A Guide to Shortcuts on a Mac

 

Just like in Windows, knowing your shortcuts and hotkeys on the Mac OS can make many processes go faster, saving you time for the work you need to do, not worrying about the process!

Shortcut

Description

Command-X

Cut the selected item and copy it to the Clipboard.

Command-C

Copy the selected item to the Clipboard.

Command-V

Paste the contents of the Clipboard into the current document or app.

Command-Z

Undo the previous command. Press Command-Shift-Z to redo.

Command-A

Select all items.

Command-F

Open a Find window, or find items in a document.

Command-G

Find the next occurrence of the item you’re searching for. Press Command-Shift-G to find the previous occurrence.

Command-H

Hide the windows of the front app. Press Command-Option-H to view the front app but hide all other apps.

Command-M

Minimize the front window to the Dock. Press Command-Option-M to minimize all windows of the front app.

Command-N

Open a new document or window.

Command-O

Open the selected item, or open a dialog to select a file to open.

Command-P

Print the current document.

Command-S

Save the current document.

Command-W

Close the front window. Press Command-Option-W to close all windows of the app.

Command-Q

Quit the current app.

Command-Option-Esc

Choose an app to Force Quit.

Command-Tab

Switch to the next most recently used app among your open apps.

Command-Shift-5

Open the Screenshot utility. You can also take screenshots using the following shortcuts:

  • Press Command-Shift-3 to take a screenshot of the entire screen.

  • Press Command-Shift-4 to take a screenshot of a selected area of the screen.

 

If you switched to the Mac from a PC, check out the Apple Support articles Mac tips for Windows switchers for a list of Mac keyboard shortcuts and the differences between Mac and Windows keyboards and What’s it called on my Mac?.

For more keyboard shortcuts, see the Apple Support article Mac keyboard shortcuts.

 

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