After Effects renames one layer at a time. This article covers the native rename workflow, the difference between the Layer Name and Source Name columns, and how Motion Studio's Rename tool renames and numbers an entire selection in one pass.
Renaming layers natively
Select a layer, press Enter, type the new name, and press Enter again. That is the whole native workflow, and it edits one layer at a time even when several layers are selected.
The Timeline panel shows either the layer name or the source name. Click the Layer Name column header to toggle to Source Name. A layer you have never renamed displays its source name, which is why a stack of duplicates reads as the same footage file over and over until you rename each one. Duplicating a layer with Cmd/Ctrl+D appends a number to the copy, so a duplicated "Circle" becomes "Circle 2", then "Circle 3", which is a numbering system of sorts but not one you chose.
Pre-composing offers a name field in the dialog, and layers imported from Illustrator keep their Illustrator layer names. Beyond that, renaming in bulk means a third-party script.
There is no native way to rename a selection, prefix a group of layers, or number them in order.
How do I rename multiple layers at once in After Effects?
Select the layers in the order you want them numbered, open Motion Studio's Rename tool, fill in the fields, and run Rename. Every selected layer gets the new name in one pass, with the serial number following the selection order.
The tool builds each name from five settings:
- Prefix: text placed before the name
- Name: the name applied to every selected layer
- Suffix: text placed after the name
- Separator: the character sequence between prefix, name, suffix, and the serial number, such as an underscore or a hyphen
- Serialize: whether the number goes before or after the resulting name
Prefix "UI", Name "button", Separator "_", and Serialize set to "after" produces UI_button_1, UI_button_2, UI_button_3, and so on down the selection. Change the Separator to a space and the same settings give "UI button 1".
Where Rename fits in a workflow
Rename is the cleanup step after any tool that generates layers. Break names new layers after the vector groups they came from, which is often "Group 1" through "Group 40"; select them and run Rename to give them a real name and a sequence. Text-Break produces one layer per letter, word, or line, and Rename turns "H", "e", "l", "l", "o" into title_01 through title_05. Duplicated layers lose the "Circle 2" trail the same way.
Full feature documentation: Rename Guide.
Common Questions about Renaming Layers in After Effects
How do I rename a layer in After Effects?
Select the layer, press Enter, type the name, and press Enter again. Double-clicking the name does not open it for editing; Enter does.
Can I rename multiple layers at the same time?
Not natively. Selecting several layers and pressing Enter edits one of them. Motion Studio's Rename tool renames every selected layer in one pass, with optional prefix, suffix, and serial numbers.
Why does my layer show the file name instead of the name I gave it?
The Timeline column is set to Source Name. Click the column header to switch back to Layer Name. Custom names only show in the Layer Name column.
How do I number layers in order?
Natively, type each number by hand. In Motion Studio, select the layers in the order you want them counted, set Serialize to before or after the name, and run Rename. The count follows the selection order, so the first layer you clicked is 1.
Does renaming a layer change the footage in the Project panel?
No. Layer names belong to the composition. The source item in the Project panel keeps its own name, in both the native workflow and Rename.
How do I rename the layers Break creates?
Run Break on the vector layer, keep the new layers selected, and run Rename with the name and serial settings you want. The two tools are built to run back to back.
Rename is available now as part of Motion Studio. Try Motion Studio free for 7 days, no credit card required.