How to Align Vertical Text in Adobe Illustrator

Create an appealing illustration by aligning text.

Aligning text accurately is vital to creating a clean, appealing illustration. When area text is oriented vertically in Adobe Illustrator, aligning the text might not seem as intuitive as aligning horizontal text. However, aligning vertical text is accomplished exactly the same way. You can align vertical paragraphs to the top, center or bottom, as opposed to left, center or right for horizontal text. You can also align the vertical text to an object just as you would with any text frame or object.

Instructions

Paragraph Align

1. Select the "Type," "Area Type" or "Vertical Area Type" tool.

2. Click in the text frame that contains vertical text.

3. Click on the "Window" menu and hover over "Type." Select "Paragraph" to activate the paragraph panel.

4. Select the "Align Top," "Align Center" or "Align Bottom" icons in the paragraph panel or on the control panel. The paragraph of text will adjust to the top, center or bottom of the text frame.

Align to Object

1. Hold down the "Shift" key, and select the area type and the object that you want to align the type with.

2. Click on the "Window" menu, and select "Align" to activate the "Align" Panel.

3. Select the desired alignment icon from the align panel. Illustrator automatically moves the text frame and the object to align the text frame with the selected object.

References

• Adobe IllustratoCS5: Align or Justify Text
• Colt Pini: Illustrator Text Vertical Align; May 2010