âš¡ Black Friday Sale: 30% Off The Ultimate Motion Bundle

The Ultimate Motion Bundle

Back to How-Tos

How to use merge paths in After Effects

Use Merge Paths to combine shapes for more complex designs — it gives you control over how multiple shapes interact with each other.

Steps to use merge paths

Select your shape layer and go to Add → Merge Paths.

Selecting a shape layer and adding Merge Paths from the Add menu in After Effects

Drag the operator below the shapes you want combined in the timeline.

Merge Paths operator positioned below the shapes being combined in After Effects

Choose your merge mode — Merge, Add, Subtract, Intersect, Exclude — to control how the shapes overlap and interact.

Merge Paths set to Merge Add Subtract Intersect or Exclude mode in After Effects

One more thing

Use Subtract to cut out holes (like a donut shape) without needing multiple layers or masks. It’s the fastest way to create complex cutouts.

Related how-tos

How to round corners of shapes in After Effects
How to animate a mask path in After Effects
How to create shape layers in After Effects

Need more help? Explore all our How-tos in one place.

Want to create professional videos in no time and impress your audience or clients?

Start with our 150 free templates and test them in your own projects, or go further if you’re ready and grab The Ultimate Motion Bundle to make your videos look so freakin’ good.