Snap to grid

Summary

Snap to grid, in Options, pulls a layer's position to the nearest grid line (0.25 in spacing) while you drag it with the Select tool. It is checked by default. In testing, it affected dragging to reposition a layer, but not dragging a resize handle.

Use it when

• You want layers to land on clean, grid-aligned positions without typing exact X/Y values by hand.
• You're placing several elements and want them to line up consistently.

Before you begin

Nothing to prepare — Snap to grid is in Options and is on by default for every new session.

Steps

1. Open Options and confirm Snap to grid is checked (it is, by default).
2. Select a layer with the Select tool and drag it — its position pulls to the nearest 0.25 in grid line as you drag.
3. Uncheck Snap to grid to drag freely without snapping.

What changes

• With Snap to grid on, dragging a shape to a deliberately "messy" target landed it at exactly X 3.50 in, Y 4.25 in — both clean multiples of the 0.25 in grid spacing.
• With Snap to grid off, dragging the same shape to a similarly messy target landed it at X 3.83 in — not a multiple of 0.25 in — showing the position was no longer being pulled to the grid.
• In testing, dragging a resize handle (changing W/H) did not produce a grid-aligned result even with Snap to grid checked — a resize drag produced W 1.54 in, not a multiple of 0.25. This suggests snapping applies to repositioning, not resizing, though this was tested with one shape and one drag distance, not exhaustively.
• Typing an exact value directly into X, Y, W, or H is not affected by Snap to grid either way — the field takes exactly what you type.

Print note

Snap to grid affects only how you position layers while working — it has no separate export behavior of its own. Whatever position a layer ends up at, snapped or not, is what gets exported; there is nothing preview-only about the resulting position (unlike the grid lines themselves, which are not exported, see Grid and realistic preview).

Warnings and limits

• Snapping was only confirmed for dragging to reposition a layer with the Select tool. It was not confirmed for resizing (see above), and this article does not test whether it affects drawing new shapes, paths, or paint strokes, or dragging guides.
• The grid it snaps to is the same placeholder 0.25 in pitch documented in Grid and realistic preview — not yet confirmed against real physical stock.

Desktop and mobile

Snap to grid is reachable and functional the same way on desktop and mobile (the Options panel/sheet) — confirmed present, checked by default, and not disabled at 390 × 844.

Troubleshooting

Related topics

• Grid and realistic preview
• Size, position, rotation & opacity
• Rulers, guides, bleed & safe area

Verification note

Verified against Blotter Builder on 2026-07-20.

Source notes

Primary observations — all from the live application at https://blotterbuilder.tdl.fyi, 2026-07-20:

• Observed — Snap to grid is checked by default on a fresh session.
• Observed — with Snap to grid checked, dragging a shape via synthetic mouse events to a deliberately non-grid-aligned target position landed it at X 3.50, Y 4.25 — both exact multiples of 0.25.
• Observed — with Snap to grid unchecked, an equivalent drag to a similarly messy target landed at X 3.83 — not a multiple of 0.25.
• Observed — with Snap to grid checked, dragging a corner resize handle produced W 1.54 — not a multiple of 0.25, suggesting resize drags are not snapped the same way position drags are. Tested once, not exhaustively, and noted as such in the article.
• Observed — at 390 × 844, the Snap to grid checkbox was present in the Options sheet, checked by default, and not disabled.

Verification log