- 1Use of the Option key
Use of the Option key[edit]
Alternative keyboard input[edit]
- a+⌥ Option results in å. a+⌥ Option+⇧ Shift results in Å.
- c+⌥ Option results in ç. c+⌥ Option+⇧ Shift results in Ç.
- o+⌥ Option results in ø. o+⌥ Option+⇧ Shift results in Ø.
- '+⌥ Option results in æ. '+⌥ Option+⇧ Shift results in Æ.
![Alt-f time machine Alt-f time machine](/uploads/1/2/5/7/125768475/144850572.jpg)
Alternative buttons and menu items[edit]
- Safari, Finder - the Option key causes the 'Close Window' menu item to switch to 'Close All Windows' when pressed down. Consequently, clicking a window's close box with the option key depressed invokes 'close all' as well. This functionality is a de facto Macintosh standard and available in numerous other programs.
- Dock - the Option key causes the 'Hide' and 'Quit' menu items in the context menu of a Dock icon to switch to 'Hide Others' and 'Force Quit'.
- iTunes - the Create Playlist button switches to a Create Smart Playlist button. Holding Option and clicking the green Window Zoom (+) button at the top-left forces the iTunes window into fullscreen view, rather than switching between the user-set window size and the iTunes Mini Player.
- iPhoto - the rotate image button toggles between a 'rotate right' and a 'rotate left'.
- Menu bar items - the Sound icon will show Audio Device input / output settings instead of the volume control slider, the battery item will show the condition of the battery, the MobileMe sync item will show the last sync date/time of individual synced items and will offer additional menu items such as Sync Diagnostics, and the Wireless icon will show extended wireless network information and, in Mac OS X Lion, offer an item for launching a Wi-Fi diagnostic application (when AirPort is connected).
Common keyboard navigations[edit]
- ⌥ Option+←/→ - navigate to the previous/next word.
- Windows equivalent: Ctrl+←/→
- ⌥ Option+↑/↓ - navigate to the head/end of current paragraph.
- Terminal equivalent: ⇧ Shift+Home/End
- Windows equivalent: Home/End
- ⌥ Option+Page up/Page down - navigate caret up/down a page. Without the Option key, the Page up/Page down keys let the page view scroll up/down a page without moving the caret.
- Windows equivalent: Page up/Page down
Alternative mouse actions[edit]
- option-mouse clicking an application other than the current one, automatically hides the current application and switches to the clicked application.
- When dragging an item (file in the Finder, or layer in Adobe Photoshop, for instance), keeping Option pressed will make sure you Duplicate something instead of moving it.
File downloads[edit]
Miscellaneous[edit]
- Terminal (including at least version 1.4.6 - no longer true as of 2.0.1, ⌘ Cmd+←/→ works.) - ⌥ Option+←/→ arrows navigates between open Terminal windows in a loop. Usually, programs use ⌘ Cmd+` and ⌘ Cmd+⇧ Shift+`, which are also supported for Terminal.
- Scroll bars (including at least OS X 10.3.x) - Option-clicking a scroll bar arrow can cause the view to jump to the next page instead of moving by a few lines. Option-clicking in the scroll bar can cause the view to jump to that position instead of jumping to the next page. This behavior can be reversed in System Preferences: Appearance.
- Startup Disk - Holding the Option Key at boot time activates a boot manager built into the firmware, where the user may choose from which drive/partition to boot the computer from, including Mac OS and Mac OS X partitions or drives on PowerPC-based Macs, and Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows partitions or drives on Intel-based Macs (running Mac OS X 10.4.6 and later with Boot Camp from Apple Inc. installed). The built in bootloader can also boot other operating systems such as Linux; however, these are labeled as 'Windows' in the bootloader.
References[edit]
- ^Unicode Character 'OPTION KEY' at Fileformat.info
Many users find that using an external keyboard with keyboard shortcuts for Excel for Mac helps them work more efficiently. For users with mobility or vision disabilities, keyboard shortcuts can be easier than using the touchscreen and are an essential alternative to using a mouse. This article itemizes the keyboard shortcuts for Excel for Mac.
Many of the shortcuts that use the Ctrl key on a Windows keyboard also work with the Control key in Excel for Mac. However, not all do.
- The shortcuts in this topic refer to the US keyboard layout. Keys for other layouts might not correspond exactly to the keys on a US keyboard.
- If a shortcut requires pressing two or more keys at the same time, this topic separates the keys with a plus sign (+). If you have to press one key immediately after another, the keys are separated by a comma (,).
- The settings in some versions of the Mac operating system (OS) and some utility applications might conflict with keyboard shortcuts and function key operations in Office for Mac. For information about changing the key assignment of a keyboard shortcut, see Mac Help for your version of the Mac OS or see your utility application. Also see Shortcut conflicts later in this topic.
In this topic
Frequently used shortcuts
This table itemizes the most frequently used shortcuts in Excel for Mac.
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Paste | + V or CONTROL + V |
Copy | + C or CONTROL + C |
Clear | DELETE |
Save | + S or CONTROL + S |
Undo | + Z or CONTROL + Z |
Redo | + Y or CONTROL + Y or + SHIFT+ Z |
Cut | + X or CONTROL + X |
Bold | + B or CONTROL + B |
Print | + P or CONTROL + P |
Open Visual Basic | OPTION + F11 |
Fill Down | + D or CONTROL + D |
Fill Right | + R or CONTROL + R |
Insert cells | CONTROL + SHIFT + = |
Delete cells | + HYPHEN or CONTROL + HYPHEN |
Calculate all open workbooks | + = or F9 |
Close window | + W or CONTROL + W |
Quit Excel | + Q |
Display the Go To dialog box | CONTROL + G or F5 |
Display the Format Cells dialog box | + 1 or CONTROL + 1 |
Display the Replace dialog box | CONTROL + H or + SHIFT + H |
Paste Special | + CONTROL + V or CONTROL + OPTION + V or + OPTION + V |
Underline | + U |
Italic | + I or CONTROL + I |
New blank workbook | + N or CONTROL + N |
New workbook from template | + SHIFT + P |
Display the Save As dialog box | + SHIFT + S or F12 |
Display the Help window | F1 or + / |
Select All | + A or + SHIFT + SPACEBAR |
Add or remove a filter | + SHIFT + F or CONTROL + SHIFT + L |
Minimize or maximize the ribbon tabs | + OPTION + R |
Display the Open dialog box | + O or CONTROL + O |
Check spelling | F7 |
Open the thesaurus | SHIFT + F7 |
Display the Formula Builder | SHIFT + F3 |
Open the Define Name dialog box | + F3 |
Open the Create names dialog box | + SHIFT + F3 |
Insert a new sheet * | SHIFT + F11 |
Print | + P or CONTROL + P |
Print preview | + P or CONTROL + P |
Get started
Many keyboards assign special functions to function keys, by default. To use the function key for other purposes, you have to press Fn+the function key. See the Use function key shortcuts section for information about how to enable and use function keys without having to press Fn.
Shortcut conflicts
Some Windows keyboard shortcuts conflict with the corresponding default Mac OS keyboard shortcuts. This topic flags such shortcuts with an asterisk ( * ). To use these shortcuts, you may have to change your Mac keyboard settings to change the Show Desktop shortcut for the key.
Change system preferences for keyboard shortcuts with the mouse
- On the Apple menu, press System Preferences.
- Press Keyboard.
- In the tabs, press Shortcuts.
- Click Mission Control.
- Clear the check box for the keyboard shortcut that you want to use.
Work in windows and dialogs
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Expand or minimize the ribbon | + OPTION + R |
Switch to full screen view | + CONTROL + F |
Switch to the next application | + TAB |
Switch to the previous application | + SHIFT + TAB |
Close the active workbook window | + W |
Copy the image of the screen and save it to a Screen Shot file on your desktop. | + SHIFT + 3 |
Minimize the active window | CONTROL + F9 |
Maximize or restore the active window | CONTROL + F10 or + F10 |
Hide Excel. | + H |
Move to the next box, option, control, or command | TAB |
Move to the previous box, option, control, or command | SHIFT + TAB |
Exit a dialog or cancel an action | ESC |
Perform the action assigned to the default command button (the button with the bold outline, often the OK button) | RETURN |
Cancel the command and close | ESC |
Move and scroll in a sheet or workbook
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Move one cell up, down, left, or right | ARROW KEYS |
Move to the edge of the current data region | + ARROW KEY |
Move to the beginning of the row | HOME On a MacBook, press FN + LEFT ARROW |
Move to the beginning of the sheet | CONTROL + HOME On a MacBook, press CONTROL + FN + LEFT ARROW |
Move to the last cell in use on the sheet | CONTROL + END On a MacBook, press CONTROL + FN + RIGHT ARROW |
Move down one screen | PAGE DOWN On a MacBook, press FN + DOWN ARROW |
Move up one screen | PAGE UP On a MacBook, press FN + UP ARROW |
Move one screen to the right | OPTION + PAGE DOWN On a MacBook, press FN + OPTION + DOWN ARROW |
Move one screen to the left | OPTION + PAGE UP On a MacBook, press FN + OPTION + UP ARROW |
Move to the next sheet in the workbook | CONTROL + PAGE DOWN or OPTION + RIGHT ARROW |
Move to the previous sheet in the workbook | CONTROL + PAGE DOWN or OPTION + LEFT ARROW |
Scroll to display the active cell | CONTROL + DELETE |
Display the Go To dialog box | CONTROL + G |
Display the Find dialog box | CONTROL + F or SHIFT + F5 |
Access search (when in a cell or when a cell is selected) | + F |
Move between unlocked cells on a protected sheet | TAB |
Enter data on a sheet
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Edit the selected cell | F2 |
Complete a cell entry and move forward in the selection | RETURN |
Start a new line in the same cell | CONTROL + OPTION + RETURN |
Fill the selected cell range with the text that you type | + RETURN or CONTROL + RETURN |
Complete a cell entry and move up in the selection | SHIFT + RETURN |
Complete a cell entry and move to the right in the selection | TAB |
Complete a cell entry and move to the left in the selection | SHIFT + TAB |
Cancel a cell entry | ESC |
Delete the character to the left of the insertion point, or delete the selection | DELETE |
Delete the character to the right of the insertion point, or delete the selection Note: Some smaller keyboards do not have this key | On a MacBook, press FN + DELETE |
Delete text to the end of the line Note: Some smaller keyboards do not have this key | CONTROL + On a MacBook, press CONTROL + FN + DELETE |
Move one character up, down, left, or right | ARROW KEYS |
Move to the beginning of the line | HOME On a MacBook, press FN + LEFT ARROW |
Insert a comment | SHIFT + F2 |
Open and edit a cell comment | SHIFT + F2 |
Fill down | CONTROL + D or + D |
Fill to the right | CONTROL + R or + R |
Define a name | CONTROL + L |
Work in cells or the Formula bar
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Edit the selected cell | F2 |
Edit the active cell and then clear it, or delete the preceding character in the active cell as you edit the cell contents | DELETE |
Complete a cell entry | RETURN |
Enter a formula as an array formula | + SHIFT + RETURN or CONTROL + SHIFT + RETURN |
Cancel an entry in the cell or formula bar | ESC |
Display the Formula Builder after you type a valid function name in a formula | CONTROL + A |
Insert a hyperlink | + K or CONTROL + K |
Edit the active cell and position the insertion point at the end of the line | CONTROL + U |
Open the Formula Builder | SHIFT + F3 |
Calculate the active sheet | SHIFT + F9 |
Display a contextual menu | SHIFT + F10 |
Start a formula | = |
Toggle the formula reference style between absolute, relative, and mixed | + T or F4 |
Insert the AutoSum formula | + SHIFT + T |
Enter the date | CONTROL + SEMICOLON (;) |
Enter the time | + SEMICOLON (;) |
Copy the value from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the formula bar | CONTROL + SHIFT + INCH MARK (') |
Alternate between displaying cell values and displaying cell formulas | CONTROL + GRAVE ACCENT (`) |
Copy a formula from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the formula bar | CONTROL + APOSTROPHE (') |
Display the AutoComplete list | CONTROL + OPTION + DOWN ARROW |
Define a name | CONTROL + L |
Open the Smart Lookup pane | CONTROL + OPTION + + L |
Format and edit data
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Edit the selected cell | F2 |
Create a table | + T or CONTROL + T |
Insert a line break in a cell | + OPTION + RETURN or CONTROL + OPTION + RETURN |
Insert special characters like symbols, including emoji | CONTROL + + SPACEBAR |
Increase font size | + SHIFT + > |
Decrease font size | + SHIFT + < |
Align center | + E |
Align left | + L |
Display the Modify Cell Style dialog box | + SHIFT + L |
Display the Format Cells dialog box | + 1 |
Apply the general number format | CONTROL + SHIFT + ~ |
Apply the currency format with two decimal places (negative numbers appear in red with parentheses) | CONTROL + SHIFT + $ |
Apply the percentage format with no decimal places | CONTROL + SHIFT + % |
Apply the exponential number format with two decimal places | CONTROL + SHIFT + ^ |
Apply the date format with the day, month, and year | CONTROL + SHIFT + # |
Apply the time format with the hour and minute, and indicate AM or PM | CONTROL + SHIFT + @ |
Apply the number format with two decimal places, thousands separator, and minus sign (-) for negative values | CONTROL + SHIFT + ! |
Apply the outline border around the selected cells | + OPTION + ZERO |
Add an outline border to the right of the selection | + OPTION + RIGHT ARROW |
Add an outline border to the left of the selection | + OPTION + LEFT ARROW |
Add an outline border to the top of the selection | + OPTION + UP ARROW |
Add an outline border to the bottom of the selection | + OPTION + DOWN ARROW |
Remove outline borders | + OPTION + HYPHEN |
Apply or remove bold formatting | + B |
Apply or remove italic formatting | + I |
Apply or remove underscoring | + U |
Apply or remove strikethrough formatting | + SHIFT + X |
Hide a column | + ) or CONTROL + ) |
Unhide a column | + SHIFT + ) or CONTROL + SHIFT + ) |
Hide a row | + ( or CONTROL + ( |
Unhide a row | + SHIFT + ( or CONTROL + SHIFT + ( |
Edit the active cell | CONTROL + U |
Cancel an entry in the cell or the formula bar | ESC |
Edit the active cell and then clear it, or delete the preceding character in the active cell as you edit the cell contents | DELETE |
Paste text into the active cell | + V |
Complete a cell entry | RETURN |
Give selected cells the current cell's entry | + RETURN or CONTROL + RETURN |
Enter a formula as an array formula | + SHIFT + RETURN or CONTROL + SHIFT + RETURN |
Display the Formula Builder after you type a valid function name in a formula | CONTROL + A |
Select cells, columns, or rows
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Extend the selection by one cell | SHIFT + ARROW KEY |
Extend the selection to the last nonblank cell in the same column or row as the active cell | + SHIFT + ARROW KEY |
Extend the selection to the beginning of the row | SHIFT + HOME On a MacBook, press SHIFT + FN + LEFT ARROW |
Extend the selection to the beginning of the sheet | CONTROL + SHIFT + HOME On a MacBook, press CONTROL + SHIFT + FN + LEFT ARROW |
Extend the selection to the last cell used on the sheet (lower-right corner) | CONTROL + SHIFT + END On a MacBook, press CONTROL + SHIFT + FN + RIGHT ARROW |
Select the entire column | CONTROL + SPACEBAR |
Select the entire row | SHIFT + SPACEBAR |
Select the entire sheet | + A |
Select only visible cells | + SHIFT + * (asterisk) |
Select only the active cell when multiple cells are selected | SHIFT + DELETE |
Extend the selection down one screen | SHIFT + PAGE DOWN On a MacBook, SHIFT + FN + DOWN ARROW |
Extend the selection up one screen | SHIFT + PAGE UP On a MacBook, SHIFT + FN + UP ARROW |
Alternate between hiding objects, displaying objects, and displaying placeholders for objects | CONTROL + 6 |
Turn on the capability to extend a selection by using the arrow keys | F8 |
Add another range of cells to the selection | SHIFT + F8 |
Select the current array, which is the array that the active cell belongs to | CONTROL + / |
Select cells in a row that don't match the value in the active cell in that row. You must select the row starting with the active cell | CONTROL + |
Select only cells that are directly referred to by formulas in the selection | CONTROL + SHIFT + [ |
Select all cells that are directly or indirectly referred to by formulas in the selection | CONTROL + SHIFT + { |
Select only cells with formulas that refer directly to the active cell | CONTROL + ] |
Select all cells with formulas that refer directly or indirectly to the active cell | CONTROL + SHIFT + } |
Work with a selection
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Copy | + C or CONTROL + V |
Paste | + V or CONTROL + V |
Cut | + X or CONTROL + X |
Clear | DELETE |
Delete the selection | CONTROL + HYPHEN |
Undo the last action | + Z |
Hide a column | + ) or CONTROL + ) |
Unhide a column | + SHIFT + ) or CONTROL + SHIFT + ) |
Hide a row | + ( or CONTROL + ( |
Unhide a row | + SHIFT + ( or CONTROL + SHIFT + ( |
Move from top to bottom within the selection (down) * | RETURN |
Move from bottom to top within the selection (up) * | SHIFT + RETURN |
Move from left to right within the selection, or move down one cell if only one column is selected | TAB |
Move from right to left within the selection, or move up one cell if only one column is selected | SHIFT + TAB |
Move clockwise to the next corner of the selection | CONTROL + PERIOD |
Group selected cells | + SHIFT + K |
Ungroup selected cells | + SHIFT + J |
* These shortcuts may move in another direction other than down or up. If you'd like to change the direction of these shortcuts using the mouse, on the Excel menu, click Preferences, click Edit, and then, under. After pressing Return, move selection, select the direction you want to move in.
Use charts
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Insert a new chart sheet. * | F11 |
Cycle through chart object selection | ARROW KEYS |
Sort, filter, and use PivotTable reports
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Open the Sort dialog box | + SHIFT + R |
Add or remove a filter | + SHIFT + F or CONTROL + SHIFT + L |
Display the Filter list or PivotTable page field pop-up menu for the selected cell | OPTION + DOWN ARROW |
Outline data
To do this | Press |
---|---|
Display or hide outline symbols | CONTROL + 8 |
Hide selected rows | CONTROL + 9 |
Unhide selected rows | CONTROL + SHIFT + Opening parenthesis ( ( ) |
Hide selected columns | CONTROL + ZERO |
Unhide selected columns | CONTROL + SHIFT + Closing parenthesis ( ) ) |
Use function key shortcuts
Excel for Mac uses the function keys for common commands, including Copy and Paste. For quick access to these shortcuts, you can change your Apple system preferences so you don't have to press the FN key every time you use a function key shortcut
If a function key doesn't work as you expect it to, press the FN key in addition to the function key. If you don't want to press the FN key each time, you can change your Apple system preferences: