Mac Terminal Shortcut Keys

Use these shortcuts to save time when using Terminal.

Work with windows and tabs

Action	Shortcut
New window	Command-N
New window with same command	Control-Command-N
New tab	Command-T
New tab with same command	Control-Command-T
Show or hide tab bar	Shift-Command-T
Show all tabs or exit tab overview	Shift-Command-Backslash (\)
New command	Shift-Command-N
New remote connection	Shift-Command-K
Show or hide Inspector	Command-I
Edit title	Shift-Command-I
Edit background color	Option-Command-I
Make fonts bigger	Command-Plus (+)
Make fonts smaller	Command-Minus (–)
Next window	Command-Grave Accent (`)
Previous window	Command-Shift-Tilde (~)
Next Tab	Control-Tab
Previous Tab	Control-Shift-Tab
Split window into two panes	Command-D
Close split pane	Shift-Command-D
Close tab	Command-W
Close window	Shift-Command-W
Close other tabs	Option-Command-W
Close all	Option-Shift-Command-W
Scroll to top	Command-Home
Scroll to bottom	Command-End
Page up	Command-Page Up
Page down	Command-Page Down
Line up	Option-Command-Page Up
Line down	Option-Command-Page Down

Select, find, and edit text

Action	Shortcut
Move to beginning of line	Control-A
Move to end of line	Control-E
Erase to beginning of line	Control-U
Erase to end of line	Control-K
Select a complete file path	Hold down the Shift and Command keys and double-click the path
Select a complete line of text	Triple-click the line
Select a word	Double-click the word
Select a URL	Hold down the Shift and Command keys and double-click the URL
Select a rectangular block	Hold down the Option key and drag to select text
Cut	Command-X
Copy	Command-C
Copy without background color	Control-Shift-Command-C
Copy plain text	Option-Shift-Command-C
Paste	Command-V
Paste the selection	Shift-Command-V
Paste escaped text	Control-Command-V
Paste escaped selection	Control-Shift-Command-V
Find	Command-F
Find next	Command-G
Find previous	Command-Shift-G
Find using the selected text	Command-E
Jump to the selected text	Command-J
Select all	Command-A
Open the character viewer	Control-Command-Space

Work with marks and bookmarks

Action	Shortcut
Mark	Command-U
Mark as bookmark	Option-Command-U
Unmark	Shift-Command-U
Mark line and send return	Command-Return
Send return without marking	Shift-Command-Return
Insert bookmark	Shift-Command-M
Insert bookmark with name	Option-Shift-Command-M
Jump to previous mark	Command-Up Arrow
Jump to next mark	Command-Down Arrow
Jump to previous bookmark	Option-Command-Up Arrow
Jump to next bookmark	Option-Command-Down Arrow
Clear to previous mark	Command-L
Clear to previous bookmark	Option-Command-L
Clear to start	Command-K
Select between marks	Shift-Command-A

Other shortcuts

Action	Shortcut
Enter or exit full screen	Control-Command-F
Show or hide colors	Shift-Command-C
Open Terminal preferences	Command-Comma (,)
Break	Typing Command-Period (.) is equivalent to entering Control-C on the command line
Print	Command-P
Soft reset terminal emulator state	Option-Command-R
Hard reset terminal emulator state	Control-Option-Command-R
Open a URL	Hold down the Command key and double-click the URL
Add the complete path to a file	Drag the file from the Finder into the Terminal window
Export text as	Command-S
Export selected text as	Shift-Command-S
Reverse search command history	Control-R
Toggle “Allow Mouse Reporting” option	Command-R
Toggle “Use Option as Meta Key” option	Command-Option-O
Show alternate screen	Option-Command-Page Down
Hide alternate screen	Option-Command-Page Up
Open man page for selection	Control-Shift-Command-Question Mark (?)
Search man page index for selection	Control-Option-Command-Slash (/)
Complete directory or file name	On a command line, type one or more characters, then press Tab
Display a list of possible directory or file name completions	On a command line, type one or more characters, then press Tab twice

Tab Autocompletion: If you are in your home directory, and you type cd Desk and then press the tab key, the command line will automatically complete the command to read cd Desktop! You can also use this if you find yourself mistyping folder names: tab autocompletion will always fill it incorrectly.