Edit Mode in Blender is a mode for editing the design and geometry of an object.  Edit Mode and Object Mode are two of the main “modes” we will use in Blender, but they’re not the only ones. Edit Mode looks different depending on the type of object we have selected.

Modes in Blender (Object Mode, Edit Mode & More) Tutorial

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Changing from “Object” to “Edit” Mode in Blender

In “Edit Mode” we will edit the physical characteristics of an individual object. In “Object Mode” we will edit where and how objects appear in our scene.

In the top left corner of Blender’s 3D Viewport, there is a “Mode Selector” dropdown menu. In the default Blender scene, this is set to “Object Mode.”

The object Mode selector is hovered in the Blender 3D viewport.

Different types of objects can be changed in Edit Mode, but we will start with mesh objects. 

By default, Blender will be in Object Mode, which is used for moving and arranging objects in a scene. If we want to edit a specific object, we will need to enter “Edit Mode” which is one of several modes we can choose from the dropdown menu above.

The default cube is compared in object and edit mode in Blender's 3D viewport.

To enter “Edit Mode” from “Object Mode” in the 3D Viewport, we can also press “Tab” on the keyboard. To exit Edit Mode and return to Object Mode, we press tab again.  The tab key will toggle between Object and Edit modes in the 3D Viewport. 

See more Blender keyboard shortcuts!

What Can We Do in Edit Mode

With mesh objects, we can select and rearrange geometry of the selected object. This can be done by selecting any number of vertices, edges or faces. 

Selecting in Edit Mode

Next to the dropdown menu for the basic “Mode” of the 3D Viewport, we see three icons while in Edit Mode. They represent vertex, edge, and face select. Each allows us to select vertices, edges, & faces respectively.

A default cube in Blender displayed in vertex, edge, and face select modes for comparison.

If we use “Vertex Select” we can select vertices (The individual dots or points of the mesh).

If we use “Edge Select” we can select edges (The lines between any two connected vertices).

If we use “Face Select” we can select faces (The planes created between three or more vertices connected by edges).

Learn about the 20+ ways to select in Blender.

Our editing in “Edit Mode” will look much different depending on which selection mode we are in. If we move or rotate a single vertex, it will look a lot different than moving or rotating a face. But Blender gives us a lot of flexibility on how we want to edit our object.

Blender Add-On Spotlight

Edit Mode Tools

In Edit Mode we have tools available to manipulate the geometry of an object’s mesh (for mesh objects). Here are just some of those tools:

We can also move, rotate, and scale the geometry using the respective shortcuts “G,” “R,” and “S” just like we do with objects in Object Mode.

Edit Mode in Other Object Types

While we’ve mostly covered mesh objects, Edit Mode is available in other object types. Here are a few key points about using Edit Mode in some of the other types of objects.

Edit Mode for Curve Objects

If we have a curve object in our scene, we can click on it in Object Mode and press “Tab” to enter Edit Mode. In a curve object’s Edit Mode, we can select different vertices of the curve. With Bezier objects, we can individually move, rotate and scale the points in the curve to affect the curve’s shape.

A curve object in Blender's edit mode with two vertices selected.

Edit Mode for Text Objects

In Blender, text is a specific type of object. With a text object selected, we can press “Tab” on the keyboard to enter Edit Mode. In Edit Mode with a text object, we can type the actual text of the object. Pressing “Backspace” will delete the letter to the left of the cursor.

A Text Object in Blender's Edit Mode.

So, in Edit Mode, we type the text we want displayed and then return to Object Mode to manipulate the text object further.

Conclusion

I hope this was a helpful overview of Edit Mode in Blender. With most object selected in Object Mode, we press “Tab” on the keyboard to enter Edit Mode. We can also use the dropdown box in the top left of the 3D Viewport to enter Edit Mode. Within Edit Mode, we have different selection modes (Vertex, Edge, Face) and Edit Mode works differently with non-mesh object types.

Bookmark this page for future reference and have a look around the site for more Blender tutorials. See the Blender Manual’s guide to object modes here.

Stay Creative!

Brandon Stocking

Brandon Stocking

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