Microsoft Word vs Google Docs: the same editing tasks, key by key
Word and Google Docs agree on nearly every everyday editing key: the clipboard, undo and redo, bold, italic and underline, hyperlink, page break, find-and-replace and the heading shortcuts Ctrl + Alt + 1 to 3 are the same in both. The table pairs each task with the Windows key from Microsoft's Word table and the key from Google's Docs list, both reproduced in full on their reference pages here; a dash means the task has no dedicated shortcut in that editor.
| Task | Microsoft Word | Google Docs |
|---|---|---|
| Save | Ctrl + S | — |
| Ctrl + P | Ctrl + P | |
| Undo | Ctrl + Z | Ctrl + Z |
| Redo | Ctrl + Y | Ctrl + Y |
| Select all | Ctrl + A | Ctrl + A |
| Copy / paste | Ctrl + C | Ctrl + C |
| Paste text only | Ctrl + Shift + V | Ctrl + Shift + V |
| Bold | Ctrl + B | Ctrl + B |
| Italic | Ctrl + I | Ctrl + I |
| Underline | Ctrl + U | Ctrl + U |
| Strikethrough | — | Alt + Shift + 5 |
| Superscript | Ctrl + Shift + Plus sign ( + ) | Ctrl + . |
| Subscript | Ctrl + Shift + Minus sign (-) | Ctrl + = |
| Increase font size | Ctrl + Shift + Right angle bracket (>) | Ctrl + Shift + . |
| Decrease font size | Ctrl + Shift + Left angle bracket (<) | Ctrl + Shift + , |
| Normal / body text style | Ctrl + Shift + N | Ctrl + Alt + 0 |
| Heading 1 | Ctrl + Alt + 1 | Ctrl + Alt + 1 |
| Heading 2 | Ctrl + Alt + 2 | Ctrl + Alt + 2 |
| Insert hyperlink | Ctrl + K | Ctrl + K |
| Page break | Ctrl + Enter | Ctrl + Enter |
| Find and replace | Ctrl + H | Ctrl + H |
| Insert comment | Ctrl + Alt + M | — |
| Word count | — | Ctrl + Shift + C |
| Save As dialog | F12 | — |
The differences cluster in three places. File handling is one: Docs saves continuously and has no Save or Save As key, while Word has Ctrl + S, F12 for the Save As dialog and Shift + F12 as an older save. Character styling is the second: superscript and subscript are Ctrl + . and Ctrl + = in Docs but Ctrl + Shift + Plus and Ctrl + Shift + Minus in Word, and font size steps are Ctrl + Shift + period and comma in Docs against Ctrl + Shift + angle brackets in Word. Strikethrough has a key in Docs (Alt + Shift + 5) and only a ribbon path in Word.
The third difference is the depth of the two lists. Word's Windows table runs to more than 250 shortcuts, including 36 function-key combinations, ribbon access keys that start with Alt, and field, outline and mail-merge commands that Docs has no counterpart for. Docs is shorter but has keys for things Word leaves to menus, such as word count (Ctrl + Shift + C) and the Alt + / menu search that finds any command by name. Comments illustrate the split: Word inserts one with Ctrl + Alt + M, Docs with Ctrl + Alt + M as well in recent versions but historically through the toolbar, which is why the Docs cell here is blank until Google's list includes it.
Mac keys follow the usual substitution in both editors, Cmd for Ctrl and Option for Alt, with one Word-specific exception: several Word function-key shortcuts need Fn on Mac laptops, and Word for Mac documents its own list that differs from the Windows one in the function-key and ribbon sections. The Word page on this site deliberately covers the Windows set only, because the Microsoft page mixes five platforms and copying them together produces the wrong keys.
Full references: Microsoft Word (261) · Google Docs (37) · all comparisons