How to hide a Revit object without deleting it?

Short Answer

Yes — in Autodesk Revit, you can hide a Revit object without deleting it by selecting the element in the active view and using Hide in View. This is the fastest and most common professional method for temporary view cleanup. Limitation: this only hides the object in the current view, not the entire model.

What You Need to Know Before

Warning: Hidden elements are often forgotten and can cause coordination mistakes, especially when an object is missing in one view but still exists in schedules, other views, and print sets. Also, if Temporary Hide/Isolate is active instead of permanent hide, the object may reappear unexpectedly.

How-to

• Command: Hide in View

• Shortcut: EH

• Quick Steps:

  1. Select the object in the active revit view, then right-click and choose Hide in View from the context menu.
  2. Click Elements to hide only that selected object in the current view.
  3. If needed, use the Reveal Hidden Elements toggle on the view control Bar to verify or unhide it later.

Variables & Settings

• Key Setting: Elements vs Category in the Hide in View menu

• Expert Setting: Choose Elements to hide only the selected object, or Category to hide every object of that category in the current view. Using the wrong option is a common reason entire model items seem to disappear from a view.

Why it Fails

• Cause 1 (Geometry): The object may already be outside the view range, crop region, or section box, so it is not actually being hidden by the command.

• Cause 2 (layers/Locks): The element may be controlled by a linked model, workset visibility, or a view template, which can override manual hide behavior.

• Cause 3 (Command/Logic): Users often apply Temporary Hide/Isolate instead of permanent Hide in View, so the object returns after resetting the temporary view state.

Quick Fix & Best Practice

• Quick Fix: Turn on Reveal Hidden Elements from the View Control Bar, select the hidden object, and use Unhide in View.

• Manager’s Verdict: Use Hide in View > Elements for quick drafting cleanup in a single view, but avoid overusing it in production models because hidden items are easy to miss during QA and coordination.

FAQ

Can I hide a Revit object in all views at once?

No, Hide in View only affects the current view.

How do I show hidden objects again in Revit?

Use Reveal Hidden Elements, then select the object and choose Unhide in View.

Is hiding an object the same as deleting it in Revit?

No, the object remains in the model and can still appear in other views and schedules.

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