Microsoft Word Keyboard Shortcuts
Every Word shortcut worth learning, grouped by the job you are doing. Verified against Microsoft's own documentation.
112 shortcuts · Word for Microsoft 365 and Word 2021 on Windows
Learn these ten first
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + S | Save |
| Ctrl + Z | Undo |
| Ctrl + Y | Redo |
| Ctrl + Shift + V | Paste as plain text, with no formatting |
| Ctrl + Backspace | Delete the whole word to the left |
| Shift + F3 | Cycle a selection through lower, Title and UPPER case |
| Ctrl + Spacebar | Strip character formatting off a selection |
| Ctrl + Shift + N | Return a paragraph to the Normal style |
| F4 | Repeat your last action |
| Shift + F5 | Jump back to where you were last editing |
The document
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + N | New document |
| Ctrl + O | Open |
| Ctrl + S | Save |
| Ctrl + W | Close the document |
| Ctrl + P | |
| Ctrl + F | Search the document |
| Ctrl + H | Find and replace |
| Ctrl + G | Go to a page, bookmark or comment |
| Ctrl + K | Insert a hyperlink |
| Ctrl + Plus | Zoom in |
| Ctrl + Minus | Zoom out |
| Ctrl + 0 | Back to 100% zoom |
Moving the cursor
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + Left | One word left |
| Ctrl + Right | One word right |
| Ctrl + Up | Up one paragraph |
| Ctrl + Down | Down one paragraph |
| Home | Start of the line |
| End | End of the line |
| Ctrl + Home | Start of the document |
| Ctrl + End | End of the document |
| Page Up | Up one screen |
| Page Down | Down one screen |
| Ctrl + Page Up | Top of the previous page |
| Ctrl + Page Down | Top of the next page |
| Shift + F5 | The place you last edited |
Selecting text
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Shift + Arrow | Extend the selection one character or line |
| Ctrl + Shift + Left | Select the word to the left |
| Ctrl + Shift + Right | Select the word to the right |
| Shift + Home | Select back to the start of the line |
| Shift + End | Select on to the end of the line |
| Ctrl + Shift + Up | Select back to the start of the paragraph |
| Ctrl + Shift + Down | Select on to the end of the paragraph |
| Ctrl + Shift + Home | Select back to the start of the document |
| Ctrl + Shift + End | Select on to the end of the document |
| Shift + Page Up | Select up one screen |
| Shift + Page Down | Select down one screen |
| Ctrl + A | Select everything |
Formatting text
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + B | Bold |
| Ctrl + I | Italic |
| Ctrl + U | Underline |
| Ctrl + Shift + W | Underline the words but not the spaces |
| Ctrl + Shift + D | Double underline |
| Ctrl + Shift + > | Increase the font size |
| Ctrl + Shift + < | Decrease the font size |
| Ctrl + ] | Up one point |
| Ctrl + [ | Down one point |
| Ctrl + Shift + A | ALL CAPITALS |
| Ctrl + Shift + K | Small capitals |
| Ctrl + Shift + Plus | Superscript |
| Ctrl + Shift + Minus | Subscript |
| Ctrl + D | Open the Font dialog |
| Ctrl + Spacebar | Remove character formatting |
| Shift + F3 | Change case |
Formatting paragraphs
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + L | Align left |
| Ctrl + E | Centre |
| Ctrl + R | Align right |
| Ctrl + J | Justify |
| Ctrl + M | Indent |
| Ctrl + Shift + M | Remove the indent |
| Ctrl + T | Hanging indent |
| Ctrl + Shift + T | Remove the hanging indent |
| Ctrl + 1 | Single line spacing |
| Ctrl + 5 | 1.5 line spacing |
| Ctrl + 2 | Double line spacing |
| Ctrl + Q | Remove paragraph formatting |
| Ctrl + Shift + L | Turn it into a bulleted list |
| Ctrl + Shift + N | Normal style |
| Ctrl + Alt + 1 | Heading 1 |
| Ctrl + Alt + 2 | Heading 2 |
| Ctrl + Alt + 3 | Heading 3 |
Editing
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + X | Cut |
| Ctrl + C | Copy |
| Ctrl + V | Paste |
| Ctrl + Shift + V | Paste text only |
| Ctrl + Backspace | Delete the word to the left |
| Ctrl + Delete | Delete the word to the right |
| Ctrl + Alt + C | Copy the formatting of a selection |
| Ctrl + Alt + V | Paste that formatting onto another selection |
| Alt + F3 | Save the selection as reusable AutoText |
| Ctrl + F3 | Cut to the Spike |
| Ctrl + Shift + F3 | Empty the Spike into the document |
Tables
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Tab | Next cell, selecting what is in it |
| Shift + Tab | Previous cell |
| Alt + Home | First cell in the row |
| Alt + End | Last cell in the row |
| Alt + Page Up | First cell in the column |
| Alt + Page Down | Last cell in the column |
| Alt + Shift + Up | Move the whole row up |
| Alt + Shift + Down | Move the whole row down |
| Ctrl + Tab | A real tab character inside a cell |
Worth knowing
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| F4 or Ctrl + Y | Both repeat. F4 repeats your last action; Ctrl + Y redoes an undo. The difference matters when you are applying the same format to twenty paragraphs. |
| Ctrl + F3 | The Spike is a second clipboard that collects. Cut to it repeatedly, then empty the lot in one go with Ctrl + Shift + F3. |
| Ctrl + Alt + C | Format Painter without the mouse. Copy formatting from one selection, paste it onto another with Ctrl + Alt + V. |
| Ctrl + Spacebar | The fastest fix for text pasted in from a website that brought its font with it. |
If a shortcut does nothing
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Check the layout | A non-UK keyboard layout moves some of the punctuation keys, so combinations using brackets or angle marks land somewhere else. |
| Check for a conflict | Add-ins and some Windows utilities claim combinations before Word sees them. |
| Change it | File, then Options, then Customise Ribbon, then Keyboard shortcuts. You can assign any command to any combination, and remove one that gets in your way. |
| Record a macro | For an action with no shortcut at all, record a macro and give the macro a shortcut. |
Reviewing and comments
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + Alt + M | New comment |
| Ctrl + Shift + E | Turn track changes on or off |
| Alt + R | Open the Review ribbon |
| Alt + Shift + C | Close the reviewing pane |