How to duplicate the artboard in Illustrator?

Duplicating an artboard in Adobe Illustrator is a straightforward process, allowing you to quickly create copies of your design surface along with their content. There are several methods you can use to achieve this.

Here are the primary ways to duplicate an artboard in Illustrator:

Methods to Duplicate an Artboard

Based on reliable techniques, you can duplicate an artboard using the Artboard tool or the Artboards panel.

Method 1: Copy and Paste with the Artboard Tool

One simple approach is to use the standard copy and paste functionality.

• Select your artboard using the Artboard Tool (Shift + O).
• Go to Edit > Copy (or press Ctrl+C on Windows, Cmd+C on Mac).
• Go to Edit > Paste (or press Ctrl+V on Windows, Cmd+V on Mac).

Illustrator will paste a copy of the artboard and its contents onto your canvas.

Method 2: Option/Alt Dragging with the Artboard Tool

This is a quick method for interactively positioning the duplicated artboard.

• Select the Artboard Tool (Shift + O).
• Click and drag the artboard you want to duplicate.
• While dragging, press and hold the Option key (on a Mac) or the Alt key (on Windows).
• Release the mouse button when the duplicated artboard is in the desired location.

This action creates a duplicate of the selected artboard and its artwork at the position where you release the drag.

Method 3: Using the Artboards Panel

The Artboards panel offers a dedicated option for duplication, which is often preferred for managing multiple artboards.

• Open the Artboards panel by going to Window > Artboards.
• In the Artboards panel, select the artboard you wish to duplicate.
• Click on the panel's pop-down menu (usually located in the top-right corner of the panel).
• Choose the Duplicate Artboard option from the menu.

This method duplicates the selected artboard and places the new artboard either next to the original or at the end of the artboard list, depending on your preferences and the document setup.

Here's a summary of the methods:

Using these methods allows you to efficiently duplicate artboards in Adobe Illustrator, streamlining your workflow when creating variations, iterations, or multiple pages within a single document.