How to Align the Grid to the Ruler in Illustrator

Selecting "View" and "Show Rulers" from within Adobe Illustrator's main menu causes a useful set of rulers to appear on the top and left side of a file window. Each ruler features a unit of measurement that can correspond to a grid. If your grid and rulers are set to the same unit of measurement, change the ruler's positioning, or ruler origin, so that the grid and rulers align each time you create a new Adobe Illustrator file.

Instructions

1. Select "Preferences" and "Units & Undo" to set a unit of measurement for the rulers. Alter the "Guides & Grid" preferences to establish a matching unit of measurement within the "Gridline Every" field.

2. Select "View" and "Show Grid" to bring the grid into view if it's not visible.

3. Align the ruler to the grid by moving your mouse to the left and upper ruler's intersecting position, then click and drag until you reach an intersecting area of the grid. Release the mouse to finalize reorienting the ruler's relationship to the grid.

Tips & Warnings

• Use the Zoom tool to magnify the artboard and grid during the adjustment process, especially if you have trouble getting the ruler to align with the grid.

References

• Webwasp: Rulers, Grids & Guides
• Adobe Illustrator CS5: Moving and Zooming Tool Gallery