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Keyboard Shortcuts for Macbook Pro

I have often found myself frustrated knowing that there is a keyboard shortcut for something in Mac OSX but for whatever reason I can’t remember what it was. This page is my way of keeping track of keyboard shortcuts I find online so I don’t have to remember them!

   
   
Menu Commands  
Shift+Apple+Q Log out
Shift+Option Apple+Q Log out immediately
Shift+Apple+Delete Empty Trash
Apple+H Hide Active Application
Option+Apple+H Hide All But The Active Application
Control+Eject Shut Down, Sleep, or Restart Options
Apple+Control+Eject Quit all applications and Restart
Apple+ . (period) Stop a process
Apple+ , (comma) Open Preferences for Active Application
Option+Apple+D Show/Hide Dock
Control+Up Arrow Move up one page
Control+Down Arrow Move down one page
Option+Apple+Esc Force Quit
File Management  
Apple+N New Finder window
Shift+Apple+N New Folder
Apple+O Open Another Existing Document
Apple+S Save
Shift+Apple+S Save as
Apple+P Print
Apple+W Close Window
Apple+Option+W Close all Windows
Apple+I Get Info
Option+Apple+I Show Attributes Inspector
Apple+D Duplicate
Apple+Q Close Application
Apple+L Make Alias
Apple+R Show Original
Apple+T Add to Favorites
Apple+Delete Move Highlighted Items to Trash
Apple+E Eject
Apple+F Find
Editing  
Apple+Z Undo
Apple+X Cut
Apple+C Copy
Apple+V Paste
Apple+A Select All
Apple+ { Align Left
Apple+ } Align Right
Apple+ | (pipe) Align Center
Apple+ ; (semicolon) Check Spelling
Shift+Apple+C Show Colors palette in application
Apple+T Show Font palette in application
View Menu  
Apple+1 View as Icons
Apple+2 View as List
Apple+3 View as Columns
Option+Apple+T Hide Toolbar
Apple+J Show View Options
Moving Around  
Apple+ [ Back
Apple+ ] Forward
Shift+Apple+A Applications
Shift+Apple+F Favorites
Shift+Apple+G Goto Folder
Apple+K Connect to Server
Apple+Tab Switch to next Application
Controlling Windows  
Apple+N New Window
Apple+T New Tab
Apple+M Minimize Window
Option+Apple+M Minimize All Windows
Getting Help  
Apple+ ? Open Mac Help
Universial Access  
Option+Apple+ * (asterisk) Turn on Zoom
Option+Apple+ = Zoom in
Option+Apple+ - Zoom out
Control+Option+Apple+ * Switch to White on Black (Invert Screen)
Combine Keyboard with Mouse  
Option+Drag Copy to new location
Option+Apple+Drag Make alias in new location
Apple+Drag Move to new location without copying
Screen Shots  
Apple+Shift+3 Take a picture of the screen
Apple+Shift+4 Take a picture of the selection
Apple+Shift+4, Control Take a picture of the selection, place in clipboard
Apple+Shift+4, Spacebar Take a picture of the selected window
   

Update: For European characters and accent marks there are several useful key combinations that use the Mac’s option key. Apple has posted a nice write up here with all the details.

Currently there are "89 comments" on this Article:

  1. Alana says:

    how do I make the colors on my macbook negative/inverted using the keyboard?

  2. chris says:

    Why’s there not a shortcut to maximise a window?

  3. chris says:

    Why’s there not a shortcut to maximise a window?

  4. chris says:

    Why’s there not a shortcut to maximise a window?

  5. мepтвeц says:

    Согласен с автором статьи. У меня точно такое же мнение :)

  6. Frenchy1st says:

    The “INSERT key’ on MacBook Pro = fn +home, (the left arrow on your right side). It is mainly helpful for MAYA users!

    Good luck!

    La clé “INSERT” sur le MacBook Pro = fn + home, (la flèche de gauche à ta droite). C’est surtout utile pour les utilisateurs de MAYA!

    Bonne chance:)

    Frenchy1st :)

  7. jazz says:

    to minimise a window you can use apple+h. to maximise it you can use alt+tab.

  8. Just got my first ever MacBook. This list has probably saved me hours of frustration and I am eternally grateful. Thank you very much :)

  9. add says:

    Now I often use “apple+tab” to move to other application, but the problem is sometimes i open more than one window per one application, I cannot use “apple+tab” to move around each window in the same application. Can anyone let me know how to move around all window by using shortcut. thanks

  10. Mohan says:

    It is very useful for me

  11. nheis says:

    hey add, if u want to switch between windows in the same program you press “apple+~ and that should work

  12. sarah says:

    what is the apple button??

  13. Linda Stewart says:

    Why will Control and Up Arrow not work for page up on my Macbook Pro?

  14. Janice Lloyd says:

    Thank you for making this so simple.

  15. Jess says:

    For all those that have asked, the ‘apple’ key is the command key to the left of the spacebar. It has that swirly square thing on the top, which is actually the apple symbol

  16. J Maheswari says:

    how to type text in INDESIGN in macbook pro without using a mouse..

  17. sunny says:

    While pressing some keys my keyboard got locked.How to unlock the keyboard?

  18. Cristo says:

    Is there a shorcut or a way to get the same function of the HOME and END button from a regular keyboard in a MacBook Pro?

  19. Anna says:

    HELP!! I accidently pushed the wrong key & it locked the keyboard. Please help me out.

  20. HOW TO TYPE ‘INDESIGN’ WITHOUT USING MOUSE OR TRACKPAD ON MACbook Pro?

    okay dildo:

    CMD (APPLE KEY) + SHIFT + A

    brings up applications window

    scroll down using your arrows

    FIND TEXTEDIT APP. – PRESS ENTER

    THEN TYPE – ‘INDESIGN’

    LEARN TO USE THE FKN MACHINE! IT’S THE BEST UNIX BASED OS IN THE WORLD AND THE CUSTOM ORDER MANUFACTURING IS SECOND TO NONE!

    YOU CAN DO ANYTHING ON THEM BUT YOU MUST LEARN THE TRICKS FIRST BY READING…

    YOU CAN INVERT SELECTION AND TEXT TYPE AND STYLE ANYTHING FASTER THAN ANY PC USING GLOBAL SHORTCUTS/KEY COMMANDS – YOU JUST GOTTA LEARN IT!

    MAC FKN ROCK!

  21. INVERT SELECTION?

    QUICKER ON MAC OSX THAN ANY WINDOWS IN ONE MOVE….

    HOLD DOWN SHIFT OR CMD (apple key) on the files YOU DON’T WANT

    THEN HOLD DOWN TRACKPAD MOUSE AND SWIPE OVER WHOLE FILE SET IN YOUR WINDOW

    IT AUTOMATICALLY SELECTS THE FILES AS INVERTED SELECTION!

    MAC OS IS THE FINEST IN THE WORLD AND THEY ARE BUILT TO LAST NO MATTER THE MODEL YOU BUY OLD OR NEW!

    LEARN IT – THEY ARE THE FKN BEST…..

  22. try trk pad.

    and then select all as pc commands then

    change font then type

    ‘indesign: THE RITTISCENT MAN is a joke!’

    learn to squiggle around with the trk pad using fingies and email me with you ph number then go back to trk pad and wait for m’call…

    keep going m’boy!

  23. chook says:

    to cristo and others with macbooks…

    HOME = fn + left arrow
    END = fn + right arrow

  24. Renee says:

    Is there a way to have a front ways “delete” on the keyboard – to delete text from the left to the right?

  25. Kristin says:

    Function-Delete will delete text to the right.

  26. veenixx says:

    my trackpad is not working, nt responding is it locked and what should i do to unlock it?

  27. veenixx says:

    my trackpad is not working, not responding is it locked and what should i do to unlock it?

  28. jaap Haas says:

    Is there a shortcut or a way to get the same function of the HOME and END button from a regular keyboard in a MacBookPro?

  29. ChubChub says:

    Hey SmartMacUser(anus) how do I open an app from the dock using only keys?

  30. raso says:

    To invert colors press ctrl+option+apple+8

  31. div says:

    in microsoft word for mac, how do you go to the beginning or end of a sentence without using the arrow keys???

  32. MargieP says:

    On a Macbook Pro 13″ (i.e. small layout keyboard)

    In EXCEL, to get to cell A1 (Home)

    Command, Fn, Left Arrow

    to get to last cell in worksheet (End)

    Command, Fn, RIght Arrow

  33. DuShawn says:

    how can i make an shortcut for my itunes?

  34. Ed Jahn says:

    To reach HOME and END of any Excel document use fn+command and hit the left or right arrow (lower right of keyboard)

  35. jt says:

    Inverted Colors – Ctrl + ALT + Cmnd + 8

  36. [...] Keyboard Shortcuts for Macbook Pro Uncategorized ← How to fix Apache – “Could not reliably determine the server’s fully qualified domain name, using 127.0.1.1 for ServerName” Error on Ubuntu LikeBe the first to like this post. [...]

  37. Burt says:

    My cat keeps crawling onto my MacBook Pro laptop and laying on it. She always turns the screen brightness off as well as the backlit keyboard. The backlit keyboard feature (F6) then presents a prohibited sign (circle with a line through it) when I try to turn up the backlit keyboard. Took the laptop to Apple who said that the logic board needed to be replaced and thought that I’d think about that one because there had to be a keyboard shortcut. The same day, the cat was found back on the laptop keyboard and this time the keyboard light was working again. But…a few days later (today) I walk in and there she is on the keyboard again and the backlit feature is off again. Ugh! Anyone know the correct sequence of keys that engages and disengages this?

  38. I’m not that much of a online reader to be honest but your blogs really nice, keep it up!
    I’ll go ahead and bookmark your website to come back later. Cheers

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