---
title: "macOS Keyboard Shortcuts Cheatsheet"
slug: "macos-keyboard"
category: "cheatsheets"
tags: ["cheatsheets", "macos", "keyboard", "shortcuts", "reference", "productivity", "finder"]
status: "stable"
last_updated: 2026-05-14
summary: "macOS keyboard shortcuts for Finder, screenshots, window management, terminal, text editing, and system navigation."
related:
  [
    "[[cheatsheets/keyboard-shortcuts-vscode]]",
    "[[cheatsheets/vim-commands]]",
    "[[cheatsheets/tmux-commands]]",
    "[[cheatsheets/bash-one-liners]]",
    "[[coding/shell]]",
    "[[tooling/claude-code-workflow]]",
    "[[cheatsheets/index|Cheatsheets]]",
  ]
---

## Overview

Modifier key symbols: Cmd (Command) = `⌘`, Opt (Option/Alt) = `⌥`, Ctrl = `^`, Shift = `⇧`, Fn = `fn`. All shortcuts below use these symbols. For terminal-specific shortcuts, see [[cheatsheets/bash-one-liners]]. For editor shortcuts, see [[cheatsheets/keyboard-shortcuts-vscode]].

## Finder shortcuts

| Shortcut | Action |
| --- | --- |
| `⌘ N` | New Finder window. |
| `⌘ T` | New tab in the same window. |
| `⌘ ⇧ N` | New folder. |
| `⌘ O` or `⌘ ↓` | Open selected item. |
| `⌘ ↑` | Go to the parent folder. |
| `⌘ [` / `⌘ ]` | Go back / forward. |
| `⌘ ⇧ G` | Go to folder (type any path, supports `~` and `/`). |
| `⌘ ⇧ H` | Go to Home folder. |
| `⌘ ⇧ D` | Go to Desktop. |
| `⌘ ⇧ A` | Go to Applications. |
| `⌘ ⇧ U` | Go to Utilities. |
| `Space` | Quick Look preview of selected item. |
| `⌘ I` | Get Info (file metadata, permissions). |
| `⌘ Delete` | Move to Trash. |
| `⌘ ⇧ Delete` | Empty Trash (with confirm). |
| `Return` | Rename selected file (press Return again to confirm). |
| `⌘ D` | Duplicate selected item. |
| `⌘ L` | Make alias. |
| `⌥ drag` | Copy instead of move on drag. |
| `⌘ ⇧ .` | Toggle hidden files visibility (macOS 10.12+). |

## Screenshot shortcuts

| Shortcut | What it captures | Output |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `⌘ ⇧ 3` | Full screen. | File on Desktop. |
| `⌘ ⇧ 4` | Drag to select region. | File on Desktop. |
| `⌘ ⇧ 4` then `Space` | Click to capture window/menu. | File on Desktop. |
| `⌘ ⇧ 5` | Screenshot toolbar (video, region, options). | Configurable. |
| `⌘ ⇧ 6` | Touch Bar (MacBooks with Touch Bar). | File on Desktop. |
| Add `^ (Ctrl)` to any above | Same as above but copies to clipboard instead of saving. | Clipboard only. |

```
⌘ ⇧ 4 → Space → click window  # Window-only capture with shadow
^ ⌘ ⇧ 4                        # Region capture to clipboard (paste into Slack, etc.)
```

## Window management

| Shortcut | Action |
| --- | --- |
| `⌘ Tab` | App switcher (hold, press Tab to cycle). |
| `⌘ `` ` `` ` | Cycle windows of the same app. |
| `⌘ W` | Close the current window/tab. |
| `⌘ ⌥ W` | Close all windows of the current app. |
| `⌘ Q` | Quit the current app. |
| `⌘ ⌥ Esc` | Force Quit dialog. |
| `⌘ H` | Hide the current app. |
| `⌘ ⌥ H` | Hide all other apps. |
| `⌘ M` | Minimize window to Dock. |
| `^ ↑` | Mission Control (all windows). |
| `^ ↓` | App Expose (all windows of current app). |
| `^ ←` / `^ →` | Move to adjacent Space (virtual desktop). |
| `^ 1` ... `^ 9` | Jump to a numbered Space. |
| `fn F` or green button | Enter full screen. |
| Hold `⌥` click green button | Tile window to half screen. |

## Text editing (universal)

These work in any text field across macOS applications.

| Shortcut | Action |
| --- | --- |
| `⌘ A` | Select all. |
| `⌘ Z` / `⌘ ⇧ Z` | Undo / Redo. |
| `⌥ ←` / `⌥ →` | Move cursor one word left / right. |
| `⌘ ←` / `⌘ →` | Move to start / end of line. |
| `⌘ ↑` / `⌘ ↓` | Move to document start / end. |
| `⌥ Delete` | Delete word to the left. |
| `⌘ Delete` (text field) | Delete to start of line. |
| `^ K` | Delete to end of line (Emacs-style; works in most fields). |
| `^ A` / `^ E` | Move to start / end of line (Emacs-style). |
| `⌘ ;` | Spell check next error. |
| `⌘ :` | Open spell check window. |
| `^ ⌘ Space` | Character viewer (emoji and symbols). |
| `⌘ ⌥ F` | Find and replace (in document editors). |

## System and Spotlight

| Shortcut | Action |
| --- | --- |
| `⌘ Space` | Open Spotlight. |
| `⌥ ⌘ Space` | Open Finder search in Spotlight. |
| `⌘ ⌥ D` | Show/hide Dock. |
| `^ ⌘ Q` | Lock screen immediately. |
| `⌘ ⌥ Eject` (or Power) | Sleep. |
| `^ ⌥ ⌘ Eject` | Quit all apps and shut down. |
| `⌘ ,` | Open preferences for the current app. |
| `⌘ ?` | Open Help for the current app. |
| `⌘ ⇧ /` | Open Help menu search field. |
| `⌥ click` menu bar icon | Extended info (Wi-Fi diagnostics, volume device list). |
| `fn Delete` | Forward delete (on keyboards without a dedicated key). |

## Common gotchas

- `⌘ W` closes a tab or window but keeps the app running. Use `⌘ Q` to quit. Many beginners close all windows and assume the app stopped.
- `^ ` `` ` `` ` (Ctrl + backtick) cycles windows within the same app, but only when they are not minimized. Minimized windows do not appear in the cycle.
- Screenshots default to the Desktop. Change the save location in `⌘ ⇧ 5` options.
- `⌘ ⇧ .` shows hidden files in Finder and Open/Save dialogs, but not in the path bar. Toggle it off when done to keep the view clean.
- `⌥ drag` copies files only when dragging between folders in Finder. Dragging between two windows of the same folder still moves the file.
- `^ A` and `^ E` (Emacs start/end-of-line) work in Spotlight, Terminal, and most Cocoa text fields but not in some Electron apps.

## Related

- [[cheatsheets/keyboard-shortcuts-vscode]]
- [[cheatsheets/vim-commands]]
- [[cheatsheets/tmux-commands]]
- [[cheatsheets/bash-one-liners]]
- [[coding/shell]]
- [[tooling/claude-code-workflow]]
- [[cheatsheets/index|Cheatsheets]]