Chromebook keyboard shortcuts

To complete tasks quickly, you can use keyboard shortcuts. To find shortcuts on this page, press Ctrl + f and type what you want. To find all keyboard shortcuts, press Ctrl + Search + s.

Important: This article is only for US Chromebook customers with a standard English QWERTY keyboard. If you have an international keyboard, you can also follow the steps below.

To find keyboard shortcuts:

On your Chromebook, at the bottom right, select the time.
Select Settings .
Under “Device,” select Keyboard and inputs View keyboard shortcuts.

Shortcuts on external keyboards

If you use a Windows or Mac keyboard, press the Windows key or Command key instead of Search key

or Launcher key

To change how a specific keyboard key works:

On your chromebook, at the bottom right, select the time.
- Or press Alt + Shift + s.
Select Settings .
Under "Device," select Keyboard and inputs.
Change the function of one or more keys.

Popular shortcuts

Take a screenshot: Press Ctrl + Show Windows .
Take a partial screenshot: Press Shift + Ctrl + Show windows , then select and drag.
Take a screenshot on tablets: Press Power button + Volume down button.
To access more screenshot features: Press Ctrl + Shift + Show windows , then select a screenshot feature from the toolbar.
To access more screenshot features on tablets: Press and hold the Power button, select Screen capture or select time Screen capture. Learn more about screenshot features.
Turn Caps Lock on or off: Press Search + Alt.
- Or press Launcher + Alt.
Lock your screen: Press Search + l.
- Or press Launcher + l.
Sign out of your Google Account: Press Shift + Ctrl + q (twice).
Check all keyboard shortcuts: Press Ctrl + Search + s.

EXPAND ALL COLLAPSE ALL

All other shortcuts

Important: Depending on your keyboard, you can press the Search key or the Launcher key for some shortcuts. Both keys work the same.

Tabs & windows

Open a new window	Ctrl + n
Open a new window in Incognito mode	Ctrl + Shift + n
Open a new tab	Ctrl + t
Open a file in the browser	Ctrl + o
Close the current tab	Ctrl + w
Close the current window	Ctrl + Shift + w
Reopen the last tab or window you closed	Ctrl + Shift + t
Go to tabs 1-8 in the window	Ctrl + 1 through Ctrl + 8
Go to the last tab in the window	Ctrl + 9
Go to the next tab in the window	Ctrl + Tab
Go to the previous tab in the window	Ctrl + Shift + Tab
Switch quickly between windows	Press and hold Alt, press Tab until you get to the window you want to open, then release. You can also press and hold Alt, then press Tab, and select a window with the left or right arrow keys, mouse, or touch.
Open the window you used least recently	Press and hold Shift + Alt, press Tab until you get to the window you want to open, then release.
Go to previous page in your browsing history	Alt + Left arrow
Go to the next page in your browsing history	Alt + Right arrow
Open the link in a new tab in the background	Press Ctrl and click a link
Open the link in a new tab and switch to the new tab	Press Ctrl + Shift and click a link
Open the link in a new window	Press Shift and click a link
Open the link in the tab	Drag the link to the tab's address bar
Open the link in a new tab	Drag the link to a blank area on the tab strip
Open the webpage in a new tab	Type a web address (URL) in the address bar, then press Alt + Enter
Return the tab to its original position	While dragging the tab, press Esc
Dock a window on the left	Alt + [ (left square bracket)
Maximize window	Alt + =
Minimize window	Alt + - (minus)
Dock a window on the right	Alt + ] (right square bracket)
Switch windows between screens (when your Chromebook is connected to a monitor)	Search + Alt + m (or) Launcher + Alt + m

Page & web browser

Page up	Alt + Up arrow
Page down	Alt + Down arrow
Scroll down the web page	Space bar
Go to top of page	Ctrl + Alt + Up arrow
Go to bottom of page	Ctrl + Alt + Down arrow
Print your current page	Ctrl + p
Save your current page	Ctrl + s
Reload your current page	Ctrl + r
Reload your current page without using cached content	Ctrl + Shift + r
Zoom in on the page	Ctrl and +
Zoom out on the page	Ctrl and - (minus)
Reset zoom level	Ctrl + 0
Stop the loading of your current page	Esc
Right-click a link	Press Alt and click a link
Open the link in a new tab in the background	Press Ctrl and click a link
Save the link as a bookmark	Drag link to bookmarks bar
Save your current webpage as a bookmark	Ctrl + d
Save all open pages in your current window as bookmarks in a new folder	Ctrl + Shift + d
Search the current page	Ctrl + f
Go to the next match for your search	Ctrl + g or Enter
Go to the previous match for your search	Ctrl + Shift + g or Shift + Enter
Go to an inactive information field	Alt + Shift + a
Perform a Google search	Ctrl + k (or) Ctrl + e
Add www. and .com to your input in the address bar, then open the page	Ctrl + Enter
Check page source	Ctrl + u
Show or hide the Developer Tools panel	Ctrl + Shift + i
Navigate to selected section in the Developer Tools panel	Ctrl + Shift + c
Open the Console tab in the Developer Tools panel	Ctrl + Shift + j
Show or hide the bookmarks bar	Ctrl + Shift + b
Show the toolbar	Alt + Shift + t
Navigate to selected selection in the Developer Tools panel	Ctrl + Shift + c
Open the History page	Ctrl + h
Open the Downloads page	Ctrl + j
Delete selected Autofill suggestion when filling out a form	Shift + Alt + Backspace

System & display settings

Open the Files app	Shift + Alt + m
Preview a file in the Files app	Select the file, then press Space
Display hidden files in the Files app	Ctrl + . (period)
Open the status area (where the time appears)	Shift + Alt + s
Click icons 1-8 on your shelf	Alt + 1 through Alt + 8
Click the last icon on your shelf	Alt + 9
Use function keys	Search + your preferred function key (or) Launcher + your preferred function key
Check your notifications	Shift + Alt + n
Change screen resolution	Ctrl + Shift and + or - (minus)
Reset screen resolution to default	Ctrl + Shift + 0
Rotate screen 90 degrees	Ctrl + Shift + Rotate
Switch to the next user	Ctrl + Alt + . (period)
Switch to the previous user	Ctrl + Alt + , (comma)

Text editing

Turn Caps Lock on or off	Search + Alt (or) Launcher + Alt
Select everything on the page	Ctrl + a
Select the content in the address bar	Ctrl + l or Alt + d
Select the next word or letter	Ctrl + Shift + Right arrow
Select text to the end of the line	Search + Shift + Right arrow (or) Launcher + Shift + Right arrow
Select text to the beginning of the line	Search + Shift + Left arrow (or) Launcher + Shift + Left arrow
Select previous word or letter	Ctrl + Shift + Left arrow
Move to the end of the next word	Ctrl + Right arrow
Move to the start of the previous word	Ctrl + Left arrow
Move to beginning of the line	Search + Left arrow (or) Launcher + Left arrow
Move to end of the line	Search + Right arrow (or) Launcher + Right Arrow
Go to end of document	Search + Ctrl + Right arrow (or) Launcher + Ctrl + Right arrow
Go to beginning of document	Search + Ctrl + Left arrow (or) Launcher + Ctrl + Left arrow
Open clipboard menu	Search + v (or) Launcher + v Tip: You can navigate the clipboard menu with the tab or arrow keys.
Copy selected content to the clipboard	Ctrl + c Tip: You can select up to 5 items to copy to your clipboard.
Paste content from the clipboard	Ctrl + v
Paste content when clipboard menu is open	Enter
Paste content from the clipboard as plain text	Ctrl + Shift + v
Cut	Ctrl + x
Delete the previous word	Ctrl + Backspace
Delete the next letter (forward delete)	Alt + Backspace
Undo your last action	Ctrl + z
Redo your last action	Ctrl + Shift + z
Switch between the keyboard languages you've set Learn how to choose your keyboard language.	Ctrl + Shift + Space
Switch to the previous keyboard language you were using. Learn how to choose your keyboard language.	Ctrl + Space
Dim keyboard (for backlit keyboards only)	Alt +
Make keyboard brighter (for backlit keyboards only)	Alt +
Insert an emoji	Search + Shift + Space (or) Launcher + Shift + Space

Text app

New file in a new tab	Ctrl + n
New file in a new window	Ctrl + Shift + n
Find in current file	Ctrl + f
Open file dialog	Ctrl + o
Delete line	Ctrl + d
Indent the current line by one indent unit	Ctrl + ]
Dedent the current line by one indent unit	Ctrl + [
Save current file	Ctrl + s
Save current file as dialog	Ctrl + Shift + s
Print current file	Ctrl + p
Jump to next file	Ctrl + Tab
Jump to previous file	Ctrl + Shift + Tab
Close current file	Ctrl + w
Close window	Ctrl + Shift + w
Show or hide sidebar	Alt + Space
Focus the sidebar	Ctrl + e
Zoom in	Ctrl + =
Zoom out	Ctrl + -
Reset zoom scale	Ctrl + 0

Accessibility

Learn how to make your Chromebook accessible.

Turn ChromeVox (spoken feedback) on or off	Ctrl + Alt + z
Turn on high contrast mode	Search + Ctrl + h (or) Launcher + Ctrl + h
Magnify your whole screen	Ctrl + Search + m (or) Ctrl + Launcher + m
Magnify part of your screen	Ctrl + Search + d (or) Ctrl + Launcher + d
Move around in fullscreen-magnifier mode	Ctrl + Alt + Up , Down , Left , or Right
Highlight the launcher button on your shelf	Shift + Alt + L
Highlight the next item on your shelf	Shift + Alt + L, then Tab (or) Shift + Alt + L, then Right arrow
Highlight the previous item on your shelf	Shift + Alt + L, then Shift + Tab (or) Shift + Alt + L, then Left arrow
Open the highlighted button on your shelf	Shift + Alt + L, then Space (or) Shift + Alt + L, then Enter
Remove the highlight from a button on your shelf	Shift + Alt + L, then Esc
Switch focus between: Status area (where the time appears) Launcher Address bar Bookmarks bar (if visible) The webpage that's open Downloads bar (if visible)	Ctrl + Back or Ctrl + Forward
Highlight the bookmarks bar (if shown)	Shift + Alt + b
Highlight the row with the address bar	Shift + Alt + t
Open right-click menu for highlighted item	Search + Shift + Increase volume (or) Launcher + Shift + Increase volume
Move an app icon up, down or to the side in the launcher	Ctrl + Up , Down , Left , or Right
Move an app in or out of a folder in the launcher	Ctrl + Shift + Up , Down , Left , or Right
Use shortcuts on a braille keyboard	Check braille keyboard shortcuts

Desks

Create a new desk	Shift + Search + =
Switch to a desk on the left or right	Search + [ or ] (left or right square bracket)
Switch to a specific desk	Shift + Search + [desk position number]
Move a window to a different desk	Shift + Search + [ or ] (left or right square bracket)
Move a window to all desks	Shift + Search + a
Display all windows in your desk	Alt + Tab
Display a different window in your desk	Hold Alt and press Tab
Display a different window in your current desk	Select Current desk
Display windows across all desks	Select All desks

Set F11 & F12 keys

You can remap the F11 and F12 keys.

Important: These key options assume that the keyboard has Back in F1 position and Refresh in F2 position.

On your Chromebook, at the bottom right, select the time.
Go to Settings .
Select Device Keyboard and inputs.
Under “Built-in Keyboard,” select Customize keyboard keys.
Next to "F11" or "F12," select the shortcut you want from the dropdown menu.

For Chromebook keyboards with less than 12 top row keys:

The key options for F11 if top-row keys as function keys are on:
- Disabled
- Shift + Back
- Alt + Back
- Ctrl + Shift + Back
The key options for F11 if top-row keys as function keys are off:
- Disabled
- Search + Shift + Back
- Search + Alt + Back
- Search + Ctrl + Shift + Back
The key options for F12 if top-row keys as function keys are on:
- Disabled
- Shift + Refresh
- Alt + Refresh
- Ctrl + Shift + Refresh
The key options for F12 if top-row keys as function keys are off:
- Turned off
- Search + Shift + Refresh
- Search + Alt + Refresh
- Search + Ctrl + Shift + Refresh

Tip: This setting is disabled by default.

Related resources

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