You now have a live, editable, intelligent underline that behaves like a manual line but thinks like a smart object. Change the text from "Cat" to "Elephant"? The underline grows automatically. It’s pure, non-destructive magic.
This is the magic trick. By placing the stroke behind the text, it will span the entire width of the text block, but it will not cut through the letters . Because the text is rendered on top, the stroke acts as a perfect, uninterrupted underline.
For a more straightforward approach, especially if you're working with text: illustrator underline
: Highlight your text and click the T icon with a line underneath .
You can turn any live text object into a sophisticated underlining machine without drawing a single line. Here is the pro move: You now have a live, editable, intelligent underline
To create an underline in Illustrator, you can use the Type tool to select the text you want to underline, then go to the Character panel (Window > Type > Character) and click on the Underline button. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+U (Windows) or Command+Shift+U (Mac).
If you're working with live text and want a simple underline: It’s pure, non-destructive magic
Underlining can serve several purposes in your designs:
Before you go underline-crazy, a final word on taste. In the age of variable fonts, color fonts, and expressive typography, the underline is often a crutch. If you find yourself underlining a word for emphasis, ask yourself: Should this word just be bold? Italic? A different color?