Basic PC shortcut keys | PC shortcut keys for Special Characters

Shortcut keys ABCs

Shortcut keys help provide an easier and usually quicker method of navigating and executing commands in computer software programs. Shortcut keys are commonly accessed by using the Alt key (on IBM compatible computers),Command key (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" is telling you to press and hold the Ctrl key, and then press the S key too.

In addition to the shortcuts listed on this page, users can find the shortcut keys to their most popular program by looking forunderlined letters in their menus. For example, the image to the right has an underline on the "F" in File, which means you can press the Alt key and then the "F" key to access the File menu.

Some programs require the user to press and hold Alt to see the underlined characters. In the same image above, you can see that some of the common 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 the same shortcut keys. We have a list of the most commonly shared ones in the basic PC shortcut keys section.

Tip: Users outside the United States or who have a foreign copy of Microsoft Windows or a Microsoft application may not be able to use all of the below shortcut keys.

Basic PC shortcut keys

Below is a list of some of the most commonly used basic shortcut keys that work with almost all IBM compatible computers and software programs. It is highly recommended that all users keep a good reference of these shortcut keys or try to memorize them. Doing so will dramatically increase your productivity.

Tip: Besides the special character shortcuts listed here, some special characters are also located on the number keys (below the F1 - F12 keys). You can enter these special characters by pressing the Shift key and the number key that has the special character listed on it.

Shortcut Keys	Description
Alt + F	File menu options in current program.
Alt + E	Edit options in current program
Alt + Tab	Switch between open programs
F1	Universal Help in almost every Windows program.
F2	Rename a selected file
F5	Refresh the current program window
Ctrl + N	Create a new, blank document in some software programs
Ctrl + O	Open a file in current software program
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 + K	Insert hyperlink for selected text
Ctrl + P	Print the current page or document.
Home	Goes to beginning of current line.
Ctrl + Home	Goes to beginning of document.
End	Goes to end of current line.
Ctrl + End	Goes to end of document.
Shift + Home	Highlights from current position to beginning of line.
Shift + End	Highlights from current position to end of line.
Ctrl + Left arrow	Moves one word to the left at a time.
Ctrl + Right arrow	Moves one word to the right at a time.
Ctrl + Esc	Opens the START menu
Ctrl + Shift + Esc	Opens Windows Task Manager
Alt + F4	Close the currently active program
Alt + Enter	Open the Properties for the selected item (file, folder, shortcut, etc.)

PC shortcut keys for Special Characters

There are many special characters that 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)

A-Z Shortcut Keys in Microsoft Word

• F1 key — Get help or use the Office assistant
• SHIFT and F1 Key — Context sensitive help
• F2 Key — Move text or image
• SHIFT + F2 Key — Copy text
• F3 Key — Insert an autotext entry
• SHIFT + F3 Key — Change the case of the selected text
• F4 Key — Perform last action again
• SHIFT + F4 Key — Perform a Find or Go to action again
• F5 Key — Displays the Go to dialogue box. You can also get to Find and Replace from here
• SHIFT + F5 Key — Move to a previous revision
• F6 Key — Go to the next frame or pane
• SHIFT + F6 Key — Go to the previous frame or pane
• F7 Key — Launch the Spell checker
• SHIFT + F7 Key — Launch the Thesaurus
• F8 Key — Extend the current selection
• SHIFT + F8 Key — Shrink the current selection
• F9 Key — Update the selected fields
• SHIFT + F9 Key — Switch between a field code and its result
• F10 Key — Activate the menu bar
• SHIFT + F10 Key — Display a Shortcut Menu (same as right-clicking)
• F11 Key — Go to the next field
• SHIFT + F11 Key — Go to the previous field
• F12 Key — Save file As, equivalent to tools menu
• SHIFT + F12 Key — Save document, equivalent to tools menu
• CTRL and A — Selects all in the current document
• CTRL and B — Bold text
• CTRL and C — Copies the item or text to the Clipboard and can be pasted using CTRL and V
• CTRL and D — Displays the Font dialogue box
• CTRL and E — Centre Alignment
• CTRL and F — Displays the Find dialog box, to search the current document
• CTRL and G — Displays the Go to dialog box, to go to a specific location in the current document
• CTRL and H — Displays the Replace dialogue box
• CTRL and I — Italic text
• CTRL and J — Full Justification
• CTRL and K — Create Hyperlink
• CTRL and L — Left Alignment
• CTRL and M — Tab
• CTRL and N — Creates a new document
• CTRL and O — Displays the Open File dialogue box
• CTRL and P — Displays the Print dialog box
• CTRL and R — Right Alignment
• CTRL and S — Displays the Save dialog box
• CTRL and U — Underline text
• CTRL and V — Pastes the copied item or text from the Clipboard into the current position in the document
• CTRL and X — Cuts the item or text selected to the Clipboard
• CTRL and Y — Redo the last undone action
• CTRL and Z — Undoes the last action
• CTRL and ENTER — Insert Page Break
• CTRL and F2 — Show Print preview
• CTRL and F4 — Closes the active document window
• CTRL and F6 — Opens the next document window

Windows Shortcut Keys

Windows key + R — Run menu
Windows key + E — Explorer
ALT + Tab — Switch between windows

ALT + Space + X — Maximize window

CTRL + Shift + Esc — Task Manager

Windows key + Break — System properties

Windows key + F — Search

Windows key + D — Hide/Display all windows

CTRL + C — Copy

CTRL + X — Cut

CTRL + V — Paste

Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows

[Alt] + [Esc] — Switch between running applications
[Alt] + letter — Select menu item by underlined letter

[Ctrl] + [Esc] — Open Program Menu

[Ctrl] + [F4] — Close active document or group windows (does not work with some applications)

[Alt] + [F4] — Quit active application or close current window

[Alt] + [-] — Open Control menu for active document

Ctrl] Lft. + Rt. arrow — Move cursor forward or back one word

Ctrl] Up + Down arrow — Move cursor forward or back one paragraph

[F1] — Open Help for active application

Windows + M — Minimize all open windows

Shift+Windows + M — Undo minimize all open windows

Windows + F1 — Open Windows Help

Windows + Tab — Cycle through the Taskbar buttons

Windows + Break — Open the System Properties dialog box

Accessability Shortcuts

• Right SHIFT for eight seconds — Switch FilterKeys on and off
• Left ALT + left SHIFT + PRINT SCREEN — Switch High Contrast on and off
• Left ALT + left SHIFT +NUM LOCK — Switch MouseKeys on and off
• SHIFT five times — Switch StickyKeys on and off
• NUM LOCK for five seconds — Switch ToggleKeys on and off

Explorer Shortcuts

• END — Display the bottom of the active window
• HOME — Display the top of the active window
• NUM LOCK + ASTERISK — on numeric keypad (*) Display all subfolders under the selected folder
• NUM LOCK + PLUS SIGN — on numeric keypad (+) Display the contents of the selected folder
• NUM LOCK + MINUS SIGN — on numeric keypad (-) Collapse the selected folder
• LEFT ARROW — Collapse current selection if it's expanded, or select parent folder
• RIGHT ARROW — Display current selection if it's collapsed, or select first subfolder

System Commands

Type the following commands in your Run Box (Windows Key + R) or Start Run

• devmgmt.msc — Device Manager
  

• msinfo32 — System Information
  
• cleanmgr — Disk Cleanup
  
• ntbackup — Backup or Restore Wizard (Windows Backup Utility)
  
• mmc — Microsoft Management Console
  
• excel — Microsoft Excel (If Installed)
  
• msaccess — Microsoft Access (If Installed)
  
• powerpnt — Microsoft PowerPoint (If Installed)
  
• winword — Microsoft Word (If Installed)
  
• frontpg — Microsoft FrontPage (If Installed)
  
• notepad — Notepad
  
• wordpad — WordPad
  
• calc — Calculator
  
• msmsgs — Windows Messenger
  
• mspaint — Microsoft Paint
  
• wmplayer — Windows Media Player
  
• rstrui — System Restore
  
• netscp6 — Netscape 6.x
  
• netscp — Netscape 7.x
  
• netscape — Netscape 4.x
  
• waol — America Online
  
• control — Opens the Control Panel
  
• control printers — Opens the Printers Dialog
  
• cmd — Command Prompt
  
• iexplore + "web address" — Internet Explorer
  
• compmgmt.msc — Computer Management
  
• dhcpmgmt.msc — DHCP Management
  
• dnsmgmt.msc — DNS Management
  
• services.msc — Services
  
• eventvwr — Event Viewer
  
• dsa.msc — Active Directory Users and Computers
  
• dssite.msc — Active Directory Sites and Services
  

Internet Explorer Shortcut Keys

• Alt + Left Arrow — Back a page
  
• Backspace — Back a page
  
• Alt + Right Arrow — Forward a page
  
• F5 — Refresh current page, frame, or tab
  
• F11 — Display the current website in full screen mode. Pressing F11 again will exit this mode
  
• Esc — Stop page or download from loading
  
• Ctrl + (- or +) — Increase or decrease the font size, pressing '-' will decrease and '+' will increase
  
• Ctrl + Enter — Quickly complete an address. For example, type google in the address bar and press CTRL + ENTER to get http://www.google.com
  
• Ctrl + D — Add a Favorite for the page currently opened
  
• Ctrl + I — Display available bookmarks
  
• Ctrl + N — Open New browser window
  
• Ctrl + P — Print current page / frame
  
• Ctrl + T — Opens a new tab
  
• Ctrl + F4 — Closes the currently selected tab
  
• Ctrl + Tab — Moves through each of the open tabs
  
• Spacebar — Moves down a page at a time
  
• Shift + Spacebar — Moves up a page at a time
  
• Alt + Down arrow — Display all previous text entered in a text box and/or available options on drop down menu
  

Mozilla Firefox Shortcut Keys

• Alt + Left Arrow — Back a page
  

• Backspace — Back a page
  

• Alt + Right Arrow — Forward a page
  

• F5 — Refresh current page, frame, or tab
  

• F11 — Display the current website in full screen mode. Pressing F11 again will exit this mode
  

• Esc — Stop page or download from loading
  

• Ctrl + (- or +) — Increase or decrease the font size, pressing '-' will decrease and '+' will increase
  

• Ctrl + Enter — Quickly complete an address. For example, type google in the address bar and press CTRL + ENTER to get http://www.google.com
  

• Shift + Enter — Complete a .net instead of a .com address
  

• Ctrl + Shift + Enter — Complete a .org address
  

• Ctrl + Shift + Del — Open the Clear Data window to quickly clear private data
  

• Ctrl + D — Add a bookmark for the page currently opened
  

• Ctrl + I — Display available bookmarks
  

• Ctrl + J — Display the download window
  

• Ctrl + N — Open New browser window
  

• Ctrl + P — Print current page / frame
  

• Ctrl + T — Opens a new tab
  

• Ctrl + F4 — Closes the currently selected tab
  

• Ctrl + Shift + T — Undo the close of a window
  

• Ctrl + Tab — Moves through each of the open tabs
  

• Spacebar — Moves down a page at a time
  

• Shift + Spacebar — Moves up a page at a time
  

• Alt + Down arrow — Display all previous text entered in a text box and/or available options on drop down menu
  

Microsoft Excel Shortcut Keys

• F2 — Edit the selected cell
• F5 — Go to a specific cell. For example, C6
• F7 — Spell check selected text and/or document
• F11 — Create chart
• Ctrl + Shift + — Enter the current time
• Ctrl + — Enter the current date
• Alt + Shift + F1 — Insert New Worksheet
• Shift + F3 — Open the Excel formula window
• Shift + F5 — Bring up search box
• Ctrl + A — Select all contents of the worksheet
• Ctrl + B — Bold highlighted selection
• Ctrl + I — Italic highlighted selection
• Ctrl + K — Insert link
• Ctrl + U — Underline highlighted selection
• Ctrl + 5 — Strikethrough highlighted selection
• Ctrl + P — Bring up the print dialog box to begin printing
• Ctrl + Z — Undo last action
• Ctrl + F9 — Minimize current window
• Ctrl + F10 — Maximize currently selected window
• Ctrl + F6 — Switch between open workbooks / windows
• Ctrl + Page up — Move between Excel work sheets in the same Excel document
• Ctrl + Page down — Move between Excel work sheets in the same Excel document
• Ctrl + Tab — Move between Two or more open Excel files
• Alt + = — Create a formula to add all of the above cells
• Ctrl + ' — Insert the value of the above cell into cell currently selected
• Ctrl + Shift + ! — Format number in comma format
• Ctrl + Shift + $ — Format number in currency format
• Ctrl + Shift + # — Format number in date format
• Ctrl + Shift + % — Format number in percentage format
• Ctrl + Shift + ^ — Format number in scientific format
• Ctrl + Shift + @ — Format number in time format
• Ctrl + Arrow key — Move to next section of text
• Ctrl + Space — Select entire column
• Shift + Space — Select entire row

Background: What Is a Shortcut?

In computing, a keyboard shortcut is a finite set of one or more keys that invoke a software or operating system operation when triggered by the user.
Keyboard shortcuts are typically an alternate means for invoking one or more commands that would otherwise be accessible only through a menu, a pointing device, different levels of a user interface, or via a command console. Keyboard shortcuts generally expedite common operations by reducing input sequences to a few keystrokes, hence the term "shortcut".
Shortcut keys help provide an easier and usually quicker method of navigating and using computer software programs. Shortcut keys are commonly accessed by using the Alt (on IBM compatible computers), command key (on Apple computers), Ctrl, and/or Shift in conjunction with a single letter.

How to Create a Windows Shortcut Key

CREATE A SHORTCUT

1. Open the folder or directory that contains the program you wish to create a shortcut for.
2. Right-click on the program and click "Create Shortcut".
3. This will create a shortcut named "Shortcut to <your program>" in the directory you are in. If you wish to rename this shortcut, right-click the file and click rename.
4. Once the above steps have been completed, you can copy or cut this shortcut and paste it anywhere to execute this program.

ASSIGN SHORTCUT KEY TO THAT WINDOWS SHORTCUT

Once the shortcut has been created to assign a shortcut key to that Windows shortcut follow the below steps.

1. Right-click the shortcut and click Properties.
2. Click the Shortcut tab.
3. Click in the Shortcut key box and press a letter. For example, if you press "p" the shortcut key will automatically be made Ctrl + Alt + P. Which means if saved when pressing Ctrl and Alt and "P" all at the same time will run that shortcut.