> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tackstudio.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Modifiers

> Group, anchor, and mask modifiers.

Modifiers are toggle buttons that change how Align Pro measures a layer, rather than where it moves it to.

| Modifier         | Effect                                                                                                                                                      |
| ---------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Align as Group   | Moves the whole selection together as one rigid block, preserving each layer’s position relative to the others, instead of moving each layer independently. |
| Align to Anchors | Uses each layer’s anchor point instead of its bounding box. Useful when a layer’s anchor has already been offset for another effect.                        |
| Align to Masks   | Uses a layer’s mask shape instead of its visible content when calculating its bounds. Only affects layers that actually have a mask.                        |

## Some combinations are disabled

Align Pro greys out buttons and modifiers that wouldn’t produce a meaningful result together:

* **Align to Outside** disables Align Horizontally, Align Vertically, Align Center, and Align to Anchors, since outside alignment only makes sense relative to an edge.
* **Align to Selection** disables Align as Group, since you can’t align a group to its own bounds.
* **Align to Key Layer** combined with **Align to Anchors** disables Align Left, Right, Top, and Bottom, leaving only centering, since an anchor is a single point with no distinct edges.
* **Align as Group** disables Align to Selection, Align to Anchors, and every Distribute and Distribute Spacing button, since a rigid group has no relative spacing left to distribute.
* **Align to Masks** disables Align to Anchors, since an anchor point doesn’t have a mask shape.
* **Align to Anchors** disables Align to Outside, Align as Group, Align to Masks, and the four edge-based Distribute buttons (Top, Bottom, Left, Right). Centering and Distribute Spacing still work, since an anchor’s "center" is just its point.

<Callout icon="lightbulb" color="#F05F3F">
  If a control is disabled, it’s because the current [Align to](/align-pro/align-to) target or another active modifier makes it meaningless in that combination. This is expected, not a bug. See [Troubleshooting](/align-pro/troubleshooting).
</Callout>

You can set default modifiers and an Align to target for new sessions in [Preferences](/align-pro/preferences).