Keyboard shortcuts in Windows

Shortcut keys ABCs

Shortcut keys help provide an easier and quicker method of navigating and executing commands in the computer software. Shortcut keys are performed using the Alt key (on IBM compatible computers), Command (on Apple computers), Ctrl key, or Shift key in conjunction with another key. The de facto standard for listing a shortcut is listing the modifier key, a plus symbol, and another key. In other words, “Ctrl+S” tells you to press and hold the Ctrl and then press the S simultaneously.

You can also find the shortcut keys in popular programs by looking for underlined letters in their menus. For example, the file menu image has an underline on the “F” in File, which means you can press the Alt key and F key to access the file menu.

Some programs require the user to press and hold Alt to see the underlined characters. In the image above, you can see that some of the standard features, such as Open (Ctrl+O) and Save (Ctrl+S), have shortcut keys assigned to them. As you begin to memorize shortcut keys, you’ll notice that many applications share them. We have a list of the most commonly shared ones in the basic PC shortcut keys section.

Shortcut Keys	Description
Alt+F	File menu options in the current program.
Alt+E	Open Edit options in the current program.
Alt+Tab	Switch between open programs.
F1	View help information (F1 is used by almost every Windows program to display help).
F2	Rename a selected file.
F5	Refresh the current program window.
Ctrl+D	Bookmark the current page in most Internet browsers.
Ctrl+N	Create a new or blank document in some software, or open a new tab in most Internet browsers.
Ctrl+O	Open a file in the current software.
Ctrl+A	Select all text.
Ctrl+B	Change selected text to be bold.
Ctrl+I	Change selected text to be in italics.
Ctrl+U	Change selected text to be underlined.
Ctrl+F	Open find window for current document or window.
Ctrl+S	Save current document file.
Ctrl+X	Cut selected item.
Shift+Del	Cut selected item.
Ctrl+C	Copy selected item.
Ctrl+Ins	Copy selected item.
Ctrl+V	Paste
Shift+Ins	Paste
Ctrl+Y	Redo the last action.
Ctrl+Z	Undo the last action.
Ctrl+K	Insert hyperlink for the selected text.
Ctrl+P	Print the current page or document.
Home	Go to the beginning of the current line.
Ctrl+Home	Go to the beginning of the document.
End	Go to the end of the current line.
Ctrl+End	Go to the end of the document.
Shift+Home	Highlight from the current position to the beginning of line.
Shift+End	Highlight from the current position to the end of line.
Ctrl+Left arrow	Move one word to the left at a time.
Ctrl+Right arrow	Move one word to the right at a time.
Ctrl+Esc	Open the Start menu.
Ctrl+Shift+Esc	Open Windows Task Manager.
Alt+F4	Close the currently active program.
Alt+Enter	Open the properties for the selected item (file, folder, shortcut, etc.).
Windows key+L	Lock the computer, requiring password entry to access again.
Windows key+X	Access the Power User Tasks Menu in Windows 8 and Windows 10.
Windows key+Down arrow	Minimize the active program window.
Windows key+Up arrow	Maximize the active program window.

PC shortcut keys for special characters

Many special characters can be created using keyboard shortcuts. Below are some of the more common and popular special characters and the keyboard shortcuts to create them.

Shortcut Keys	Special Character
Alt+0224	à
Alt+0232	è
Alt+0236	ì
Alt+0242	ò
Alt+0241	ñ
Alt+0228	ä
Alt+0246	ö
Alt+0252	ü
Alt+0248	ø
Alt+0223	ß
Alt+0198	Æ
Alt+0231	ç
Alt+0191	¿
Alt+0176	°  (degree symbol)
Alt+0177	±  (plus/minus symbol)
Alt+0153	™
Alt+0169	©
Alt+0174	®
Alt+0128	€  (Euro currency)
Alt+0162	¢  (Cent symbol)
Alt+0163	£  (British Pound currency)
Alt+0165	¥  (Japanese Yen currency)

Keyboard shortcuts are keys or combinations of keys that provide an alternative way to do something that you’d typically do with a mouse. Click an option below, and it’ll open to display a table of related shortcuts:

Copy, paste, and other general keyboard shortcuts

Press this key	To do this
Ctrl + X	Cut the selected item.
Ctrl + C (or Ctrl + Insert)	Copy the selected item.
Ctrl + V (or Shift + Insert)	Paste the selected item.
Ctrl + Z	Undo an action.
Alt + Tab	Switch between open apps.
Alt + F4	Close the active item, or exit the active app.
Windows logo key  + L	Lock your PC.
Windows logo key  + D	Display and hide the desktop.
F2	Rename the selected item.
F3	Search for a file or folder in File Explorer.
F4	Display the address bar list in File Explorer.
F5	Refresh the active window.
F6	Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop.
F10	Activate the Menu bar in the active app.
Alt + F8	Show your password on the sign-in screen.
Alt + Esc	Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened.
Alt + underlined letter	Perform the command for that letter.
Alt + Enter	Display properties for the selected item.
Alt + Spacebar	Open the shortcut menu for the active window.
Alt + Left arrow	Go back.
Alt + Right arrow	Go forward.
Alt + Page Up	Move up one screen.
Alt + Page Down	Move down one screen.
Ctrl + F4	Close the active document (in apps that are full-screen and let you have multiple documents open at the same time).
Ctrl + A	Select all items in a document or window.
Ctrl + D (or Delete)	Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin.
Ctrl + R (or F5)	Refresh the active window.
Ctrl + Y	Redo an action.
Ctrl + Right arrow	Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word.
Ctrl + Left arrow	Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word.
Ctrl + Down arrow	Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph.
Ctrl + Up arrow	Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph.
Ctrl + Alt + Tab	Use the arrow keys to switch between all open apps.
Alt + Shift + arrow keys	When a group or tile is in focus on the Start menu, move it in the direction specified.
Ctrl + Shift + arrow keys	When a tile is in focus on the Start menu, move it into another tile to create a folder.
Ctrl + arrow keys	Resize the Start menu when it’s open.
Ctrl + arrow key (to move to an item) + Spacebar	Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop.
Ctrl + Shift with an arrow key	Select a block of text.
Ctrl + Esc	Open Start.
Ctrl + Shift + Esc	Open Task Manager.
Ctrl + Shift	Switch the keyboard layout when multiple keyboard layouts are available.
Ctrl + Spacebar	Turn the Chinese input method editor (IME) on or off.
Shift + F10	Display the shortcut menu for the selected item.
Shift with any arrow key	Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text in a document.
Shift + Delete	Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first.
Right arrow	Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu.
Left arrow	Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu.
Esc	Stop or leave the current task.
PrtScn	Take a screenshot of your whole screen and copy it to the clipboard. NoteYou can change this shortcut so it also opens  screen snipping, which lets you edit your screenshot. Select Start  > Settings > Ease of Access > Keyboard, and turn on the toggle under Print Screen shortcut.