Learn how to easily create a polygon with any number of sides and one of two dimensioning schemes.

Even when a tool is on the main menu, sometimes we overlook it in favor of “the way we’ve always done it.” This Tech Tip shows you how to use the super simple Polygon tool in your Onshape sketches.  

A Simple and Powerful Onshape Tool

Start by clicking on the Polygon button from the sketch menu:

Notice there are two choices for the dimensioning scheme “Inscribed Polygon” and “Circumscribed Polygon.”  If the distance across the flats is important, click “Inscribed Polygon.” If the distance across the vertices is important, click “Circumscribed polygon”.

Creating a polygon takes two clicks, one at the center and one at the outside edge. After the second click, you can key in the number of sides you want. Dimensioning the construction circle will control the overall size of the polygon. You can also add other dimensions and modify the constraints that were created automatically.

The resulting polygon will have the requested number of sides and a construction circle, which can be dimensioned to control the overall size of the polygon.

Watch how to use the Polygon tool in action by watching the video below:


Interested in learning more Onshape Tech Tips? You can review the most recent technical blogs here.