Changing leading


    The vertical space between lines of type is called leading. Leading is measured from the baseline of one line of text to the baseline of the line above it. Baseline is the invisible line on which most letters sit.

    Note: When working with horizontal Asian type, you can specify how leading is measured, either from baseline to baseline or from the top of one line to the top of the next. For more information, see Working with Chinese, Japanese, and Korean type.

    The default auto-leading option sets the leading at 120% of the type size (for example, 12-point leading for 10-point type). When auto-leading is in use, Illustrator displays the leading value in parentheses in the Leading menu of the Character palette.

    By default, leading is a character attribute, which means that you can apply more than one leading value within the same paragraph. The largest leading value in a line of type determines the leading for that line.

To specify leading:

    Do any of the following:

    • In the Character palette, choose the leading you want from the Leading pop-up menu Leading pop-up menu (or Vertical leading pop-up menu for vertical text).
    • Select the existing leading value and type a new value.

    Tip iconYou can also use keyboard shortcuts to change the leading for selected characters. For more information, see Keys for formatting type.

To change the default auto-leading percentage:

  1. Choose Type > Paragraph to display the Paragraph palette.
  2. Choose Justification from the Paragraph palette menu.
  3. For Auto Leading, specify a new default percentage. The minimum value is 0%, and the maximum value is 500%.