Apr 4, 2025 • Adrian T

Essential Google Docs Shortcuts to Save Time

Google Docs is a powerful tool, but did you know you can work even faster using keyboard shortcuts? Whether you’re writing reports, collaborating on projects, or just taking notes, mastering shortcuts can save you valuable time. Here are some of the most useful Google Docs shortcuts to boost your productivity.

1: Basic Editing Shortcuts

These shortcuts help you edit text quickly:

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl + B (Windows) / Cmd + B (Mac)	Bold text
Ctrl + I / Cmd + I	Italicize text
Ctrl + U / Cmd + U	Underline text
Ctrl + Shift + 7	Numbered list
Ctrl + Shift + 8	Bulleted list
Ctrl + Alt + 1 / Cmd + Option + 1	Heading 1
Ctrl + Alt + 2 / Cmd + Option + 2	Heading 2
Ctrl + Alt + 3 / Cmd + Option + 3	Heading 3
Ctrl + K / Cmd + K	Insert link
Ctrl + Z / Cmd + Z	Undo
Ctrl + Y / Cmd + Y	Redo
Ctrl + A / Cmd + A	Select all
Ctrl + C / Cmd + C	Copy
Ctrl + V / Cmd + V	Paste
Ctrl + X / Cmd + X	Cut

2: Navigation Shortcuts

Navigate your document easily using these shortcuts:

Ctrl + F / Cmd + F	Find
Ctrl + H / Cmd + H	Find and Replace
Ctrl + Home / Cmd + Home	Moves the cursor to the beginning of the document
Ctrl + End / Cmd + End	Moves the cursor to the end of the document
Ctrl + Up Arrow / Cmd + Up Arrow	Moves the cursor to the beginning of the current paragraph, or the previous paragraph if already at the start
Ctrl + Down Arrow / Cmd + Down Arrow	Moves the cursor to the end of the current paragraph, or the next paragraph if already at the end
Ctrl + Left Arrow / Cmd + Left Arrow	Moves the cursor one word to the left
Ctrl + Right Arrow / Cmd + Right Arrow	Moves the cursor one word to the right
Page Up	Moves the cursor up one page
Page Down	Moves the cursor down one page

3: Formatting and Productivity Shortcuts

Speed up your formatting and keep your document organized with these handy shortcuts:

Ctrl + Enter / Cmd + Enter	Insert a page break
Alt + Shift + 5 / Cmd + Shift + X	Strikethrough text
Ctrl + Shift + L / Cmd + Shift + L	Left-align text
Ctrl + Shift + E / Cmd + Shift + E	Center-align text
Ctrl + Shift + R / Cmd + Shift + R	Right-align text
Ctrl + \ / Cmd + \	Remove all formatting