Keyboard Shortcuts to Type Faster: 20 Text Editing Keys

The five keyboard shortcuts that make you type faster: Ctrl + Backspace deletes the whole word to the left, Ctrl + Left arrow and Ctrl + Right arrow jump word by word, Shift + Ctrl + Right arrow selects word by word, and Ctrl + Z undoes the last typing. On a Mac, Option does the same job as Ctrl. All 20 below come from the official shortcut lists of Microsoft and Apple.

Delete faster

• Ctrl + Backspace - Delete the word to the left (Mac: Option + Delete)
• Ctrl + Del - Delete the word to the right
• Del - Delete the character to the right (Mac: Fn + Delete)

Move the cursor

• Ctrl + Left arrow - Jump to the previous word (Mac: Option + Left Arrow)
• Ctrl + Right arrow - Jump to the next word (Mac: Option + Right Arrow)
• Home - Start of the line (Mac: Cmd + Left Arrow)
• End - End of the line (Mac: Cmd + Right Arrow)
• Ctrl + Up arrow - Previous paragraph
• Ctrl + Down arrow - Next paragraph
• Ctrl + Home - Start of the document (Mac: Cmd + Up Arrow)
• Ctrl + End - End of the document (Mac: Cmd + Down Arrow)

Select text

• Shift + Ctrl + Left arrow - Select word by word to the left (Mac: Option + Shift + Left Arrow)
• Shift + Ctrl + Right arrow - Select word by word to the right (Mac: Option + Shift + Right Arrow)
• Shift + Home - Select to the start of the line (Mac: Shift + Cmd + Left Arrow)
• Shift + End - Select to the end of the line (Mac: Shift + Cmd + Right Arrow)
• Ctrl + A - Select all (Mac: Cmd + A)

Undo, redo, paste

• Ctrl + Z - Undo the last typing (Mac: Cmd + Z)
• Ctrl + Y - Redo (Mac: Shift + Cmd + Z)
• Ctrl + Shift + V - Paste as plain text (Mac: Option + Shift + Cmd + V)
• Windows + V - Clipboard history, turn it on the first time you press it

Pro tip

Retype the same sentences every day? On a Mac, text replacements turn a short code into a full phrase in every app: System Settings, Keyboard, Text Replacements. Type "adr" and get your full address.

FAQ

What is the shortcut to delete a whole word?

On Windows, Ctrl + Backspace deletes the word to the left of the cursor and Ctrl + Del the word to the right. On a Mac, Option + Delete deletes the word to the left.

How do I move the cursor one word at a time?

Hold Ctrl and press the left or right arrow on Windows. On a Mac, hold Option instead.

How do I paste without formatting?

Ctrl + Shift + V on Windows, Option + Shift + Cmd + V on a Mac. Microsoft notes that the Windows shortcut doesn't work in every app.

Do these shortcuts work in every program?

They work in most text fields, from email to documents and browsers. Some apps change single shortcuts, so test the ones you use most once in your main tools.

Next step

Shortcuts save the trips to the mouse, touch typing saves time on every word. The techniques that matter most are in How to Type Faster: 7 Techniques, and the free typing speed test shows where you start. The method behind it is explained in the complete guide to touch typing.

Matching sheets

The system shortcuts beyond text editing: 30 Windows shortcuts and Mac keyboard shortcuts.

For AI tools: the ChatGPT keyboard shortcuts and the Claude Code shortcuts.

Sources

• Keyboard shortcuts in Windows - Microsoft, text editing shortcuts and clipboard history.
• Mac keyboard shortcuts - Apple, document shortcuts.
• Replace text and punctuation in documents on Mac - Apple, text replacements.