Where Is the Lasso Tool in Photoshop

Where the Lasso Tool Lives

The Lasso tool sits in the toolbar on the left side of the Photoshop workspace, nested under the Marquee tool group. Click and hold the Marquee icon to reveal a flyout menu that shows the Lasso, Polygonal Lasso, and Magnetic Lasso. If you do not see it, press the keyboard shortcut L to jump directly to it, and Shift+L to cycle through the three Lasso variations.

Standard Lasso

The Standard Lasso draws a freeform selection border as you drag the cursor. Release the mouse to close the selection. This is the go-to option when you need an organic, irregular shape around an object, such as cutting out a person from a busy background or selecting a stone in a landscape.

Polygonal Lasso

Polar Lasso forces straight-line segments between clicks, making it ideal for architectural edges, furniture, or any object with clean angles. Click a starting point, move the cursor to the next corner, and click again. Continue placing points until you return to the origin, then Photoshop closes the shape automatically.

Magnetic Lasso

Magnetic Lasso snaps to high-contrast edges as you drag, reducing the need for precise cursor control. It places anchor points along the boundary you trace, and you can adjust the frequency of those points in the options bar. This tool excels at selecting objects with well-defined edges, like a car against a contrasting road or a strand of hair against a solid sky.

Refining Your Selection

Once a Lasso selection is active, the options bar and Select menu offer several refinements. Feather the edge for a softer transition, expand or contract the boundary, or use Select and Mask to clean up stray pixels. You can also add to or subtract from the selection by holding Shift or Alt (Option on Mac) while drawing a second pass.

Keyboard Shortcuts and Workflow Tips

• Press L to select the Lasso tool group.
• Shift+L to cycle through Standard, Polygonal, and Magnetic Lasso.
• Hold Alt (Option) while dragging to subtract from a selection.
• Use the options bar to adjust feathering, anti-aliasing, and edge detection width for Magnetic Lasso.

The Lasso tools remain essential for quick, intuitive selections in Photoshop, whether you are making tight cuts for compositing or loosely framing an area for color adjustments.