grab (move)
- R: Rotate
- S: Scale
Click to confirm, or right-click/Esc to cancel. You can also type numbers. For example, G then 5 moves the object 5 units.
5. Lock to an Axis: X, Y, Z
Combine the shortcuts above with an axis key to constrain the movement. G then Z moves the object only up and down. R then Z then 90 rotates it exactly 90 degrees around the vertical axis.
Press Shift + X (or Y/Z) to move along the two other axes instead. This one habit will make your work much cleaner.
For example, I pressed S and then Z, so it scaled the model along the Z axis, making it appear elongated.
6. Switch Modes: Tab
Tab toggles between Object Mode, where you're working with whole objects, and Edit Mode, where you reshape the mesh itself.
In Edit Mode, press 1, 2, or 3 to switch between selecting vertices, edges, and faces. Go and open a cube, press Tab, and start pulling the corners around. This is where modeling really begins.
When I press 1, I can select the vertices.
When I press 2, I can select the edges.
When I press 3, I can select the faces.
7. Extrude: E
In Edit Mode, select a face and press E, then move your mouse. The face pulls out into new geometry, like stretching a box into a tower.
It's one of the most-used modeling tools, and you can build surprisingly complex shapes with extrusion alone.
8. Cut New Edges: Ctrl + R
The Loop Cut tool adds a ring of edges around your mesh. Hover over the model in Edit Mode, press Ctrl + R, scroll to add more cuts, and click to confirm.
It gives you extra geometry to shape fine details like the bend of a knee or the edge of a window.
9. Change How You See It: Z
Press Z to open the shading pie menu. Switch between Wireframe, Solid, Material Preview, and Rendered views.
Wireframe lets you see through your model, while Rendered gives you a preview of the final look. It's a great way to explore what Blender can do early on.
10. Search for Anything: F3
This one is very handy. Even if you forget the other nine, this one can save you.
Can't remember where a tool is, or what its shortcut is? Press F3 and type what you're looking for. Blender searches through its menus and operators for you.
It's the best safety net for beginners because you never need to hunt through menus again.
A Few More Bonus Shortcuts
- Ctrl + Z: Undo
- Shift + D: Duplicate
- X: Delete
- A / Alt + A: Select all / deselect all
- F12: Render an image
Wrapping Up
There is no pressure to memorize everything at once. Practice making some basic shapes, and these shortcuts will become second nature.
Your team's attention is limited, and the deluge of AI-generated code is making it harder to keep production reliable and secure without slowing you down.
I'm building LiveReview, a blast-radius aware AI code review built for your business-critical systems.
Instead of presenting every diff with equal emphasis, LiveReview scores each change by blast radius — how far its impact reaches through your call graph — so you can focus attention where it actually matters.
Spend code review effort where business risk is highest — not spread evenly across every diff.
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LiveReview
Blast-Radius Aware AI Code Review for Business-Critical Systems
LiveReview: Blast-Radius Aware AI Code Review for Business-Critical Systems
LiveReview is an AI code reviewer that scores every hunk of a diff by blast radius: how far a change reaches through your call graph, how much persistent state it touches, and how well-tested it is. A 3-line change to a shared auth check can outrank a 300-line UI tweak. Your team's attention goes to the highest-risk code first, not spread evenly across every diff.
blast-radius-demo.mp4
LiveReview's Blast Radius & Review Priority scoring, live in the diff viewer.
| The exact math, not a black box | Visualize blast radius at a glance | Every factor that feeds the score |
|---|---|---|
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 |
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How does Blast Radius scoring work? (a more technical explanation)
Here's the goal:
- A 3-line fix in a function used by 40 other files, that also writes to a database, should score high.
- A 300-line UI change in one file, fully covered by…
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