You can use keyboard shortcuts to complete some tasks more quickly. To find shortcuts on this page, press Ctrl f and enter what you want to find.
To find keyboard shortcuts in your Chromebook:
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Important: This article is only for US Chromebook users with a standard English QWERTY keyboard. If you have an international keyboard, go to Settings 
Popular shortcuts
- Take a screenshot: Press Ctrl Show Windows
- Take a partial screenshot: Press Shift Ctrl Show windows
, then click and drag.
- Take a screenshot on tablets: Press Power button Volume down button.
- To access more screenshot features: Press Shift Ctrl Show windows
- To access more screenshot features on tablets: Press and hold the Power button
- Turn Caps Lock on or off: Press Search
Alt. Or press Launcher
Alt.
- Lock your screen: Press Search
- Sign out of your Google Account: Press Shift Ctrl q (twice).
- Check all keyboard shortcuts: Press Ctrl Alt / (forward slash).
Shortcuts on external keyboards
If you’re using a Windows or Mac keyboard, press the Windows key or Command key instead of Search key
To change how a specific keyboard key works:
- At the bottom right, select the time. Or press Alt Shift s.
- Select Settings
.
- Under "Device," choose Keyboard.
- Change the function of one or more keys.
All other shortcuts
Important: Depending on your keyboard, you can press the Search key
| Open a new window | Ctrl n |
| Open a new window in Incognito mode | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl w |
| Reopen the last tab or window you closed | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl Tab |
| Switch quickly between windows | Press & hold Alt, tap Tab until you get to the window you want to open, then release. You can also press & hold Alt, then tap Tab, and select a window with the left or right arrow keys, mouse, or touch. |
| Open the window you used least recently | Press & hold Shift Alt, tap 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 Shift Ctrl 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 |
| 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl i |
| Navigate to selected section in the Developer Tools panel | Ctrl Shift c |
| Open the Console tab in the Developer Tools panel | Shift Ctrl j |
| Show or hide the bookmarks bar | Shift Ctrl 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 |
| 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 | Shift Ctrl and or - (minus) |
| Reset screen resolution to default | Shift Ctrl 0 |
| Rotate screen 90 degrees | Shift Ctrl Rotate  |
| Switch to the next user | Ctrl Alt . (period) |
| Switch to the previous user | Ctrl Alt , (comma) |
| 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Launcher v (or) Search vTip: 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 five 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 | Shift Ctrl 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 | Shift Ctrl z |
|
Switch between the keyboard languages you've set |
Shift Ctrl Space |
|
Switch to the previous keyboard language you were using. |
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 |
| 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 |
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:
|
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 |
| 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 |
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
- 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:
- Disabled
- Search Shift Refresh
- Search Alt Refresh
- Search Ctrl Shift Refresh
Tip: This setting is disabled by default.
