For years I’ve collected these keystrokes and continue to update them for the last versions of macOS. I hope they help you become the power user that lies within. They should work on macOS Sequoia, Sonoma, Big Sur, or most versions of macOS.
Menu Symbols
Symbol | Key on Keyboard |
---|---|
Command (or Cmd) Like the Control key on Windows/PC. Formerly known as the Apple key. | |
Option (like Alt on Windows/PC) | |
Shift | |
Control (Control-click = Right-click) | |
Tab | |
Return | |
Enter (on Number Pad, or fn-Return on compact keyboards) | |
Eject | |
Escape | |
Page Up (fn-Up Arrow on compact keyboards) | |
Page Down (fn-Down Arrow on compact keyboards) | |
Home (fn-Left Arrow on compact keyboards) | |
End (fn-Right Arrow on compact keyboards) | |
Arrow Keys (note the squareness of the arrows compared to Page Up & Page Down) | |
Delete Left (like Backspace on Windows/PC) | |
Delete Right (fn-Delete on compact keyboards. Also called Forward Delete) |
Finder
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Open Sidebar item in a new Tab or Window (depending on Finder Preferences) | Cmd-Click |
Switch Finder views (Icon, List, Column, Gallery) | Cmd-1, Cmd-2, Cmd-3, Cmd-4 |
In List view, expand a folder | Right Arrow |
In List view, collapse a folder | Left Arrow |
Rename the selected file/folder | Press Return (or Enter) |
Go into selected folder or open the selected file | Cmd-Down Arrow |
Go to parent folder | Cmd-Up Arrow |
Go Back | Cmd-[ |
Go Forward | Cmd-] |
Select the next icon in Icon and List views | Tab (Shift-Tab reverses direction) |
Alternate columns in Column View | Tab (Shift-Tab reverses direction) |
Resize one column to fit the longest file name (Column View) | Double-Click column divider (or the resize widget at the bottom of the column divider, depending on your setup) |
Resize all columns to fit their longest file names (Column View) | Option Double-Click column divider (or the resize widget at the bottom of the column divider, depending on your setup) |
Copy and Paste files | Cmd-C, then Cmd-V |
Copy and Paste files Exactly (Keeps original ownership & permissions. Requires Admin username & password.) | Cmd-C, then Cmd-Option-Shift-V |
Cut and Paste files (Move files) | Cmd-C, then Cmd-Option–V |
Copy a File's Pathname | Cmd-Opt–C |
Move a file instead of copying (Copies to the destination and removes it from the original disk.) | Cmd-Drag file to disk |
Immediately Delete a File (does not put file in Trash) | Cmd-Opt–Delete |
Move selected files to the Trash (called the Recycle Bin in Windows) | Cmd-Delete |
Empty the Trash with warning (like emptying Recycle Bin in Windows) | Cmd-Shift-Delete |
Empty the Trash with no warning (like emptying Recycle Bin in Windows) | Cmd-Opt-Shift-Delete |
Cancel a drag-n-drop action while in the midst of dragging | Esc |
Show Inspector (a single, live refreshing Info window) | Cmd-Opt-I |
Undo the last action (such as rename file, copy file, etc.) | Cmd-Z |
Toggle Hidden Files (Show Hidden Files or Hide Them). Also works in Open/Save dialogs! | Cmd-Shift-Period(.) May be a comma (,) instead of period for some languages. |
Hide/Show Sidebar (on the left) | Cmd-Opt-S |
Hide/Show Toolbar (on the top) and the Sidebar | Cmd-Opt-T |
Move or Remove item in toolbar (at the top of the window). Works in most programs. | Cmd-Drag |
Open Quick Look (Previews most types of files without having to open them) | Press the Spacebar (or Cmd-Y). On a trackpad can also tap with 3 fingers. |
Zoom In/Out in Quick Look (Images & PDFs) | Pinch on a trackpad or hold Cmd and hit + (plus) to zoom in or - (minus) to zoom out. Cmd–0 zooms back to fit in window. |
Find Files | Cmd-F |
App Switcher
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Quickly switch between 2 apps (like Safari & Finder) | Press Cmd-Tab to switch to last used app. Press Cmd-Tab again to switch back. |
Switch between apps | Press Cmd-Tab & continue holding Cmd. While holding Cmd, to choose which app you want to switch to:
|
Quit an app in the app switcher | In the app switcher, you’re already holding Cmd, so hit Q to quit selected app. |
Hide an app in the app switcher | In the app switcher, you’re already holding Cmd, so hit H to hide selected app. |
Cancel the app switcher | In the app switcher, you’re already holding Cmd, so hit Esc or period(.) |
Managing Windows & Dialogs
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Switch to next window | Cmd-Tilde(~) |
Switch to previous window | Cmd-Shift-Tilde(~) |
See where the File/Folder is located (a menu will pop-up displaying the folder hierarchy). Works in most programs, including the Finder. | Cmd-Click on name of the window (in the titlebar) |
Move a window in the background without switching to it. | Cmd-Drag on the window’s titlebar |
Choose “Don’t Save” in a Dialog | Cmd-D in some apps, but other apps use Cmd-Delete (Cmd-D will change the location to the Desktop) |
Dock
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Hide all other apps (except the one you're clicking on) | Command-Option click an app’s icon in Dock |
Hide the app you’re leaving | Option click another app’s icon in Dock |
Reveal a Dock item’s location in the Finder | Command click on the icon in the Dock |
Force a file to open in a specific app | While dragging the file onto an app’s icon in the Dock, hold Command-Option |
In an App’s Dock menu change the Quit to Force Quit (Click & hold on an App in the Dock to show the menu) | Hold Option while in Dock menu |
Move Dock to left, bottom, right side of screen | Hold Shift and drag Dock divider |
Change the icon size of a stack (must be the grid view) | Cmd-plus(+) or Cmd-minus(–) |
Temporarily turn magnification on/off | Hold Control-Shift |
Force the Dock to only resize to non-interpolated icon sizes | Hold Option while dragging Dock separator |
Working with Text Only work in some apps (Safari, Mail, TextEdit, etc.)
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Go to end of line | Cmd-right arrow |
Go to beginning of line | Cmd-left arrow |
Go to end of all the text | Cmd-down arrow |
Go to beginning of all the text | Cmd-up arrow |
Go to end of current or next word | Option-right arrow |
Go to beginning of current or previous word | Option-left arrow |
Add Shift to the above keystrokes to make a selection to that point. | |
On Laptops: Delete Text to the right of the cursor (like the Del key on a full keyboard) | Function(fn)-Delete |
Non-touching (Discontinuous) text selections | Command-drag |
Select non-linear areas | Option-drag |
Delete entire word to the left | Opt-Delete |
Paste and Match Style (so it looks the same as the text you are pasting into) | Cmd–Opt-Shift–V |
Look up word in dictionary | Mouse over a word and hit Cmd-Ctrl-D (Or on a trackpad use 3 fingers to tap on a word) |
Display Emoji pop-up | Command-Control-Space will open the Special Character panel. On the left you can select Emoji or other Symbols. |
Display Special/Alternate Characters | Hold any key. Example: Holding the “A” key will display à á â etc. You can press the corresponding number under the character you want to type to choose it (or arrow over to it). |
Auto completion word | Start typing the word. Press Option–Esc (or F5) to open suggested word list |
Switch to Outline Mode in TextEdit |
|
Screenshots Saved to the Desktop as a PNG file.
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Take a screenshot or screen recording (new in Mojave) | Cmd-Shift-5 |
Take a screenshot of the entire screen | Cmd-Shift-3 |
Take a screenshot of a selected area | Cmd-Shift-4 and Drag over an area. While dragging:
|
Take a screenshot of a specific window/object | Cmd-Shift-4, then press Spacebar, then Click on the window/object. TIP: Hold Option while you click to remove the drop shadow. |
Take a screenshot of the touch bar | Cmd-Shift-6 |
Hold Control with any of the above keystrokes to copy the screenshot to the clipboard instead of making a file. |
Spotlight
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Show Spotlight Search | Cmd-Space |
Open Spotlight Finder Search Window | Cmd-Option-Space |
Launch Top Hit (in the Menu) | Return |
Reveal selected item in Finder | In Spotlight Search: Press Cmd-Return In Finder Window: Press Cmd-R |
Skip to first result in a category | Cmd Up/Down Arrow |
Look up the definition of a word | Type the word in Spotlight’s search field and hit Cmd–L to look it up. |
Do a web search | Type something into Spotlight and hit Cmd–B to open it as a search in your web browser. |
Clear Spotlight Search | Esc clears to do another search. Esc a second time closes Spotlight. |
Mission Control
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Enter Mission Control | Ctrl-Up Arrow |
Move to a neighboring space or full screen app | Ctrl-Left or Right Arrow |
View Windows in the Current App | Ctrl-Down Arrow |
Show Desktop | F11 (may need to hold the fn button on some keyboards) |
Startup, Restart, Shutdown & Sleep
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Eject CD on boot | Hold Mouse button down immediately after powering on |
Safe boot | Hold Shift during startup |
Start up in Recovery mode | Hold Cmd-R during startup |
Start up in Target Disk mode | Hold T during startup |
Startup from a CD, DVD | Hold C during startup |
Bypass primary startup volume and seek a different startup volume (CD, etc.) | Hold Cmd-Opt-Shift-Delete during startup |
Choose Startup disk before booting | Hold Option during startup |
Start up in Verbose mode | Hold Cmd-V during startup |
Start up in Single-User mode (command line) | Hold Cmd-S during startup |
Shutdown immediately (no confirmation) | Hold Cmd-Opt-Ctrl and press the Eject key or Power button |
Restart immediately (no confirmation) | Cmd-Ctrl-Eject |
Forced Restart (only do this when absolutely needed) | Cmd-Ctrl-Power button |
Sleep immediately (no confirmation) | Press the Power button (or hit Cmd-Opt-Eject) |
Show Dialog with Restart, Sleep & Shutdown Options | Hold Ctrl and press the Eject key or Power button (or hold the Power button for a few seconds and the dialog will appear) |
Put display to sleep | Hold Ctrl-Shift and press the Eject key or Power button |
Safari
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Highlight URL/Search Field (at top of window) | Cmd–L |
Switch to Next Tab | Ctrl-Tab (or Cmd-Shift-Right Arrow) |
Switch to Previous Tab | Ctrl-Shift-Tab (or Cmd-Shift-Left Arrow) |
Switch tabs: jump directly to the first tab, second tab, etc. (If you change the preference, this will go to one of the first 9 bookmarks in the Bookmarks Bar.) | Cmd-1 through Cmd-9 |
Move between found items | Cmd-F, enter your search text and Press: Return to Move Forward Shift-Return to Move Backward |
Cancel current Find | Press Escape or Cmd-Period(.) |
Scroll by one full screen | Scroll Down: Spacebar or Option–Down Arrow Scroll Up: Shift–Spacebar or Option-Up Arrow |
Open Link in New Tab (in the background) | Cmd–Click a link |
Open Link in New Tab (in the foreground) | Cmd–Shift–Click a link |
Open Link in New Window | Cmd–Opt–Shift Click a link |
Add to Reading List | Shift–Click a link |
Apple Mail
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Send Message | Cmd–Shift–D (remember as D = Deliver) |
Reply to Message | Cmd–R or Opt–Double Click Message |
Reply All | Cmd–Shift–R |
Go to Inbox | Cmd–1 |
Go to other mailboxes in your favorites bar | Cmd–2, 3, etc. |
Prevent the next message from being automatically selected & marked as read | Opt–Delete |
Search the current message | Cmd–F |
Search all messages | Cmd–Opt–F |
Compose a new email | Cmd–N |
Preview
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Zoom In or Out | Cmd-Plus(+) or Cmd-Minus(-) |
Zoom to Actual Size | Cmd-0 |
Zoom to Fit | Cmd-9 |
Miscellaneous
Action | Keystroke |
---|---|
Force Quit (displayed list of apps) | Cmd-Opt-Esc |
Scroll using a Trackpad (like a mouse’s scroll wheel) | Slide 2 fingers on the trackpad |
Right-click using a Trackpad (like on a 2 button mouse) | Place 2 fingers on the trackpad and Click |
Hide the current app | Cmd-H |
Hide all other apps (other than the current app) | Cmd-Option-H |
Adjust the font size in Messages app | Cmd-Plus(+) or Cmd-Minus(-) |
Quickly find any menu item and launch it. |
|
If an app re-opens with the windows that were open when you last quit it, you can tell it not to re-open the windows. | Hold Shift while launching an app |
Turn off notifications (turn on Do Not Disturb) | Option-click the Notification Center icon in menu bar to toggle notifications off/on |
Change system volume in smaller increments | Hold Opt–Shift while changing volume |
Change system volume with confirmation beeps | Hold Shift while changing volume (prior to Yosemite this would disable the beeps) |
Turn display mirroring on/off (when connected to an additional display) | Command–Brightness Down (F1) |
Completely smooth scrolling, one pixel at a time (does not work in all apps) | Hold Option while dragging scrollbar |
Open “Sound” panel of System Settings (formerly System Preferences) | Press Option and a Sound key (Mute, Volume Up or Down) |
Open “Displays” panel of System Settings (formerly System Preferences) | Press Option and a Brightness key |
Customize the toolbar at the top of a window. Works in the Finder, Apple Mail, Preview, etc. but not some apps, like Firefox. |
|
Move the Terminal cursor with the mouse | Option–click where you’d like the cursor |
Change Terminal Directory to a specific folder (cd into the folder) | Cmd-Drag a folder onto the Terminal Window |
Emacs Key Bindings Only work in some apps (Safari, Mail, TextEdit, etc.)
Action | Keystroke | Remember As |
---|---|---|
Go to start of line (move cursor to start of line) | Ctrl-A | A = Start of alphabet |
Go to end of line (move cursor to end of line) | Ctrl-E | E = End |
Go up one line | Ctrl-P | P = Previous |
Go down one line | Ctrl-N | N = Next |
Go back a character (move cursor left) | Ctrl-B | B = Back |
Go forward a character (move cursor right) | Ctrl-F | F = Forward |
Delete the character to the right of the cursor | Ctrl-D | D = Delete |
Delete the character to the left of the cursor | Ctrl-H | |
Delete the selection or to the end of the line (acts like cutting the text) | Ctrl-K | K = Kill |
Yank back the killed text (acts like pasting) | Ctrl-Y | Y = Yank |
Scroll down | Ctrl-V | |
Center the current line in the window | Ctrl-L | |
Insert line break after the cursor without moving the cursor | Ctrl-O | |
Transpose letters (swaps letters on left and right of cursor) | Ctrl-T | T = Transpose |