--- title: Shape Coordinates :: Box2D | daily.dev description: Box2D shapes exist independently of bodies and are stored in a compact, performance-optimized form that isn't easily moved. To reposition a shape, you must... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/shape-coordinates-box2d-pluhbqoxn twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Shape Coordinates :: Box2D | daily.dev og:description: Box2D shapes exist independently of bodies and are stored in a compact, performance-optimized form that isn't easily moved. To reposition a shape, you must... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/shape-coordinates-box2d-pluhbqoxn og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/pLuhBQoXN.png og:image:alt: Shape Coordinates :: Box2D og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Shape Coordinates :: Box2D **[ Box2D ](https://daily.dev/sources/box2d)** · 1 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Box2D shapes exist independently of bodies and are stored in a compact, performance-optimized form that isn't easily moved. To reposition a shape, you must manually set its vertex positions. When a shape is not attached to a body, its vertices are expressed in world-space coordinates; once attached via a fixture, those vertices are treated as local coordinates and move rigidly with the host body. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### In Box2D, are shape vertices in world coordinates or local coordinates? It depends on whether the shape is attached to a body. When a shape is not attached to a body, its vertices are expressed in world-space coordinates. Once the shape is attached to a body via a fixture, its vertices are treated as local coordinates and move rigidly along with that body. _Developers debugging physics coordinate issues can find related engine explainers on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [PhysicsBox. Adding physics to compose driven projects](https://daily.dev/posts/physicsbox-adding-physics-to-compose-driven-projects-zjhjihxz9) · ProAndroidDev · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [SIMD for Collision :: Box2D](https://daily.dev/posts/simd-for-collision-box2d-wsosdjqbv) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#game-development](https://daily.dev/tags/game-development) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/shape-coordinates-box2d-pluhbqoxn) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Shape Coordinates :: Box2D","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/shape-coordinates-box2d-pluhbqoxn","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/shape-coordinates-box2d-pluhbqoxn"},"datePublished":"2026-08-23T12:16:55.255Z","dateModified":"2026-08-23T12:18:16.769Z","description":"Box2D shapes exist independently of bodies and are stored in a compact, performance-optimized form that isn't easily moved. 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