Selection and navigation tools (11)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| V or Esc | Selection tool | Same key on macOS. |
| A | Direct Selection tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Tab | Toggle Selection and Direct Selection | Mac: Cmd + Ctrl + Tab. |
| Shift + P | Page tool | Same key on macOS. |
| U | Gap tool | Same key on macOS. |
| H | Hand tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Space | Temporarily select the Hand tool (no insertion point) | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Drag or Alt + Space | Temporarily select the Hand tool (with text insertion point) | Mac: Option + Drag or Option + Space. |
| Z | Zoom tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Space | Temporarily select Zoom In tool | Mac: Cmd + Space. |
| Ctrl + 5 or 2 or or 4 | Zoom to 50%, 200%, or 400% | Mac: Cmd + 5 , 2 , or 4. |
Drawing and text tools (8)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| P | Pen tool | Same key on macOS. |
| = or = (numeric keypad) | Add Anchor Point tool | Same key on macOS. |
| - | Delete Anchor Point tool | Mac: - or - (numeric keypad). |
| Shift + C | Convert Direction Point tool | Same key on macOS. |
| T | Type tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + T | Type on a Path tool | Same key on macOS. |
| N | Pencil tool | Same key on macOS. |
| \ | Line tool | Same key on macOS. |
Shape and frame tools (5)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| F | Rectangle Frame tool | Same key on macOS. |
| M | Rectangle tool | Same key on macOS. |
| L | Ellipse tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Y | Frame Grid tool (horizontal) | Same key on macOS. |
| Q | Frame Grid tool (vertical) | Same key on macOS. |
Transform tools (4)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| R | Rotate tool | Same key on macOS. |
| S | Scale tool | Same key on macOS. |
| O | Shear tool | Same key on macOS. |
| E | Free Transform tool | Same key on macOS. |
Other tools (12)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| I | Eyedropper tool | Same key on macOS. |
| K | Measure tool | Same key on macOS. |
| G | Gradient Swatch tool | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + G | Gradient Feather tool | Same key on macOS. |
| C | Scissors tool | Same key on macOS. |
| X | Toggle Fill and Stroke | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + X | Swap Fill and Stroke | Same key on macOS. |
| J | Toggle Formatting affects container / text | Same key on macOS. |
| , (comma) | Apply Color | Same key on macOS. |
| . (period) | Apply Gradient | Same key on macOS. |
| / | Apply None | Same key on macOS. |
| W | Switch between Normal and Preview mode | Same key on macOS. |
Selecting and moving objects (9)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Any tool (except selection tools) + Ctrl | Temporarily select the Selection tool or Direct Selection tool | Mac: Any tool (except selection tools) + Cmd. |
| Esc or double + Click | Select the container of selected content | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Esc or double + Click | Select the content of the selected container | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Arrow key | Duplicate and offset selection | Mac: Option + Arrow key. |
| Alt + Shift + Arrow key | Duplicate and offset by 10× | Mac: Option + Shift + Arrow key. |
| Arrow keys | Move selection | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Shift + Arrow key | Move selection by 1/10th | Mac: Cmd + Shift + Arrow key. |
| Shift + Arrow key | Move selection by 10× | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Ctrl + G | Select all guides | Mac: Option + Cmd + G. |
Transforming objects (4)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Transformation tool + Alt + Drag | Duplicate and transform selection | Mac: Transformation tool + Option + Drag. |
| Selection tool + Ctrl + Drag | Resize frame and content | Mac: Selection tool + Cmd + Drag. |
| Selection tool + Shift + Ctrl + Drag | Resize the frame and content proportionately | Mac: Selection tool + Shift + Cmd + Drag. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Z | Switch between High Quality Display and Fast Display | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + Z. |
Character formatting (9)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Ctrl + B | Bold (fonts with bold face only) | Mac: Shift + Cmd + B. |
| Shift + Ctrl + I | Italic (fonts with italic face only) | Mac: Shift + Cmd + I. |
| Shift + Ctrl + Y | Normal | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Y. |
| Shift + Ctrl + U | Underline | Mac: Shift + Cmd + U. |
| Shift + Ctrl + / | Strikethrough | Mac: Ctrl + Shift + Cmd + /. |
| Shift + Ctrl + K | All caps on/off | Mac: Shift + Cmd + K. |
| Shift + Ctrl + H | Small caps on/off | Mac: Shift + Cmd + H. |
| Shift + Ctrl + = | Superscript | Mac: Shift + Cmd + =. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + = | Subscript | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + =. |
Type size and leading (7)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Ctrl + > or < | Increase/decrease point size | Mac: Shift + Cmd + > or <. |
| Shift + Ctrl + Alt + > or < | Increase/decrease point size by 5× | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Option + > or <. |
| Alt + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease leading (horizontal text) | Mac: Option + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Alt + Right/Left Arrow | Increase/decrease leading (vertical text) | Mac: Option + Right/Left Arrow. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease leading by 5× (horizontal text) | Mac: Option + Cmd + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Right/Left Arrow | Increase/decrease leading by 5× (vertical text) | Mac: Option + Cmd + Right/Left Arrow. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + A | Auto leading | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + A. |
Kerning and tracking (5)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Alt + Left/Right Arrow | Increase/decrease kerning and tracking (horizontal text) | Mac: Option + Left/Right Arrow. |
| Alt + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease kerning and tracking (vertical text) | Mac: Option + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Left/Right Arrow | Increase/decrease kerning and tracking by 5× (horizontal text) | Mac: Option + Cmd + Left/Right Arrow. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease kerning and tracking by 5× (vertical text) | Mac: Option + Cmd + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Q | Clear all manual kerning and reset tracking to 0 | Mac: Option + Cmd + Q. |
Paragraph formatting (3)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Ctrl + L or R or or C | Align left, right, or center | Mac: Shift + Cmd + L , R , or C. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + G | Align to grid on/off | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + G. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + H | Auto-hyphenate on/off | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + H. |
Baseline shift (4)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Alt + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease baseline shift (horizontal text) | Mac: Shift + Option + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Shift + Alt + Right/Left Arrow | Increase/decrease baseline shift (vertical text) | Mac: Shift + Option + Right/Left Arrow. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + Up/Down Arrow | Increase/decrease baseline shift by 5× (horizontal text) | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + Right/Left Arrow | Increase/decrease baseline shift by 5× (vertical text) | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + Right/Left Arrow. |
Navigating and selecting text (14)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Right/Left Arrow | Move right/left one character | Same key on macOS. |
| Up/Down Arrow | Move up/down one line | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Right/Left Arrow | Move right/left one word | Mac: Cmd + Right/Left Arrow. |
| Home / End | Move to the start/end of the line | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Up/Down Arrow | Move to previous/next paragraph | Mac: Cmd + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Ctrl + Home / End | Move to the start/end of the story | Mac: Cmd + Home / End. |
| Double + Click word | Select one word | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Right/Left Arrow | Select one character right/left | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Up/Down Arrow | Select one line above/below | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Home / End | Select to start/end of line | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Ctrl + Up/Down Arrow | Select one paragraph before/after | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Up/Down Arrow. |
| Shift + Ctrl + \ | Select current line | Mac: Shift + Cmd + \. |
| Shift + Ctrl + Home / End | Select the start/end of the story | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Home / End. |
| Ctrl + A | Select all in the story | Mac: Cmd + A. |
Tables (11)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Start dragging the border, then hold Alt | Insert or delete rows/columns while dragging | Mac: Start dragging the border, then hold Option. |
| Shift + Drag interior border | Resize rows/columns without changing table size | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Drag right or bottom border | Resize rows/columns proportionally | Same key on macOS. |
| Tab / Shift + Tab | Move to next/previous cell | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Page Up / Page Down | Move to the first/last cell in the column | Mac: Option + Page Up / Page Down. |
| Alt + Home / End | Move to the first/last cell in the row | Mac: Option + Home / End. |
| Up/Down Arrow | Move up/down one cell | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Up/Down Arrow | Select cell above/below | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Right/Left Arrow | Select the cell to the right/left | Same key on macOS. |
| Enter (numeric keypad) | Start row on the next column | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Enter (numeric keypad) | Start row on next frame | Same key on macOS. |
Viewing documents (10)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Double + Click the Hand tool | Fit spread in the window | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Ctrl + 2 | Switch between the current and previous zoom levels | Mac: Option + Cmd + 2. |
| Shift + F5 | Redraw screen | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Alt + N | Open a new default document | Mac: Cmd + Option + N. |
| Page Up / Page Down | Scroll up/down one screen | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Page Up / Page Down | Go back/forward to the last viewed page | Mac: Cmd + Page Up / Page Down. |
| Alt + Page Up / Page Down | Go to previous/next spread | Mac: Option + Page Up / Page Down. |
| Ctrl + J | Activate the Go To command | Mac: Cmd + J. |
| Ctrl + Alt + = | Fit selection in the window | Mac: Cmd + Option + =. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + U | Cycle through units of measurement | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + U. |
Panels (9)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Alt + Click Delete icon | Delete without confirmation | Mac: Option + Click Delete icon. |
| Alt + Click New icon | Create an item and set options | Mac: Option + Click New icon. |
| Shift + Enter | Apply value and keep focus on the option | Mac: Shift + Return. |
| Ctrl + Alt + ~ | Activate the last option in the last panel | Mac: Cmd + Option + ~. |
| Shift + Click | Select a range in the panel | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Click | Select non-adjacent items in the panel | Mac: Cmd + Click. |
| Tab | Show/hide all panels with no insertion point | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Tab | Show/hide all panels except the Tools and Control panels | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Tab | Open/close all stashed panels | Mac: Cmd + Option + Tab. |
Specific panels (13)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl + 6 | Activate the Control panel | Mac: Cmd + 6. |
| Ctrl + Alt + 7 | Toggle Character / Paragraph mode ( Control panel) | Mac: Cmd + Option + 7. |
| Ctrl + T | Character panel | Mac: Cmd + T. |
| Ctrl + Alt + T | Paragraph panel | Mac: Cmd + Option + T. |
| F11 | Paragraph Styles panel | Mac: Cmd + F11. |
| Shift + F11 | Character Styles panel | Mac: Cmd + Shift + F11. |
| Shift + Ctrl + T | Tabs panel | Mac: Shift + Cmd + T. |
| F7 | Layers panel | Same key on macOS. |
| F12 | Pages panel | Mac: Cmd + F12. |
| F6 | Color panel | Same key on macOS. |
| F5 | Swatches panel | Same key on macOS. |
| F10 | Stroke panel | Mac: Cmd + F10. |
| Alt + Ctrl + M | Drop Shadow panel | Mac: Cmd + Option + M. |
Styles (5)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Select text + Shift + Alt + Ctrl + C | Make the character style definition match the text | Mac: Select text + Shift + Option + Cmd + C. |
| Select text + Shift + Alt + Ctrl + R | Make paragraph style definition match text | Mac: Select text + Shift + Option + Cmd + R. |
| Shift + Alt + Ctrl + double + Click style | Change options without applying style | Mac: Shift + Option + Cmd + double + Click style. |
| Alt + Click paragraph style | Remove style and local formatting | Mac: Option + Click paragraph style. |
| Alt + Shift + Click paragraph style | Clear overrides from paragraph style | Mac: Option + Shift + Click paragraph style. |
Finding and changing text (5)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl + F1 | Insert selected text into the Find What box | Mac: Cmd + F1. |
| Shift + F1 | Insert selected text into Find What and find next | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + F2 or Alt + Ctrl + F | Find the next occurrence of Find What text | Mac: Shift + F2 or Option + Cmd + F. |
| Ctrl + F2 | Insert selected text into the Change To box | Mac: Cmd + F2. |
| Ctrl + F3 | Replace selection with Change To text | Mac: Cmd + F3. |
XML (9)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Right/Left Arrow | Expand/Collapse element | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Right/Left Arrow | Expand/Collapse element and child elements | Mac: Option + Right/Left Arrow. |
| Shift + Up/Down Arrow | Extend XML selection up/down | Same key on macOS. |
| Up/Down Arrow | Move XML selection up/down | Same key on macOS. |
| Page Up / Page Down | Scroll the structure pane up/down one screen | Same key on macOS. |
| Home / End | Select first/last XML node | Same key on macOS. |
| Shift + Home / End | Extend selection to first/last XML node | Same key on macOS. |
| Ctrl + Left/Right Arrow | Go to previous/next validation error | Mac: Cmd + Left/Right Arrow. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + F7 | Auto-tag text frames and tables | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + F7. |
Indexing (3)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Ctrl + Alt + [ | Create index entry without dialog box (alphanumeric only) | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Option + [. |
| Ctrl + 7 | Open the index entry dialog box | Mac: Cmd + 7. |
| Shift + Ctrl + Alt + ] | Create proper name index entry (last name, first name) | Mac: Shift + Cmd + Option + ]. |
Color and swatches (5)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Shift + Drag slider | Move color sliders in tandem | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Click color bar | Select a color for non-active fill or stroke | Mac: Option + Click color bar. |
| Shift + Click color bar | Switch between color modes | Same key on macOS. |
| Alt + Click New Swatch icon | Create a new swatch based on the current swatch | Mac: Option + Click New Swatch icon. |
| Alt + Ctrl + Click New Swatch icon | Create a spot color swatch based on the current swatch | Mac: Option + Cmd + Click New Swatch icon. |
Separations Preview (7)
| Shortcut | Action | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Y | Turn on Overprint preview | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + Y. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + ~ | Show all plates | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + ~. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 1 | Show Cyan plate | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + 1. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 2 | Show Magenta plate | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + 2. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 3 | Show Yellow plate | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + 3. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 4 | Show Black plate | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + 4. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 5 or 6 or or 7 | Show 1st–3rd Spot plates | Mac: Cmd + Option + Shift + 5 , 6 , or 7. |
📜 Source: Adobe Help Center — InDesign keyboard shortcuts. Default InDesign shortcut set from Adobe’s help page, Windows keys with the macOS equivalent noted. Custom sets (Illustrator or Photoshop style) change many of these. Checked 2026-09-06. How we verify ›
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