What is the most important Google Colab keyboard shortcut?

Shift+Enter is the most important Colab shortcut. It runs the current cell and automatically moves to the next cell, allowing you to execute a notebook top-to-bottom without touching the mouse.

How do I run all cells in Google Colab?

Press Ctrl+F9 (Cmd+F9 on Mac) to run all cells in the notebook. Use Ctrl+F10 to run the current cell and all cells below it, which is useful when you only want to re-execute from a specific point.

How do I add a new cell in Google Colab?

Press Ctrl+M B to insert a code cell below the current cell, or Ctrl+M A to insert above. Ctrl+M M converts the current cell to Markdown, and Ctrl+M Y converts it back to code.

What is the difference between Shift+Enter and Ctrl+Enter in Colab?

Shift+Enter runs the current cell and moves focus to the next cell (or creates a new one at the end). Ctrl+Enter runs the current cell but stays on it. Use Shift+Enter to work through a notebook sequentially, Ctrl+Enter to iterate on a single cell.

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Google Colab Keyboard Shortcuts: Faster Data Science Workflow (2026)

By Jay, editor · Every shortcut on this site is verified by hand against official documentation · Updated July 2026

Published: May 1, 2026 · 8 min read

Google Colab is the go-to environment for data science, machine learning experiments, and collaborative Python notebooks. Whether you use it for quick experiments or full ML training runs, these shortcuts will significantly speed up your workflow.

Running cells
Cell editing
Navigation
Runtime management
Command mode vs edit mode
Workflow tips

1. Running cells

Windows / Linux	Mac	What it does
Shift + Enter	Shift + Enter	Run cell and move to next
Ctrl + Enter	Cmd + Enter	Run cell and stay
Alt + Enter	Option + Enter	Run cell and insert new cell below
Ctrl + F9	Cmd + F9	Run all cells
Ctrl + F10	Cmd + F10	Run current cell and all below
Ctrl + F8	Cmd + F8	Run all cells above current
Ctrl + M I	Cmd + M I	Interrupt execution (stop running cell)

Shift+Enter is your primary shortcut. Work through a notebook top to bottom with Shift+Enter — it runs the cell and drops you into the next one automatically. Much faster than clicking Run for every cell.

2. Cell editing

Windows / Linux	Mac	What it does
Ctrl + M A	Cmd + M A	Insert cell above
Ctrl + M B	Cmd + M B	Insert cell below
Ctrl + M D	Cmd + M D	Delete current cell
Ctrl + M M	Cmd + M M	Convert to Markdown cell
Ctrl + M Y	Cmd + M Y	Convert to Code cell
Ctrl + M Z	Cmd + M Z	Undo cell deletion
Ctrl + M Shift + Up	Cmd + M Shift + Up	Move cell up
Ctrl + M Shift + Down	Cmd + M Shift + Down	Move cell down

3. Navigation

Windows / Linux	Mac	What it does
Ctrl + M K	Cmd + M K	Move to previous cell
Ctrl + M J	Cmd + M J	Move to next cell
Ctrl + M Home	Cmd + M Home	Go to first cell
Ctrl + M End	Cmd + M End	Go to last cell
Escape	Escape	Exit cell edit mode (enter command mode)
Enter	Enter	Enter edit mode for selected cell

4. Runtime management

Windows / Linux	Mac	What it does
Ctrl + M I	Cmd + M I	Interrupt (stop current execution)
Ctrl + M .	Cmd + M .	Restart runtime
Ctrl + M Shift + F	Cmd + M Shift + F	Restart and run all cells
Ctrl + S	Cmd + S	Save notebook to Drive

Restart and run all (Ctrl+M Shift+F) is the cleanest way to verify your notebook runs end-to-end without hidden state. Run this before sharing any notebook.

5. Command mode vs edit mode

Like Jupyter, Colab has two modes. In command mode (blue cell border) keyboard shortcuts control the notebook structure. In edit mode (green cell border, cursor blinking) you type code. Press Escape to enter command mode, Enter to enter edit mode.

6. Practical workflow tips

The top-to-bottom execution habit

Always use Shift+Enter (not Ctrl+Enter) when working through a notebook sequentially. It keeps you moving forward and avoids the common mistake of forgetting which cell you last ran.

Quick cell type switching

Press Escape to enter command mode, then M to convert the cell to Markdown, or Y to convert back to code. Much faster than using the cell type dropdown.

Verify with restart

Before sharing a notebook, press Ctrl+M Shift+F (restart and run all). This catches any hidden state dependencies that might cause the notebook to fail when someone else runs it.

Interactive shortcut reference

View All Colab Shortcuts

Why Colab keys look odd

Colab runs in a browser tab, and browsers reserve most Ctrl + letter combinations, so Colab prefixes cell operations with Ctrl + M: press it, release, then the letter. That is the one idea to internalise; after it, the sequences in the table (Ctrl + M then A, B, D, M, Y) read naturally. The run keys — Ctrl + Enter, Shift + Enter, Alt + Enter — are not prefixed because browsers leave them alone, and they match Jupyter exactly.

A workflow that uses the keys

Write a cell, Shift + Enter to run and move on; when a cell needs another try, Ctrl + Enter to rerun in place; Ctrl + M then B to open a cell below for a quick check; Ctrl + M then D to remove it when done. Runtime › Restart and run all before sharing proves the notebook runs top to bottom. Interrupt with Ctrl + M then I when a cell hangs on a network call, and keep an eye on the runtime timeout for long training runs by saving checkpoints to Drive.

Customising

Tools › Keyboard shortcuts lets you rebind any command and is saved to your Google account; many people move delete-cell to a single key and add Jupyter's D, D. The Colab page on this site carries the current defaults with FAQs, checked against the in-app list.