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Basic Google Chrome keyboard shortcuts you should know for Mac and Windows

There’s something to be said about just using a browser and using a browser proficiently. Google Chrome on Windows and Mac doesn’t keep that too far out of reach with its plethora of different keyboard shortcuts you can learn. Here are the basics.

What are keyboard shortcuts in Google Chrome?

Just about every single application on your desktop or laptop has keyboard shortcuts; it’s one of the main forms of navigation that has stuck around since the earlier days of personal computers. In essence, a keyboard shortcut allows you to press a combination of keys in order to perform an action. For instance, you’re likely familiar with Ctrl + s or Cmd + s to save something you’re working on.

Now, something that’s interesting about web browsers – especially Chrome – is that depending on what site you’re visiting, basic shortcuts like the one listed above won’t work in the way you might think.

In web browsers, websites are allowed to define their own keyboard shortcuts. This means that hitting Ctrl + S on one website is different from hitting it on another, and neither usually affects Google Chrome on Windows or Mac. For example, if you were to hit Ctrl + s in Google Docs, your page would be manually saved. However, on a photo editing website, you might find that hitting Ctrl + s would open File Explorer or Finder for you to save your work. Because of this, Chrome has a special subset of keyboard shortcuts.

Basic Google Chrome keyboard shortcuts on Windows and Mac

While there are a lot of shortcuts available for Google Chrome, you won’t need to know every single one of them. There are basic shortcuts that help you navigate your way around the browser or access certain features and won’t implode your brain every time you try to remember them.

Navigation

One of the main things you might want to learn shortcuts for is navigating around Google Chrome. These shortcuts are generally pretty easy to remember and don’t often include more than a couple of keys.

PurposeWindowsMac
Open a new windowCtrl + nCmd + n
Open a new incognito windowCtrl + Shift + nCmd + Shift + n
Open a new tabCtrl + tCmd + t
Open your homepageAlt + HomeN/A
Close the current tabCtrl + wCmd + w
Close the current windowAlt + Shift + wCmd + Shift + w
Quit ChromeAlt + f then xCmd + q

Chrome features

Google Chrome feature shortcuts on Mac and Windows are pretty useful, especially if you have a lot of downloads or generally look back at your history to revisit sites.

PurposeWindowsMac
Open the Chrome menuAlt + fN/A
Toggle the Bookmarks barCtrl + Shift + bCmd + Shift + b
Open Bookmarks managerCtrl + Shift + oCmd + Option + b
Open HistoryCtrl + hCmd + y
Open DownloadsCtrl + jCmd + Shift + j
Chrome Task ManagerShift + EscN/A
Open the Find bar to search the pageCtrl + f or F3Cmd + f
Clear Browsing DataCtrl + Shift + DeleteCmd + Shift + Delete
Log in as a different userCrl + Shift + iCmd + Shift + m

Webpage and Address Bar shortcuts

This last table combines a couple of different categories and pick out the best ones you can learn how to use immediately. Address Bar shortcuts are any shortcuts you use to define something in the bar at the top of the page; some of these shortcuts allow you to do immediate Google searches.

Webpage shortcuts let you complete actions using the webpage. For instance, you can set a Bookmark using shortcuts and even refresh the page right from your keyboard. Here are Address Bar and Webpage shortcuts for Google Chrome on Windows and Mac:

PurposeWIndowsMac
Add “www.” and “.com” to a site nameType site name + Ctrl + EnterType a site name + Control + Enter
Add “www.” and “.com” to a site name and open in a new tabN/AType a site name + Shift + Control + Enter
Open a new tab and searchType a search term + Alt + EnterN/A
Jump to Address BarCtrl + lCmd + l
Open print options (only if the printer is hooked up)Ctrl + pCmd + p
Reload the current pageF5 or Ctrl + rCmd + Shift + r
Delete autocomplete suggestionsDown arrow to highlight the suggestion and Shift + DeleteDown arrow to highlight the suggestion and Shift + fn + Delete
Save the webpage as a bookmarkCtrl + dCmd + d
Make everything on the page biggerCtrl plus +Cmd plus +
Make everything on the page smallerCtrl plus –Cmd plus –
Return to the default sizeCtrl + 0Cmd + 0
Scroll horizontallyShift + scroll mouse wheelN/A

That’s it! Well, those are the basics. By themselves, it’s already a lot to remember, so hit Ctrl + d and check back every once in a while to refresh your memory and use new shortcuts. There’s no need to remember all of them, only the ones you think you’ll use most often, such as saving bookmarks, reloading your page, or even scrolling horizontally.

More on Google Chrome

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