When did stuff stop coming with users manuals? (Probably when everyone stopped reading them! 🙂 ) Well, I guess there are users manuals for Microsoft Windows and Office but they’re online. And, still, nobody probably reads them (including me). But, there are some valuable tidbits hidden in all those instructions, including keyboard shortcuts that can help make you work faster and more efficiently. So, instead of making you dig through all those manuals we compiled a list of some of the more helpful Microsoft Office and Windows keyboard shortcuts for your quick reference. We also put together a quick cheat sheet of these windows shortcut keys that you can print out for reference.
Note: The list below includes shortcuts for Windows 10 but many also work on previous versions of Windows and Office.
Keyboard Shortcuts to Access Settings and Computer Controls
The shortcut keys listed below work in Windows and are used for accessing Windows settings and computer controls.
Note: The “win” listed below is used to represent the Windows key on your keyboard.
- win Open or close start menu
- win + L Lock your PC or switch accounts
- win + S Open search
- win + C Open Cortana (must be turned on)
- win + B et focus on notification area (lower right)
- win + I Open settings
- win + E Open File Explorer
- win + R Open run dialog box
- win + A Display action center
- win + H Open share center
- win + K Open quick connect area
- win + U Open ease of access window
- win + X Open quick link menu
- win + Pause Show system properties
- win + Ctrl + F Search for PC’s on network
- win + Enter Open the narrator
Shortcuts to Control your Display and Active Windows
Windows was named after its capability for allowing users to have multiple applications, or windows, open at the same time on their computer. With newer versions of Windows, Microsoft has enhanced that capability by allowing us to resize and re-position the windows for easier access to multiple programs at once. You can accomplish this re-sizing and re-positioning with your mouse but these keyboard shortcuts make it much faster.
Note: The “win” listed below is used to represent the Windows key on your keyboard.
- win + plus(+) Zoom in
- win + minus (-) Zoom out
- win + Esc Exit magnifier
- win + O Lock screen orientation
- win + P Select screen display mode (multiple monitors)
- win +D Display or hide the desktop
- win + M Minimize all windows
- win + Shift + M Restore minimized windows
- win + Tab Temporarily look at desktop
- win + up arrow Maximize current window
- win + down arrow Minimize the current window
- win + left arrow Maximize the current window on the left side of the scree
- win + right arrow Maximize the current window on the right side of the screen
- win + Home Minimize all windows but the current active one
- win + Shift + up arrow Stretch the current window to the maximum height
- win + Shift + down arrow Minimize the current window back to its previous height
- win + Shift + left arrow Move the current window to another monitor
- win + Shift + right arrow Move the current window to another monitor
Virtual Desktop Shortcuts
Virtual desktops give you the ability to keep your work organized if you’re working on several things at once by separating the open windows onto separate “desktops”. HowToGeek gives a great little tutorial on how to use virtual desktops in this post. Some of the quick shortcuts you’ll want to know if you use virtual desktops are:
Note: The “win” listed below is used to represent the Windows key on your keyboard.
- win + Ctrl + D Add a virtual desktop
- win + Ctrl + F4 Close the current virtual desktop
- win + Ctrl + left arrow Switch between virtual desktops
- win + Ctrl + right arrow Switch between virtual desktops
Shortcuts to Control Your Apps Pinned to the Taskbar
Pinning apps and applications to your taskbar shouldn’t be anything new to most users. But, these shortcuts may be eye-opening. You can open and switch to those favorite apps of yours using some keyboard shortcuts listed below. Just use the position they are in on your taskbar in the shortcuts below. (For example, to use these shortcuts to open the 2nd app in your taskbar, use the number 2 with the following shortcuts.)
Note: The “win” listed below is used to represent the Windows key on your keyboard.
- win + number Open app pinned to taskbar in this location
- win + Shift + number Opens a NEW window of the app pinned to taskbar in this location
- win + Ctrl + number Switch to the last active window of the app pinned to taskbar in this location
- win + Alt + number Open the jump list for the app pinned to taskbar in this location
- win + Ctrl + Shift + number Opens app (as an administrator) pinned to taskbar in this location
Generic Microsoft Keyboard Shortcuts
Here is a list of oldies but goodies. These shortcuts can be used throughout most Microsoft Windows and Office programs (and usually beyond) and are, therefore, extremely helpful.
- Ctrl + C Copy the selected item
- Ctrl + X Cut the selected item
- Ctrl + V Paste the item
- Ctrl + A Select all items
- Ctrl + Z Undo
- Ctrl + Y Redo
- Ctrl + right arrow Move cursor to beginning of next word
- Ctrl + left arrow Move cursor to beginning of previous word
- Ctrl + down arrow Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
- Ctrl + up arrow Move cursor to beginning of previous paragraph
- Alt + Tab Switch between open apps
- Alt + F4 Close the active app
There are more shortcuts listed by Microsoft on their reference page but the ones above are probably the most helpful for the common computer user. So helpful, in fact, that we’ve created a printable cheat sheet you can keep by your computer for reference. We’re giving away this printable to all of our email members. To receive your keyboard shortcut cheat sheet simply sign up below to download a free copy.
thank you for sharing. this was very helpful and i really appreciate how you organized it!
I’m glad you found it useful. Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. 🙂
Amy