Microsoft Word and Excel shortcut keys

Microsoft Word shortcut keys

Below is a listing of all the major shortcut keys in Microsoft Word. See our main shortcut page if you're looking for other shortcut keys used in other programs.

Shortcut KeysDescription

Ctrl + A Select all contents of the page.
Ctrl + B Bold highlighted selection.Ctrl + C Copy selected text.Ctrl + X Cut selected text.Ctrl + P Open the print window.Ctrl + F Open find box.Ctrl + I Italic highlighted selection.Ctrl + K Insert link.Ctrl + U Underline highlighted selection.Ctrl + V Paste.Ctrl + Y Redo the last action performed.Ctrl + Z Undo last action.Ctrl + L Aligns the line or selected text to the left of the screen.Ctrl + E Aligns the line or selected text to the center of the screen.Ctrl + R Aligns the line or selected text to the right of the screen.Ctrl + M Indent the paragraph.Ctrl + Shift + F Change the font.Ctrl + Shift + > Increase selected font +1pts up to 12pt and then increases font +2pts.Ctrl + ] Increase selected font +1pts.Ctrl + Shift + < Decrease selected font -1pts if 12pt or lower, if above 12 decreases font by +2pt.Ctrl + [ Decrease selected font -1pts.Ctrl + Shift + * View or hide non printing characters.Ctrl + Moves one word to the left.Ctrl + Moves one word to the right.Ctrl + Moves to the beginning of the line or paragr aph.Ctrl + Moves to the end of the paragraph.Ctrl + Del Deletes word to right of cursor.Ctrl + Backspace Deletes word to left of cursor.Ctrl + End Moves the cursor to the end of the document.Ctrl + Home Moves the cursor to the beginning of the document.Ctrl + Spacebar Reset highlighted text to the default font.Ctrl + 1 Single-space lines.Ctrl + 2 Double-space lines.Ctrl + 5 1.5-line spacing.Ctrl + Alt + 1 Changes text to heading 1.Ctrl + Alt + 2 Changes text to heading 2.Ctrl + Alt + 3 Changes text to heading 3.Ctrl + F1 Open the Task Pane.F1 Open Help.Alt + Ctrl + F2 Open new document.Ctrl + F2 Display the print preview.Shift + F3 Change the text in Microsoft Word from upper to lower case or a capital letter at the beginning of every word.Shift + Insert Paste.F4 Repeat the last action performed (Word 2000+)F5 Open the find, replace, and go to window in Microsoft Word.Ctrl + Shift + F6 Opens to another open Microsoft Word document.F7 Spell and grammar check selected text and/or document.Shift + F7 Runs a Thesaurus check on the word highlighted.F12 Save as.Shift + F12 Save.Ctrl + Shift + F12 Prints the document.Alt + Shift + D Insert the current date.Alt + Shift + T Insert the current time.

In addition to the above shortcut keys users can also use their mouse as a method of quickly do something commonly performed. Below some are examples of mouse shortcuts.

Mouse shortcutsDescription

Click, hold, and dragSelects text from where you click and hold to the point you drag and let go.Double-clickIf double-click a word, selects the complete word.Double-clickDouble-clicking on the left, center, or right of a blank line will make the alignment of the text left, center, or right aligned.Double-clickDouble-clicking anywhere after text on a line will set a tab stop.Triple-clickSelects the line or paragraph of the text the mouse triple-clicked.Ctrl + Mouse wheelZooms in and out of document.

Microsoft Excel shortcut keys

Below is a listing of all the major shortcut keys in Microsoft Excel. See our main shortcut page if you're looking for other shortcut keys used in other programs.Shortcut KeysDescriptionF2 Edit the selected cell.F5 Goto 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 sum all of the above cellsCtrl + ' 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.