Computers, Laptops & Tablets > Apple 128 128 people found this article helpful The Best Mac Shortcuts in 2023 These keyboard commands save you time and keep you in the zone for whatever you are doing By Simon Chandler Simon Chandler Writer University of Reading King's College London Simon Chandler is a former Lifewire writer who covered cryptocurrency, social media, AI and other topics. His work has appeared in Wired, TechCrunch, and The Verge. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on January 11, 2023 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email In This Article Expand Jump to a Section Working with Documents Navigating Web Pages and Apps Managing Files and Folders Handy System Shortcuts Frequently Asked Questions By learning several common Mac shortcuts, you can save time and even make your Mac feels faster than it already is by using the keyboard rather than the mouse and the menu system in each app. You'll need to do a little memorizing, but most of that memorizing is usable in more than one app. Seriously, once you've learned these keyboard shortcuts, you won't go back to using the mouse and menu bar. Apple introduced a feature in macOS called Shortcuts. In that case, Apple is talking about computer automation by making little recipes which contain a series of steps to perform a task. In our case here, we're talking about keyboard shortcuts. Basically, this article explains certain keyboard presses that perform the same function as going to the menu bar with your mouse. Mac Keyboard Shortcuts: Writing Papers and Working with Documents Press Command + A, C or V to select all, copy or paste. Writing papers can be time-consuming. However, there are (a vast) range of Mac shortcuts and commands that make life a little easier for any would-be essayist. Here's how to cut, copy and paste: Command + C: copies any highlighted content to the Mac's ClipboardCommand + V: pastes the Clipboard's contentsCommand + Shift + V: pastes without formattingCommand + X: cuts (i.e. erases) any highlighted content and copies it to the Mac's clipboardCommand + A: selects all items or content on a page Here are Mac shortcuts that deal more specifically with formatting or editing your text, although not all of them work with every word-processing app. Command + B: bold letteringCommand + I: italicsCommand + U: underlineOption + Delete: delete word on left of cursorFn + Delete: forward deleteControl + K: delete all text between cursor and end of paragraph or lineCommand + Control + Space bar: open Character Viewer window (which lets you choose and type emojis)Command + K: add a hyperlink to highlighted text Press Command + F to open the word finder. Hunting for particular words in your document or for definitions or misspellings? Here are the Mac commands you need. Note: some of these shortcuts are different for Google Docs and Microsoft Word, which occasionally have their own specific key combinations (noted below where available). Command + F: find specific words in your document Command + semi-colon (;): find misspelled words. Note: in Google Docs you should press Command + apostrophe ('). In Word, you press Alt + F7 (although the F keys must have been previously enabled as function keys by going to System Preferences > Keyboard) Command + Control + D: display definition of highlighted word. Note: in Google Docs you should press Command + Shift + Y Command + Shift + colon (:): open the Spelling and Grammar window. Note: this shortcut isn't available in Google Docs, while for Word you should press F7 Here are several Mac keyboard shortcuts related to undoing actions and jumping to particular parts of your work: Command + Z: undo previous actionCommand + Shift + Z: redo the previously undone actionFn + Left/Right Arrow: jump to beginning/end of documentCommand + Up/Down Arrow: move cursor to beginning/end of document. Note: not available on Microsoft WordCommand + Left/Right Arrow: move cursor to beginning/end of line And finally, if you've finished a writing session, here are three Apple shortcuts that deal with saving, printing and opening new documents: Command + S: save your document (do this often even while writing)Command + O: open a document saved to your MacCommand + P: print your document Mac Keyboard Shortcuts: Navigating Web Pages and Apps Press Command + Tab to open the Tab Switcher and switch between apps. Writing papers and reports is one thing, but no list of the best Mac shortcuts would be complete without detailing the commands that can be used to navigate between web pages and apps. These are the kinds of shortcuts that prove useful when conducting the research and reading necessary for writing a paper, or when opening additional apps to help you finish your work. It should be noted that these shortcuts work with all major browsers (e.g. Chrome, Safari, Firefox). Command + T: open a new tab on your browserCommand + Shift + T: reopen the last tab you closed (great if you accidentally close a tab)Command + N: open a new windowCommand + W: close the current windowCommand + Shift + W: close all windows of the app you're using (e.g. if you're using a web browser, this shortcut will close every window)Command + M: minimize the current window Mac Keyboard Shortcuts: Managing Files and Folders Press Command + Shift + H to shortcut to your Home folder when in Finder. If you save lots of essays and documents to your Mac, you may want to save them to particular folders, as a way of making them more findable. Here are a batch of Mac shortcuts that relate to folders: Command + Shift + N: create a new folder when in the Finder appCommand + Shift + D: open the Desktop folder (when in Finder)Command + Option + L: open Downloads folder (when in Finder)Command + Shift + O: open Documents folder (when in Finder)Command + Shift + G: open the Go to Folder window (when in Finder), which lets you find a specific folder by typing its nameCommand + Shift + H: open the user's Home folder (when in Finder)Command + Shift + F: open All My Files Mac Keyboard Shortcuts: Handy System Shortcuts Press Command + Shift + ? to shortcut to Help. While none of the Mac commands below relate specifically to writing papers or managing your work, they're all useful time-savers in one way or another: Command + Shift + Question mark (?): open Help menu of the app you're usingOption + Shift + Volume Up/Down: adjust the volume in smaller incrementsCommand + Shift + Delete: empty your Mac's Trash. Press Option + Shift + Command + Delete to empty the Trash without having to confirmCommand + Shift + 3: take a screenshot of your entire screen. Press Command + Shift + 4 to take a partial screenshotCommand + Mousepad click: right-clickCommand + Option + Esc: brings up a menu to help you force an app to quitCommand + Tab: open the app switcher. Keep Command held down and press Tab repeatedly to scroll through apps. Release both buttons to confirm selectionCommand + Space bar: open Spotlight search bar The Best Windows Keyboard Shortcuts in 2023 FAQ How do I see all the available Mac shortcuts in an app? Macs don't come equipped with this capability, but a handy app named CheatSheet does. After you download and install CheatSheet, open any app and press and hold the Command key to see a list of all the active shortcuts for that particular app. How do I make shortcuts for an app on a Mac? To create an app shortcut, select the Apple logo > System Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcuts. In the left panel, select App Shortcut, then select Add (+) and choose an app (or all apps) in the menu. In the pop-up window, name the shortcut and enter the exact keyboard combination for it, then select Add (+). Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit