What is the Save As shortcut in Word?
F12 — Displays the Save As dialog box
F12 opens the Save As dialog in Microsoft Word on Windows, so you can pick a new name, location or file type; Ctrl + S saves in place and only shows the dialog for a document that has never been saved. Shift + F12 is a second way to save.
Related Microsoft Word shortcuts: Function Keys (first 25 of 36)
| Shortcut | Action | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| F1 | Displays the Word help task pane | |
| Alt + F1 | Moves to the next field | |
| Alt + Shift + F1 | Moves to the previous field | |
| F2 | Moves the selected text or graphic | |
| Shift + F2 | Copies the selected text or graphic | |
| Ctrl + F2 | Displays the print preview area on the Print tab in the Backstage view | |
| Alt + Shift + F2 | Saves the document | |
| Ctrl + Alt + F2 | Displays the Open dialog box | |
| F4 | Repeats the last command or action, if possible | |
| Shift + F4 | Repeats the last Find or Go To action | |
| Ctrl + F4 | Closes the current document | |
| Alt + F4 | Closes Word | |
| F5 | Displays the Go To dialog box | |
| Ctrl + Shift + F5 | Displays the Bookmark dialog box | |
| Alt + F5 | Restores the document window size | |
| F6 | Switch between the document, task pane, status bar, and ribbon | |
| Shift + F6 | Switches between the document, ribbon, status bar, and task pane | |
| Ctrl + F6 | Switches to the next document window when more than one document is open | |
| Ctrl + Shift + F6 | Switches to the previous document window when more than one document is open | |
| Alt + F6 | Moves from an open dialog box back to the document, for dialog boxes that support this behavior | |
| F7 | Displays the Editor task pane to check spelling and grammar in the document or the selected text | |
| Shift + F7 | Displays the Thesaurus task pane | |
| Alt + F7 | Finds the next spelling or grammatical error | |
| Alt + Shift + F7 | Displays the Translator task pane | |
| Ctrl + Shift + F8 | Turns extend selection mode on and off |
From the Microsoft Word reference (261 entries) · all how-to answers
Save, Save As and AutoSave
Ctrl + S writes the document back to its current file and, for a file stored on OneDrive or SharePoint with AutoSave on, is largely redundant because every change is already saved. F12 is different: it always opens the Save As dialog, which is where you change the name, move the file, or switch the format to PDF, .docx, .rtf or plain text. Shift + F12 and Alt + Shift + F2 both do a plain save, a leftover from older versions that Microsoft still documents.
The dialog is also a converter
Because F12 lands in the Save As dialog with the file-type list, it is the fastest path to a PDF: F12, Tab to the type list, choose PDF, Enter. The same dialog is where a document created from a template is first given a real name, and where the Tools menu offers Save Options and General Options for a password. If Word opens the Backstage view instead of a dialog, the Don’t show the Backstage when opening or saving files option in File › Options › Save is switched off.
Where the function keys fit
Word’s function keys carry a lot of file work: F12 Save As, Ctrl + F12 Open, Ctrl + Shift + F12 Print, F7 the spelling Editor, Alt + F7 the next error. On laptops where the F row defaults to media keys, hold Fn or change the BIOS setting, otherwise F12 may open the browser’s developer tools instead of Word. The Function Keys section of the Word reference on this site lists every F-key and modifier combination from Microsoft’s Windows table.