Word Keyboard Shortcuts: 50 Best Shortcuts + Printable Cheat Sheet

Start with these

Here are 50 Word shortcuts for creating, reviewing, navigating and formatting documents, from everyday essentials to power-user tricks.

Ctrl+N

Create a new document

Ctrl+O

Open a document

Ctrl+S

Save the document

Ctrl+P

Print the document

Ctrl+W

Close the document

Ctrl+Z

Undo the previous action

Ctrl+Y

Redo the previous action

Ctrl+F

Open the Navigation pane search

Basics

Shortcut	What it does	Level
`Ctrl`+`N`	Create a new document	Essential
`Ctrl`+`O`	Open a document	Essential
`Ctrl`+`S`	Save the document	Essential
`Ctrl`+`P`	Print the document	Essential
`Ctrl`+`W`	Close the document	Essential
`F12`	Open the Save As dialog	Time-saver

Edit

Shortcut	What it does	Level
`Ctrl`+`Z`	Undo the previous action	Essential
`Ctrl`+`Y`	Redo the previous action	Essential
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`V`	Paste text only	Time-saver
`Shift`+`F3`	Cycle the case of the selected text	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Backspace`	Delete the previous word	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Delete`	Delete the next word	Time-saver

Find

Shortcut	What it does	Level	Link
`Ctrl`+`F`	Open the Navigation pane search	Essential
`Ctrl`+`H`	Find and replace text	Time-saver

Navigate

Shortcut	What it does	Level
`Ctrl`+`G`	Open Go To	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Home`	Move to the beginning of the document	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`End`	Move to the end of the document	Time-saver
`Shift`+`F5`	Go to the previous edit location	Power user

Select

Shortcut	What it does	Level	Link
`Ctrl`+`A`	Select all document content	Essential

Format

Shortcut	What it does	Level
`Ctrl`+`B`	Apply bold formatting	Essential
`Ctrl`+`I`	Apply italic formatting	Essential
`Ctrl`+`U`	Apply underline formatting	Essential
`Ctrl`+`L`	Align text to the left	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`E`	Center text	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`R`	Align text to the right	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`J`	Justify text	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`]`	Increase font size by 1 point	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`[`	Decrease font size by 1 point	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Spacebar`	Remove manual character formatting	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`A`	Toggle all capitals formatting	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`K`	Toggle small capitals formatting	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Equal`	Apply subscript formatting	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`Plus`	Apply superscript formatting	Power user
`Ctrl`+`1`	Apply single line spacing	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`2`	Apply double line spacing	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`5`	Apply 1.5 line spacing	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`M`	Indent a paragraph from the left	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`M`	Remove a paragraph indent from the left	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`T`	Create a hanging indent	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`T`	Reduce a hanging indent	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Q`	Remove paragraph formatting	Time-saver
`Alt`+`Ctrl`+`1`	Apply the Heading 1 style	Time-saver
`Alt`+`Ctrl`+`2`	Apply the Heading 2 style	Time-saver
`Alt`+`Ctrl`+`3`	Apply the Heading 3 style	Time-saver

Insert

Shortcut	What it does	Level
`Ctrl`+`K`	Insert a hyperlink	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Enter`	Insert a page break	Essential
`Alt`+`Shift`+`Minus`	Insert a non-breaking hyphen	Power user
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`Spacebar`	Insert a non-breaking space	Power user

Review

Shortcut	What it does	Level	Link
`Ctrl`+`Alt`+`M`	Insert a new comment	Time-saver
`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`E`	Turn Track Changes on or off	Time-saver

Pro tip: Ctrl+Shift+V pastes as plain text in Microsoft 365 versions of Word, so pasted content picks up your document's formatting instead of bringing messy styles with it.

Word how-to guides

Step-by-step answers to common Word questions.

Ctrl+Shift+VHow to paste without formatting in Word, Teams and Edge Shift+F3How to change text to uppercase or lowercase in Word Ctrl+EnterHow to insert a page break in Word Ctrl+Shift+=How to do superscript and subscript in Word Ctrl+Shift+SpacebarHow to insert a non-breaking space in Word Ctrl+HHow to find and replace in Word Ctrl+Shift+EHow to turn on Track Changes in Word Ctrl+Alt+MHow to add a comment in Word Ctrl+Alt+1How to apply heading styles in Word Ctrl+2How to double space in Word Ctrl+KHow to insert a hyperlink in Word Ctrl+SpacebarHow to clear formatting in Word

Frequently asked questions

What are the most useful Word shortcuts?

Start with these essentials: Ctrl+N (create a new document); Ctrl+O (open a document); Ctrl+S (save the document); Ctrl+P (print the document); Ctrl+W (close the document).

How do I select a whole sentence or paragraph in Word?

Hold Ctrl and click anywhere in a sentence to select it. To select by keyboard, use Ctrl+Shift+Down Arrow to extend the selection to the end of the paragraph.

How do I change text to capitals in Word?

Select the text and press Shift+F3. Each press cycles through lowercase, UPPERCASE and Capitalise Each Word.

Do these Word shortcuts work on a Mac?

This list shows Windows shortcuts. On a Mac, Ctrl is usually replaced by Cmd and Alt by Option, though some shortcuts differ. On our homepage you can switch the keyboard layout to Mac to see the Mac versions.

Can I print this Word cheat sheet?

Yes. Use the Print cheat sheet button at the top of this page to print a compact version, or save it as a PDF. It's free to share with your team.

Make them stick

Reading a list is a start. Practising is what builds muscle memory. Try the free practice mode, earn XP and track your streak.

Practise Word shortcuts Download the PDF cheat sheet

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Start with these

Basics

Edit

Find

Navigate

Select

Format

Insert

Review

Word how-to guides

Frequently asked questions

Make them stick

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More Microsoft 365 shortcuts