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Microsoft PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts for Windows

Keyboard shortcuts for Microsoft PowerPoint on Windows. Build slides, apply formatting, and deliver presentations on Windows.
Key label style

Frequently used shortcuts

Create new presentation
Ctrl+N
Add a new slide
Ctrl+M
Apply bold formatting to the selected text
Ctrl+B
Open the Font dialog box
Ctrl+T
Cut selected text, object, or slide
Ctrl+X
Copy selected text, object, or slide
Ctrl+C
Paste cut or copied text, object, or slide
Ctrl+V
Insert a hyperlink
Ctrl+K
Insert a new comment
Ctrl+Alt+M
Undo the last action
Ctrl+Z
Redo the last action
Ctrl+Y
Go to the next slide
Pg Dn
Go to the previous slide
Pg Up
Start the slide show
F5
End the slide show
Esc
Print a presentation
Ctrl+P
Save the presentation
Ctrl+S
Close PowerPoint
Ctrl+Q

Work with presentations and slides

Insert a new slide
Ctrl+M
Go to the next slide
Pg Dn
Go to the previous slide
Pg Up
Zoom out
Ctrl+-
Zoom in
Ctrl+=
Zoom to fit
Ctrl+Alt+O
Make a copy of the selected slide
Ctrl+Shift+D
Open a presentation
Ctrl+O
Close a presentation
Ctrl+D
Save a presentation with a different name, location, or file format
Ctrl+Shift+S
Cancel a command, such as Save As
Esc
Open a recent file
Ctrl+O

Copy objects and text

Cut selected object or text
Ctrl+X
Copy selected object or text
Ctrl+C
Paste cut or copied object or text
Ctrl+V
Duplicate selected objects
Ctrl+D
or
Ctrl+Drag
Copy the formatting of the selected object or text
Ctrl+Shift+C
Paste copied formatting to the selected object or text
Ctrl+Shift+V
Copy animation painter
Alt+Shift+C
Paste animation painter
Alt+Shift+V
Open the Paste Special dialog box
Ctrl+Alt+V

Work in objects and text

Move the focus to the first floating shape, such as an image or a text box
Ctrl+Alt+5
Select another object when one object is selected
Tab
or
Shift+Tab
Send object back one position
Ctrl+[
Send object forward one position
Ctrl+]
Send object to back
Ctrl+Shift+[
Send object to front
Ctrl+Shift+]
Select all objects on a slide
Ctrl+A
Group the selected objects
Ctrl+G
Ungroup the selected group
Ctrl+Shift+G
Regroup the selected objects
Ctrl+Shift+J
Rotate the selected object clockwise 15 degrees
Alt+Right
Rotate the selected object counterclockwise 15 degrees
Alt+Left
Play or pause media
Ctrl+Space
Insert a hyperlink
Ctrl+K
Insert a new comment
Ctrl+Alt+M
Insert equation
Alt+=
Edit a linked or embedded object
Shift+F10
or
Context Menu,O,Enter,E

Select text

Select one character to the left/right
Shift+LeftRight
Select to the end of a word
Ctrl+Shift+Right
Select to the beginning of a word
Ctrl+Shift+Left
Select from the insertion point to the same point one line up
Shift+Up
Select from the insertion point to the same point one line down
Shift+Down
Select from the insertion point to the end of the paragraph
Ctrl+Shift+Down
Select from the insertion point to the beginning of the paragraph
Ctrl+Shift+Up
Select text within an object (with an object selected)
Enter
Select an object when the text inside the object is selected
Esc

Rewrite text with Copilot

Invoke Copilot options for rewriting selected textbox
Shift+F8

Delete text

Delete one character to the left
Bksp
Delete one word to the left
Ctrl+Bksp
Delete one character to the right
Del
Delete one word to the right (with the cursor between the words)
Ctrl+Del

Move around in text

Move one character to the left
Left
Move one character to the right
Right
Move one line up
Up
Move one line down
Down
Move one word to the left
Ctrl+Left
Move one word to the right
Ctrl+Right
Move to the end of a line
End
Move to the beginning of a line
Home
Move up one paragraph
Ctrl+Up
Move down one paragraph
Ctrl+Down
Move to the end of a text box
Ctrl+End
Move to the beginning of a text box
Ctrl+Home
Move to the next title or body text placeholderOn the last placeholder of a slide, inserts a new slide with the same layout.
Ctrl+Enter
Promote a paragraph
Alt+Shift+Left
Demote a paragraph
Alt+Shift+Right
Move selected paragraphs up
Alt+Shift+Up
Move selected paragraphs down
Alt+Shift+Down

Find and replace text

Open the Find dialog box
Ctrl+F
Open the Replace dialog box
Ctrl+H
Repeat the last Find action
Shift+F4

Format text

Open the Font dialog box
Ctrl+T
or
Ctrl+Shift+F
Increase the font size
Ctrl+Shift+.
Decrease the font size
Ctrl+Shift+,
Switch between sentence case, lowercase, or uppercase
Shift+F3
Apply bold formatting
Ctrl+B
Apply underline formatting
Ctrl+U
Apply italic formatting
Ctrl+I
Apply subscript formatting (automatic spacing)
Ctrl+=
Apply superscript formatting (automatic spacing)
Ctrl+Shift+=
Remove manual character formatting, such as subscript and superscript
Ctrl+Space
Center a paragraph
Ctrl+E
Justify a paragraph
Ctrl+J
Left align a paragraph
Ctrl+L
Right align a paragraph
Ctrl+R

Work with tables

Move to the next cell
Tab
Move to the preceding cell
Shift+Tab
Move to the next row
Down
Move to the preceding row
Up
Insert a tab in a cell
Ctrl+Tab
Start a new paragraph
Enter
Add a new row at the bottom of the table with the cursor in the last cell of the last row
Tab

Move a slide

Move the selected slide or section up in order
Ctrl+Up
Move the selected slide or section down in order
Ctrl+Down
Move the selected slide or section to the beginning
Ctrl+Shift+Up
Move the selected slide or section to the end
Ctrl+Shift+Down

Work with views and panes

Switch to Presenter view
Alt+F5
Switch to Slide Show
F5
Toggle between Outline and Thumbnail views
Ctrl+Shift+Tab
Switch to full screen (hide menus)
Ctrl+F1
Show or hide guides
Alt+F9
Show or hide the grid
Shift+F9
Cycle clockwise through panes in the Normal view
F6
Cycle counterclockwise through panes in the Normal view
Shift+F6
Switch between the Thumbnail pane and the Outline View pane
Ctrl+Shift+Tab
Show Outline View level 1 headings
Alt+Shift+1
Expand Outline View text below a heading
Alt+Shift+=
Collapse Outline View text below a heading
Alt+Shift+-
Select all text in the Outline View
Ctrl+A
Select all slides in the Slide Sorter view or the thumbnail pane
Ctrl+A
Show the help menu
F1

Work with the Selection pane

Open the Selection pane
Alt+F10
or
Alt+H,S,L,P
Cycle the focus through the different panes
F6
Display the context menu
Shift+F10
or
Context Menu
Move the focus to a single item or group
UpDown
Move the focus from an item in a group to its parent group
Left
Move the focus from a group to the first item in that group
Right
Expand a focused group and all its child groups
Num *
Expand a focused group
Num +
or
Right
Collapse a focused group
Num -
or
Left
Move the focus to an item and select it
Shift+UpDown
Select a focused item
Space
or
Enter
Cancel selection of a focused item
Shift+Space
or
Shift+Enter
Move a selected item forward
Ctrl+Shift+F
Move a selected item backward
Ctrl+Shift+B
Show or hide a focused item
Ctrl+Shift+S
Rename a focused item
F2
Switch the keyboard focus within the Selection pane between tree view and the Show All and Hide All buttons
Tab
or
Shift+Tab
Collapse all groups (with the focus in the tree view of the Selection pane)
Alt+Shift+1
Expand all groups
Alt+Shift+9

Work with the task pane

Move to a task pane from another pane or area in the program windowYou might need to press F6 more than once.
F6
When a task pane option has focus, move to the next or previous option in the task pane
Tab
or
Shift+Tab
Display the full set of commands on a task pane menuReaches the Close, Move and Size buttons of the pane.
Ctrl+Space
or
Ctrl+Down
Move to the next command on the task pane menu
UpDown
Select the highlighted option on the task pane menu
Enter
Move or resize the task pane after the corresponding command has been selected
UpDownLeftRight
Close a task pane
Ctrl+Space,C

Open the ribbon tabs

Move to the Tell me or Search field on the ribbon and type a search term for assistance or Help content
Alt+Q
Open the File menu
Alt+F
Open the Home tab and format slides, fonts, paragraphs, or drawings
Alt+H
Open the Insert tab and insert slides, tables, images, illustrations, forms, links, text, symbols, or media
Alt+N
Open the Draw tab and access the drawing tools
Alt+J,I
Open the Design tab and apply themes and customize slides
Alt+G
Open the Transitions tab and add transitions between slides
Alt+K
Open the Animations tab and add animations to slides
Alt+A
Open the Slide Show tab and set up and play the slide show
Alt+S
Open the Review tab and check spelling and accessibility and add comments
Alt+R
Open the View tabPreview presentation layouts, toggle gridlines and guides, set the zoom, manage windows, and view macros.
Alt+W
Open the Recording tab and manage screen recordings, audio, and video in your presentation
Alt+C
Open the Help tab and browse the PowerPoint, contact support, and leave feedback
Alt+Y,2

Work in the ribbon with the keyboard

Select the active tab on the ribbon, and activate the access keys
Alt
or
F10
Move the focus to commands on the ribbon
Tab
or
Shift+Tab
Move down, up, left, or right, respectively, among the items on the ribbon
UpDownLeftRight
Show the tooltip for the ribbon element currently in focus
Ctrl+Shift+F10
Activate a selected button or control
Space
or
Enter
Open the list for a selected command
Down
Open the menu for a selected button
Alt+Down
When a menu or submenu is open, move to the next command
Down
Expand or collapse the ribbon
Ctrl+F1
Open a context menu
Shift+F10
or
Context Menu
Move to the submenu when a main menu is open or selected
Left
Get help on the currently selected command or control on the ribbon
F1

Other useful ribbon keyboard shortcuts

Change the font size for selected text
Alt+H,F,S
Open the Zoom dialog box
Alt+W,Q
Print all slides as full-page slides with the default printer settings
Alt+P,P
with the Print dialog box open
Select a theme
Alt+G,H
Select a slide layout
Alt+H,L
Show or hide the Notes pane in the Normal view
Alt+W,P,N
Open the clipboard
Alt+H,F,O
Insert a text box
Alt+N,X
Insert an embedded document or spreadsheet as an object
Alt+N,J
Insert WordArt
Alt+N,W
Insert a picture from your device
Alt+N,P,D
Insert a shape
Alt+N,S,H

Intro

PowerPoint on Windows uses Ctrl as its primary modifier for edit-mode shortcuts. F-key shortcuts work without Fn, which makes starting and controlling presentations faster. Alt activates Ribbon navigation, giving keyboard access to every PowerPoint command including those without a direct shortcut.

Windows-specific shortcut notes

Starting a slideshow. F5 starts the presentation from the first slide. Shift+F5 starts from the current slide, useful when reviewing a specific section and testing how it looks in presentation mode. No Fn modifier needed on Windows.

Ctrl as edit-mode modifier. Formatting, duplication, object management, navigation, and undo all use Ctrl. Ctrl+D duplicates a slide or selected object. Ctrl+G groups selected objects. Ctrl+Z undoes.

Ribbon key navigation. Pressing Alt in PowerPoint activates key tips on every Ribbon tab and command. This gives keyboard access to any PowerPoint feature, including layout tools, animations, and transitions that lack a direct shortcut.

Presentation delivery shortcuts. These single-key shortcuts work once a slideshow is running:

  • F5: Start from the beginning (or restart)
  • Shift+F5: Start from the current slide
  • B: Black screen toggle
  • W: White screen toggle
  • Escape: End the slideshow
  • Number + Enter: Jump to a specific slide

Animation and transition controls. Triggering the next animation step and navigating through timed sequences have shortcuts during presentation mode.

Printable PDF

The PowerPoint Windows shortcut list is available as a printable PDF. The presentation delivery section, B, W, F5, slide-jump, is worth printing before a live presentation.

FAQ

Need more than shortcuts?
Visit the Microsoft Power Point app page for an overview and helpful links.

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