How to Change Default Interpolation to Linear in Blender

This guide provides quick, step-by-step instructions on how to change Blender's default keyframe interpolation mode from Bezier to Linear. By adjusting this setting in your preferences, all future keyframes will automatically use linear interpolation, eliminating the default ease-in and ease-out smoothing. This is ideal for mechanical animations, constant-speed movements, or initial blocking passes.

How to Set Linear Interpolation as Default

1. Open Blender.
2. Click on Edit in the top-left menu bar.
3. Select Preferences from the drop-down menu.
4. In the Preferences window, select the Animation tab from the left sidebar.
5. Locate the F-Curves section.
6. Find the Default Interpolation field (set to Bezier by default).
7. Click the drop-down menu and select Linear.
8. Close the Preferences window. Blender automatically saves preferences by default. If auto-save is disabled, click the three lines (hamburger menu) icon in the bottom-left corner of the Preferences window and click Save Preferences.

From now on, any new keyframe added to your scene will default to Linear interpolation.

How to Change Existing Keyframes to Linear

Changing the default interpolation setting only affects keyframes created after the setting is changed. To convert existing keyframes to linear interpolation:

1. Open the Timeline, Dope Sheet, or Graph Editor.
2. Select the keyframes you want to change (press A to select all).
3. Press T on your keyboard to open the Set Keyframe Interpolation menu.
4. Select Linear.