- Like your computer, the Google Chrome browser comes with its own full set of keyboard shortcuts.
- While Chrome's keyboard shortcuts are available across devices, they will differ slightly depending on the operating system you have.
- There are Chrome keyboard shortcuts for tab and window navigation, browser features and tools, the address bar, and more.
When used, keyboard shortcuts can save users a lot of time.
Google Chrome makes keyboard shortcut use easy, providing a plethora of options for navigating the browser.
For some of those shortcuts, the differences between PC and Linux users and Mac users is merely the difference between the 'Ctrl' key and the 'Command' key. But other shortcuts are more specific to each kind of computer system, so it's important to note which system you're operating on if you want a seamless experience using keyboard shortcuts.
Just like Apple’s excellent Safari browser, Chrome on the Mac has a range of keyboard shortcuts that should help you get things done. Related: 10 ways to get more from Spotlight Search on the Mac. Go Incognito Mode. On Windows: Ctrl + Shift + N. On Mac: ⌘ + Shift + N. Keyboard shortcut to switch tabs on a Windows PC. Chrome’s switch tabs Windows shortcuts are very similar to the Mac versions. The hotkey combos below will empower you to access your open tabs more quickly and with less effort. The shortcuts become second nature once you get the hang of them, so keep practicing! Switch to the next tab shortcuts.
If you're using Mac Catalina (or something newer), keyboard navigation is turned on by default in your system preferences, but for other operating systems, you may need to enable it.
If you're ready to start using keyboard shortcuts, here are the Chrome shortcuts available to Windows, Linux, and Mac users.
Check out the products mentioned in this article:
Apple Macbook Pro (From $1,299.00 at Apple)
Acer Chromebook 15 (From $179.99 at Walmart)
26 essential Chrome tab and window shortcuts for Mac, Linux and Windows computers
All users
- Open a new window: Ctrl (or Command) + n
- Open a new window in Incognito mode: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + n
- Open a new tab, and jump to it: Ctrl (or Command) + t
- Reopen previously closed tabs in the order they were closed: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + t
- Jump to a specific tab: Ctrl (or Command) + 1 through Ctrl (or Command) + 8
Windows or Linux users
- Jump to the next open tab: Ctrl + Tab or Ctrl + PgDn
- Jump to the previous open tab: Ctrl + Shift + Tab or Ctrl + PgUp
- Jump to the rightmost tab: Ctrl + 9
- Open your homepage in the current tab: Alt + Home
- Open the previous page from your browsing history in the current tab: Alt + Left arrow
- Open the next page from your browsing history in the current tab: Alt + Right arrow
- Close the current tab: Ctrl + w or Ctrl + F4
- Close the current window: Ctrl + Shift + w or Alt + F4
- Minimize the current window: Alt + Space then n
- Maximize the current window: Alt + Space then x
- Quit Google Chrome: Alt + f then x
Mac users
- Jump to the next open tab: Command + Option + Right arrow
- Jump to the previous open tab: Command + Option + Left arrow
- Jump to the last tab: Command + 9
- Open the previous page in your browsing history for the current tab: Command + [ or Command + Left arrow
- Open the next page in your browsing history for the current tab: Command + ] or Command + Right arrow
- Close the current tab or pop-up: Command + w
- Close the current window: Command + Shift + w
- Minimize the window: Command + m
- Hide Google Chrome: Command + h
- Quit Google Chrome: Command + q
27 Chrome browser tool shortcuts for Mac, Linux and Windows computers
All users
- Show or hide the Bookmarks bar: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + b
- Jump to the next match to your Find Bar search: Ctrl (or Command) + g
- Jump to the previous match to your Find Bar search: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + g
- Open the Clear Browsing Data options: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + Delete
Windows and Linux users
- Open the Chrome menu: Alt + f or Alt + e
- Open the Bookmarks Manager: Ctrl + Shift + o
- Open the History page in a new tab: Ctrl + h
- Open the Downloads page in a new tab: Ctrl + j
- Open the Chrome Task Manager: Shift + Esc
- Set focus on the first item in the Chrome toolbar: Shift + Alt + t
- Set focus on the rightmost item in the Chrome toolbar: F10
- Switch focus to unfocused dialog and all toolbars: F6
- Open the Find Bar to search the current page: Ctrl + f or F3
- Open Developer Tools: Ctrl + Shift + j or F12
- Open the Chrome Help Center in a new tab: F1
- Log in a different user or browse as a Guest: Ctrl + Shift + m
- Open a feedback form: Alt + Shift + i
Mac users
- Open the Bookmark Manager: Command + Option + b
- Open the Settings page in a new tab: Command + ,
- Open the History page in a new tab: Command + y
- Open the Downloads page in a new tab: Command + Shift + j
- Open the Find Bar to search the current page: Command + f
- When Find Bar is open, search for selected text: Command + e
- Open Developer Tools: Command + Option + i
- Log in as a different user, browse as a Guest, or access payment and password info: Command + Shift + m
- Jump to the main menu bar: Control + F2
- Cycle focus to unfocused dialog (if showing) and all toolbars: Command + Option + Up arrow or Down arrow
12 Chrome address bar shortcuts for Mac, Linux and Windows computers
All users
- Search with your default search engine: Type a search term + Enter
- Search using a different search engine: Type a search engine name and press Tab
- Add www. and .com to a site name, and open it in the current tab: Type a site name + Ctrl (or 'Control') + Enter
- Move cursor to the address bar: Control + F5
Windows and Linux users
- Open a new tab and perform a Google search: Type a search term + Alt + Enter
- Jump to the address bar: Ctrl + l or Alt + d or F6
- Search from anywhere on the page: Ctrl + k or Ctrl + e
- Remove predictions from your address bar: Down arrow to highlight + Shift + Delete
Mac users
- Add www. and .com to a site name, and open it in a new tab: Type a site name + Control + Shift + Enter
- Open the website in a new background tab: Type a web address + Command + Enter
- Jump to the address bar: Command + l
- Remove predictions from your address bar: Down arrow to highlight + Shift + fn + Delete (or: Forward Delete or fn-Delete on a laptop)
36 Chrome webpage shortcuts for Mac, Linux and Windows computers
All users
- Open options to print the current page: Ctrl (or Command) + p
- Open options to save the current page: Ctrl (or Command) + s
- Stop the page loading: Esc
- Browse clickable items moving forward: Tab
- Browse clickable items moving backward: Shift + Tab
- Open a file from your computer in Chrome: Ctrl (or Command) + o + Select a file
- Save your current webpage as a bookmark: Ctrl (or Command) + d
- Save all open tabs as bookmarks in a new folder: Ctrl (or Command) + Shift + d
- Make everything on the page bigger: Ctrl (or Command) and +
- Make everything on the page smaller: Ctrl (or Command) and -
- Return everything on the page to default size: Ctrl (or Command) + 0
- Reset page zoom level: Ctrl (or Command) + 0
Windows and Linux users
- Reload the current page: F5 or Ctrl + r
- Reload the current page, ignoring cached content: Shift + F5 or Ctrl + Shift + r
- Display non-editable HTML source code for the current page: Ctrl + u
- Turn full-screen mode on or off: F11
- Scroll down a webpage, a screen at a time: Space or PgDn
- Scroll up a webpage, a screen at a time: Shift + Space or PgUp
- Go to the top of the page: Home
- Go to the bottom of the page: End
- Move your cursor to the beginning of the previous word in a text field: Ctrl + Left arrow
- Move your cursor to the next word: Ctrl + Right arrow
- Delete the previous word in a text field: Ctrl + Backspace
- Open the Home page in the current tab: Alt + Home
Mac users
- Open the Page Setup dialog: Command + Option + p
- Reload your current page, ignoring cached content: Command + Shift + r
- Display non-editable HTML source code for the current page: Command + Option + u
- Open the JavaScript Console: Command + Option + j
- Turn full-screen mode on or off: Command + Ctrl + f
- Scroll down a webpage, a screen at a time: Space
- Scroll up a webpage, a screen at a time: Shift + Space
- Search the web: Command + Option + f
- Move your cursor to the beginning of the previous word in a text field: Option + Left arrow
- Move your cursor to the back of the next word in a text field: Option + Right arrow
- Delete the previous word in a text field: Option + Delete
- Open your homepage in the current tab: Command + Shift + h
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Google Chrome’s ability to create desktop shortcuts for websites is an incredibly useful feature. You get to open sites in dedicated Chrome windows, and they also give off the impression of functioning like actual Windows or macOS apps. Ideal if you hate messing around with tabs.
However, you may run into specific issues when using Chrome’s Create Shortcut functionality. For example, certain shortcuts that you create will launch in normal Chrome windows, complete with tabs and the address bar visible. Or you may find the option grayed out and unusable.
That said, let’s take a look at several fixes that can help you get this vital feature rolling in the right direction.
Important: Before proceeding, make sure to update Chrome to the latest version. To do that, open the Chrome menu, point to Help, and then click About Google Chrome.Also on Guiding Tech
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Read MoreCreate Website Shortcuts With No Address Bar
Chrome’s Create Shortcut functionality is easy to use. However, you must configure the browser to open the website in its dedicated window (without tabs and the address bar) during the creation process. Otherwise, any shortcut that you create will open in normal Chrome windows by default.
After loading a website, open the Chrome menu, point to Tools, and then click Create Shortcut.
On the pop-up box that shows up, make sure to check the box next to Open As Window.
Important:Chrome Keyboard Shortcuts Windows
If you don’t see the Open As Window option, you must update Chrome to the latest version and then retry. Google removed this option in Chrome version 69, and then subsequently re-added it in version 72. Hence, you must use Chrome v72 or higher.Click the Create button to create the shortcut. You can now open the website in its own dedicated Chrome window (without the address bar) whenever you double-click it via the desktop.
Tip: Use the ellipsis icon (three-dotted) to the upper-right corner of the window to access your extensions, view site settings, and more.Chrome Keyboard Shortcuts Mac
Configure Pre-Existing Shortcuts to Disable Address Bar and Tabs
If you’ve already created the shortcuts, you don’t have to go through this process. The app launcher in Chrome should let you reconfigure how the shortcuts function quite easily.
Start by typing chrome://apps into the Chrome address bar. You will then see a list of all the website shortcuts that you’ve created using Chrome over time.
Simply right-click the shortcut that you want to open in a dedicated Chrome window (with no tabs and address bar visible), and then click Open as Window.
Now head back to your desktop, and then double-click the shortcut. And voila! It should open in its dedicated window.
Also on Guiding Tech
#productivity
Click here to see our productivity articles pageFix Create Shortcut Option Grayed Out Issue
At times, you will find the Create Shortcut option grayed out. That happens if you are using an Incognito window or a Guest window in Chrome. To resolve the issue, you must use a normal Chrome window.
To switch to normal browsing mode while in Incognito mode, open the Chrome menu, and then click New Window. Load the website that you want to create a shortcut to, and you should be able to access the Create Shortcut option without issues.
To get out of Guest mode, click the Guest profile icon, and then click Exit Guest. Once again, load the website in a normal Chrome window, and you can then access the Create Shortcut option once again.
However, the Create Shortcut option will still appear grayed out on new tab pages or in Chrome’s internal pages (such as the Settings page). Chrome restricts you from creating shortcuts to these pages by design.
Fix Website Shortcut Not Showing On Desktop Issue
If the shortcut to a website doesn’t show up on your PC or Mac, it’s relatively easy to fix the issue. Start by visiting the Chrome app launcher (type chrome://apps into the address bar). Right-click the shortcut, and then select Create Shortcuts on the context menu.
Check the box next to Desktop, and then click Create. You should then find the shortcut present within the desktop again.
If the shortcut fails to appear, you must then delete the shortcut and create it anew. To do that, right-click the shortcut within the Apps Launcher, and then click Remove From Chrome.
Afterward, load the website within a normal Chrome window, and then recreate the shortcut — make sure to check the Open As Window option if you want the shortcut to open in a dedicated Chrome window.
Bonus Tip — Installing Progressive Web Apps
Starting with Chrome version 70, the browser now lets you install certain websites as progressive web apps. Otherwise known as PWAs, these 'apps' work similarly to ordinary website shortcuts, but feature bolstered functionality such as notification support and faster load times.
After loading a website, check for a ‘+’-shaped icon to the right corner of the address bar. If you see one, click it, and then click Install.
By default, 'installing' PWAs will configure the shortcuts to launch in their dedicated windows, which lets you skip the additional step of checking off the Open As Window box when using the Create Shortcut option.
However, do remember that you will not see this option on the majority of websites — if that’s the case, then you must use the Create Shortcut option instead.
Tip: Just like with ordinary shortcuts, you can use Chrome's app launcher to manage progressive web apps as well.Also on Guiding Tech
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Read MorePick Your Shortcut
Website shortcuts are incredibly convenient. Getting them to work in their dedicated window will help you focus on the task at hand and improve productivity. However, do look out for the PWA versions of sites. Installing them is not only far more convenient, but they are also a blast to work with.
Next up: Got those shortcuts up and running again the way you want? The next post shares seven other Chrome tricks to boost productivity.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Read Next7 Awesome Google Chrome Tricks to Boost Your ProductivityAlso See#chrome #troubleshooting
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