---
title: Readonly mode
created_at: 12/28/2025
updated_at: 12/28/2025
keywords:
  - readonly
  - view only
  - disable editing
  - presentation
  - embed
status: published
date: 12/28/2025
readability: 9
voice: 9
completeness: 9
accuracy: 10
notes: '"What readonly mode allows" paragraph is dense - could use bullet points or a table.'
---

Readonly mode turns the editor into a viewer. Users can pan, zoom, and select shapes to inspect them, but they can't create, modify, or delete anything. Use readonly mode when you want to display canvas content without allowing changes: embedding documents in a presentation, sharing a design for feedback, or showing a preview of saved work.

```tsx
import { Tldraw } from 'tldraw'
import 'tldraw/tldraw.css'

export default function ReadOnlyViewer() {
	return (
		<div style={{ position: 'fixed', inset: 0 }}>
			<Tldraw
				onMount={(editor) => {
					editor.updateInstanceState({ isReadonly: true })
				}}
			/>
		</div>
	)
}
```

## Enabling readonly mode

Readonly state lives in the editor's instance state. Toggle it with [Editor#updateInstanceState](?) and read it with [Editor#getIsReadonly](?):

```typescript
// Enable readonly mode
editor.updateInstanceState({ isReadonly: true })

// Disable readonly mode
editor.updateInstanceState({ isReadonly: false })

// Check current state
const isReadonly = editor.getIsReadonly()
```

Readonly state is session-scoped and is not saved by `persistenceKey`, so set it on every load, as the example above does in `onMount`. Loading a snapshot with [Editor#loadSnapshot](?) preserves the current in-memory value.

## What readonly mode blocks

When readonly is enabled, the editor prevents document mutations. Methods that block include:

| Category   | Blocked methods                                                                                                                |
| ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Shapes     | `createShape`, `deleteShapes`, `updateShape`, `groupShapes`, `ungroupShapes`, `toggleLock`                                     |
| Pages      | `createPage`, `deletePage`, `renamePage`, `updatePage`, `moveShapesToPage`                                                     |
| Assets     | `createAssets`, `updateAssets`, `deleteAssets`                                                                                 |
| Transforms | `flipShapes`, `packShapes`, `stackShapes`, `alignShapes`, `distributeShapes`, `stretchShapes`, `rotateShapesBy`, `resizeShape` |
| Styles     | `setStyleForSelectedShapes`, `setOpacityForSelectedShapes`                                                                     |
| Content    | `putExternalContent`, `replaceExternalContent`, `putContentOntoCurrentPage`, plus the `cut` and `paste` UI actions             |

Methods that only touch instance state, such as `setStyleForNextShapes` and `setOpacityForNextShapes`, still work.

The toolbar automatically hides editing tools. Only the select tool, hand tool, and laser pointer remain visible. UI actions like undo and redo are also disabled in readonly mode.

## What readonly mode allows

Navigation and viewing operations work normally. You can pan, zoom, and use camera methods like `zoomIn`, `zoomOut`, `zoomToFit`, and `zoomToSelection`. Selection works too: clicking shapes, brush selection, `selectAll`, and `selectNone`.

You can also hover over shapes to inspect them and switch between pages. Exporting with the `exportAs` or `copyAs` helper functions works because exporting doesn't modify the document.

## Using the useReadonly hook

In React components, the [useReadonly](?) hook provides reactive access to the readonly state (and returns `false` outside an editor context). Import it from `tldraw`:

```tsx
import { useReadonly } from 'tldraw'

function ReadonlyIndicator() {
	const isReadonly = useReadonly()

	if (!isReadonly) return null

	return <div className="readonly-badge">View only</div>
}
```

The component re-renders automatically when readonly state changes.

## Actions in readonly mode

[TLUiActionItem](?) has a `readonlyOk` property that determines whether the UI offers the action in readonly mode. When an action has `readonlyOk: false` (the default), menus hide it and its keyboard shortcut is ignored in readonly mode.

Built-in actions that work in readonly mode include zoom controls (`zoom-in`, `zoom-out`, `zoom-to-fit`, `zoom-to-selection`), selection actions (`select-all`, `select-none`, `copy`), export actions (`export-as-svg`, `export-as-png`, `print`), navigation (`back-to-content`, `change-page-prev`, `change-page-next`), and preference toggles like `toggle-dark-mode`.

When defining custom actions, set `readonlyOk: true` if the action should work in readonly mode:

```typescript
import { TLUiOverrides } from 'tldraw'

const overrides: TLUiOverrides = {
	actions(editor, actions, helpers) {
		actions['share-link'] = {
			id: 'share-link',
			label: 'action.share-link',
			readonlyOk: true,
			onSelect() {
				// This works in readonly mode
				navigator.clipboard.writeText(window.location.href)
			},
		}
		return actions
	},
}
```

## Shapes that remain interactive

Some shapes have interactive content that works even when the document is readonly. Embed shapes (YouTube videos, Figma files, interactive maps) are the built-in case: the embed itself is locked in place, but users can still play videos or interact with the embedded content.

ShapeUtils can override [ShapeUtil#canEditInReadonly](?) to allow editing interactions on their shapes:

```typescript
class InteractiveWidgetUtil extends ShapeUtil<InteractiveWidget> {
	override canEditInReadonly(shape: InteractiveWidget): boolean {
		return true
	}
}
```

When this returns `true`, double-clicking the shape enters edit mode even in readonly mode. The shape's interactive content becomes usable while the shape itself stays fixed.

## Forcing operations in readonly mode

For programmatic use cases like migrations or admin tools, you can bypass the readonly check by passing `force: true` to [Editor#putExternalContent](?) and [Editor#replaceExternalContent](?):

```typescript
// This works even in readonly mode
editor.putExternalContent({ type: 'files', files: myFiles, point: { x: 0, y: 0 } }, { force: true })
```

Only these two methods support this option. Use it sparingly since readonly mode exists to prevent unintended changes.

## Collaboration and readonly mode

When using tldraw's sync packages for collaboration, readonly mode integrates with room permissions. A user with read-only access to a shared document sees the editor in readonly mode automatically. The sync layer communicates the mode through a reactive signal, and the editor updates `isReadonly` in response.

Changes from other collaborators still appear (the document updates in real time) but the readonly user can't contribute changes themselves.

## Related examples

- [Read-only](/examples/configuration/readonly): set up a readonly editor that disables all editing functionality.