How to Customize FreeCAD Toolbars and Menus

FreeCAD provides deep interface flexibility, allowing you to streamline your 3D modeling workflow by personalizing your workspace. This guide explains how to customize toolbars and menus across different workbenches, create your own dedicated tool sets, add macro shortcuts, and manage command layouts efficiently.

Accessing the Customization Menu

All interface adjustments for menus and toolbars take place in the central customization dialog.

  1. Launch FreeCAD and open any document or start a new project.
  2. In the top application menu, click Tools.
  3. Select Customize... from the dropdown menu.
  4. A dialog window will appear with several tabs: Keyboard, Toolbars, Macros, Spaceball, and Themes.

Creating and Modifying Toolbars

You can create new toolbars or add commands to specific workbenches using the Toolbars tab.

  1. Click on the Toolbars tab in the Customize window.
  2. In the upper-right dropdown menu, select the workbench where you want your custom toolbar to appear (e.g., PartDesign, Sketcher, or Global to make it visible across all workbenches).
  3. Click the New... button on the right side.
  4. Enter a name for your custom toolbar in the prompt and click OK.
  5. In the left panel, use the Category dropdown to browse available commands (e.g., Part Design, Draft, or View).
  6. Select the command you want to add, then click the right-arrow (->) button to move it into your custom toolbar list on the right.
  7. To remove a command, select it in the right panel and click the left-arrow (<-) button.
  8. Click Close when you are finished. Your new toolbar will immediately appear in the interface.

Adding Macros to Menus and Toolbars

If you frequently run custom Python scripts, you can assign them custom icons and place them directly into your workbench menus and toolbars.

  1. Open Tools > Customize... and select the Macros tab.
  2. Select your script from the Macro dropdown list.
  3. Fill in the required metadata:
    • Menu text: The name displayed in menus.
    • Tool tip: The helper text shown when hovering over the button.
    • Pixmap: Click the ... button to choose an icon for the toolbar button.
  4. Click Add to register the macro as an accessible command.
  5. Switch to the Toolbars tab, set the left category to Macros, and add your new command to any custom toolbar.

Managing and Repositioning Toolbars

Once your toolbars are configured:

  • Move toolbars: Click and drag the dotted handle on the left edge of any toolbar to dock it at the top, bottom, or sides of the viewport, or leave it floating.
  • Toggle visibility: Right-click any empty space on the toolbar area to view a list of all active toolbars, then check or uncheck them to show or hide them.

All toolbar and menu configurations are saved automatically to your local user.cfg file and persist across sessions.