Archicad Hatch [updated] Jun 2026

Mastering the Art of the ArchiCAD Hatch is about more than just clicking a pattern and filling a shape. It requires an understanding of the distinction between Drafting, Cut, and Cover fills, the relationship between Building Materials and Surfaces, and the specific logic of scale and display order.

To ensure your hatches convert cleanly to AutoCAD:

If you find yourself constantly drawing manual 2D fills in section views to denote insulation or structure, you are working too hard. In ArchiCAD, a composite structure (like a wall) can have a Cut Fill assigned directly to its Building Materials. If you go into the Building Material settings, you can assign a specific hatch pattern to the "Cut Fill" category. This means that every time you cut a section through that wall, the correct hatch appears automatically.

: Advanced, user-designed patterns generated by copying custom 2D vector elements directly into the fill settings. archicad hatch

Archicad classifies hatches into four main categories based on their function and visual data:

You can use 3D surface textures as 2D fills in sectional drawings. 4. Best Practices for Archicad Hatch Management

: Users frequently note that ArchiCAD's 2D tools are exceptionally strong, with some describing the hatch tool as "10,000,000x better" than AutoCAD's. Mastering the Art of the ArchiCAD Hatch is

: Select the Fill Tool from the toolbox on the left of your workspace.

: You can create your own patterns by drawing a small segment with 2D lines, copying it, and pasting it into a new "Symbol Fill" definition. Adjusting Orientation

The safest way to create a custom hatch is to start with an existing fill and modify it. If you paste line components to create a custom hatch, it is generated as a "Symbol Fill." While highly customizable, Symbol fills take significantly longer for the software to process due to their complexity. In ArchiCAD, a composite structure (like a wall)

These are purely two-dimensional elements drawn by hand using the Fill tool. They are perfect for schematic presentation sketches, custom details, and masking objects. They exist only in the specific 2D view where you create them. 2. Cover Fills

Using Archicad hatch is relatively straightforward. Here's a step-by-step guide to get you started: