Photoshop Shortcuts Library: Keyboard Keys For Windows & Mac

Incorporating shortcuts into your editing workflow can help make things faster and easier for you. Adobe Photoshop is an essential editing tool with numerous functions that can help you gain great creative control while editing. And Photoshop shortcuts can help you make the process seamless. However, there is a long list of Photoshop functions and a long list of shortcuts as well. So do you need to know each one of them? Well, if you have the superhuman power to remember them all, then sure! But for the most part, there is a list of some essential shortcuts that will help you out, and this blog gives you free access to that list.

Essential & Commonly Used Photoshop Shortcuts

Below is a curated list of some of the most commonly used keyboard shortcuts for Adobe Photoshop for both Windows and Mac.

1. Function Keys

Action	Shortcut Keys for Windows	Shortcut Keys for Mac
Cut	F2	F2
Copy	F3	F3
Paste	F4	F4
Undo	Ctrl + Z	Command + Z
Multiple Undos	Ctrl + Alt + Z	Command + Opt + Z
Duplicate	Ctrl + J	Command + J
Duplicate All Visible Layers	Ctrl + Alt + Shift + E	Command + Shift + Opt + E
Switch Foreground & Background Colors	X	X
Save & Close Documents	Ctrl + S	Command + S
Revert	F12	F12
Fill	Shift + F5	Shift + F5

2. Selection Tools

Action	Shortcut Keys for Windows	Shortcut Keys for Mac
Select All	Ctrl + A	Command + A
Deselect	Ctrl + D	Command + D
Hide Selection and Planes	Ctrl + H	Command + H
Add to a Selection	Any selection tool + Shift and drag	Any selection tool + Shift and drag
Subtract From a Selection	Any selection tool + Alt and drag	Any selection tool + Opt and drag
Inverse Selection	Ctrl + Shift + I	Command + Shift + I
Magic Wand Tool & Quick Selection Tool	W	W
Move Tool	V	V
Marquee Tool	M	M
Lasso Tool	L	L
Crop Tool	C	C
Brush Tool	B	B
Healing Brush Tool	J	J
Clone Stamp Tool	S	S
Gradient Tool	G	G
Dodge Tool & Burn Tool	O	O
Zoom Tool	Z	Z
Decrease Brush Hardness	{	{
Increase Brush Hardness	}	}
Previous Brush	,	,
Next Brush	.	.
First Brush	<	<
Last Brush	>	>

3. Blending Modes

Action	Shortcut Keys for Windows	Shortcut Keys for Mac
Normal	Shift + Alt + N	Shift + Option + N
Dissolve	Shift + Alt + I	Shift + Option + I
Darken	Shift + Alt + K	Shift + Option + K
Multiply	Shift + Alt + M	Shift + Option + M
Color Burn	Shift + Alt + B	Shift + Option + B
Linear Burn	Shift + Alt + A	Shift + Option + A
Lighten	Shift + Alt + G	Shift + Option + G
Screen	Shift + Alt + S	Shift + Option + S
Color Dodge	Shift + Alt + D	Shift + Option + D
Linear Dodge	Shift + Alt + W	Shift + Option + W
Overlay	Shift + Alt + O	Shift + Option + O
Difference	Shift + Alt + E	Shift + Option + E
Exclusion	Shift + Alt + X	Shift + Option + X
Hue	Shift + Alt + U	Shift + Option + U
Saturation	Shift + Alt + T	Shift + Option + T
Color	Shift + Alt + C	Shift + Option + C
Luminosity	Shift + Alt + Y	Shift + Option + Y
Desaturate	Sponge Tool + Shift + Alt + D	Sponge Tool + Shift + Option + D
Saturate	Sponge Tool + Shift + Alt + S	Sponge Tool + Shift + Option + S
Dodge/Burn Shadows	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Alt + S	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Option + S
Dodge/Burn Midtones	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Alt + M	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Option + M
Dodge/Burn Highlights	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Alt + H	Dodge Tool/Burn Tool + Shift + Option + H

4. Adjustment Layers & Layers Panel

Action	Shortcut Keys for Windows	Shortcut Keys for Mac
Fit Layer(s) to Screen	Alt-click layer	Option-click layer
New Layer via Copy	Ctrl + J	Command + J
New Layer	Ctrl + Shift+ N	Command + Shift+ N
New Layer via Cut	Shift + Ctrl + J	Shift + Command + J
Close All Open Documents Except the Current Document	Ctrl + Alt + P	Command + Option + P
Cancel Any Modal Dialog Window	Escape	Escape
Select the First Edit Field of the Toolbar	Enter	Return
Navigate Between Fields	Tab	Tab
Group Layers	Ctrl + G	Command + G
Ungroup Layers	Ctrl + Shift + G	Command + Shift + G
Select All Layers	Ctrl + Alt + A	Command + Option + A
Merge Layers	Select layers that you want to merge, then press Ctrl + E	Select layers that you want to merge, then press Ctrl + E

5. Other Important Keyboard Shortcuts

Action	Shortcut Keys for Windows	Shortcut Keys for Mac
Cross-Hair Cursor	Caps Lock	Caps Lock
Show/Hide Panels & Toolbar	Tab	Tab
Show/Hide Panels	Shift-Tab	Shift-Tab
Rulers	Ctrl + R	Command + R
Default Colors	D	D
Free Transform	Ctrl + T	Command + T
Cycle Through Blending Modes	Shift + or Shift –	Shift + or Shift –
Flip Between Open Documents	Ctrl-Tab	Command-Tab
Increase/Decrease Brush Size	Ctrl + Alt + right-click on the image and drag left or right	Command + Option + right-click on the image and drag left or right
Restore Last Selection	Ctrl + Shift + D	Command + Shift + D
Cycle Overlay Options	O	O
Lock Transparent Pixels	/	/
Set the Sample Source While Using Clone Tool	Alt & click on the image	Option & click on the image
Offset Clone Sample Source	Alt-Shit and click on any of the arrow keys	Option-Shit and click on any of the arrow keys
Rotate Clone Sample Source	Alt-Shit and click on < or >	Option-Shit and click on < or >
Scale Clone Sample Source	Alt-Shit and click on any bracket keys	Option-Shit and click on any bracket keys
Switch on to the Layer Mask	Ctrl + /	Command + /
Revert the File	F12	F12
Keyboard Shortcuts Panel	Alt + Shift + Control + K	Option + Shift + Command + K

The Photoshop shortcuts mentioned above could help you in reducing your editing time significantly. Most of the shortcut keyboard keys are used in a similar manner in Windows as in Mac. The only difference being Control (Ctrl) is replaced with Command, Alt with Option, and Backspace with Delete (Del). We hope you found this article resourceful! For more Lightroom and Photoshop blogs, check out our Lightroom and Photoshop tips section.

Further Read: How To Create A Grid In Photoshop

At ShootDotEdit, we look forward to easing your workflow – both by providing resourceful tips and professional wedding photo editing services. To learn more about how we can help your wedding photography business, check out our pricing plans.

Source: Adobe Photoshop