Keyboard Shortcut Reference

From Audacity Development Manual
Revision as of 15:13, 10 October 2009 by Billw58 (talk | contribs) (try prettytablerows→‎File Menu commands)
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ToDo Tables could have a more pleasing format/color (but see other examples, in tutorials). Should be sized with same column widths as each other. Also needs all the current shortcuts adding (a major task).
Bill - all shortcuts documented AFAIK, and grouped by menu/function.

Apple MacOS X users: CTRL = Command

File Menu commands

Click on the action name for a full description of the command on the File Menu page.

Action Key
New CTRL + N
Open... CTRL + O
Close CTRL + W
Save Project CTRL + S
Import Audio... SHIFT + CTRL + I
Exit CTRL + Q

Edit Menu commands

Action Key
Undo CTRL + Z
Redo CTRL + Y
Mac/Linux: CTRL + SHIFT + Z
Cut CTRL + X
Spilt Cut CTRL + ALT + X
Copy CTRL + C
Paste CTRL + V
Trim CTRL + T
Delete CTRL + K
Split Delete CTRL + ALT + K
Silence CTRL + L
Split CTRL + I
Split New CTRL + ALT + I
Join CTRL + J
Disjoin CTRL + ALT + J
Duplicate CTRL + D
Labelled Regions > Cut ALT + X
Labelled Regions > Split Cut SHIFT + ALT + X
Labelled Regions > Copy SHIFT + ALT + C
Labelled Regions > Delete ALT + K
Labelled Regions > Split Delete SHIFT + ALT + K
Labelled Regions > Silence ALT + L
Labelled Regions > Split ALT + I
Labelled Regions > Join ALT + J
Labelled Regions > Disjoin SHIFT + ALT + J
Select > All CTRL + A
Select > None CTRL + SHIFT + A
Select > Left at Playback Position [
Select > Right at Playback Position ]
Find Zero Crossings Z
Move Cursor to Track Start J
Move Cursor to Track End K
Preferences CTRL + P  Mac: CTRL +,

These commands are not (?) described anywhere else, so need to be described here. In this format?

Edit commands not in any menu

Action Key Description
Selection to Start SHIFT + HOME Select all audio from beginning of the track to the cursor
Selection to End SHIFT + END Select all audio from the cursor to the end of the track
Delete Key BACKSPACE Delete the selection
Delete Key 2 DELETE Delete the selection
Selection Extend Left SHIFT + LEFT Increase the size of the selection by extending it to the left. The amount of increase is dependent on the zoom level. If there is no selection one is created starting at the cursor position.
Selection Extend Right SHIFT + RIGHT Increase the size of the selection by extending it to the right. The amount of increase is dependent on the zoom level. If there is no selection one is created starting at the cursor position.
Selection Contract Left CTRL + SHIFT + LEFT Decrease the size of the selection by contracting it from the right. The amount of decrease is dependent on the zoom level. If there is no selection no action is taken.
Selection Contract Right CTRL + SHIFT + RIGHT Decrease the size of the selection by contracting it from the left. The amount of decrease is dependent on the zoom level. If there is no selection no action is taken.
Move Focus to Previous Track UP Change the track that responds to keyboard input to the previous (upper) track. If the top track currently has focus no action is taken.
Move Focus to Previous and Change Selection SHIFT + UP As above, but if there is a selection in the current track that selection is extended into the track above.
Move Focus to Next Track DOWN Change the track that responds to keyboard input to the next (lower) track. If the bottom track currently has focus no action is taken.
Move Focus to Next and Change Selection SHIFT + DOWN As above, but if there is a selection in the current track that selection is extended into the track below.
Toggle Focused Track RETURN Change the focused track from selected to not selected, or from selected to not selected.
Toggle Focused Track NUMPAD_ENTER
Toggle Focused Track CTRL + SPACEBAR
See Audacity Selection for examples of changing track focus and selection.
Cursor Left LEFT Move the cursor left. The distance moved is dependent on the zoom level.
Cursor Right RIGHT Move the cursor right. The distance moved is dependent on the zoom level.
Cursor Short Jump Left , Move the cursor 1 second left.
Cursor Short Jump Right . Move the cursor 1 second right.
Cursor Long Jump Left SHIFT + , Move the cursor 5 seconds left.
Cursor Long Jump Right SHIFT + . Move the cursor 5 seconds right.
Note: the long and short jump times can be set in the Seek Time When Playing section of Playback Preferences.

View Menu commands

Action Key
Zoom In CTRL + 1
Normal Zoom CTRL + 2
Zoom Out CTRL + 3
Fit In Window CTRL + F
Fit Vertically CTRL + SHIFT + F
Zoom to Selection CTRL + E
Collapse All Tracks CTRL + SHIFT + C
Expand All Tracks CTRL + SHIFT + X

View Commands not in any menu

Action Key
Full screen on/off F11 *
  • Mac - F11 is a system 'Expose' command to display the desktop. Mac users will want to assign a different shortcut to this command.

Transport Menu commands

Action Key
Play/Stop SPACEBAR
Loop Play SHIFT + SPACEBAR
Pause P
Skip to Start HOME
Skip to End END
Record R
Timer Record ... SHIFT + T
Append Record SHIFT + R

Transport commands not in any menu

Action Key Description
Play/Stop and Set Cursor SHIFT + A When stopped, this is the same as the Play command. When playing, using this shortcut will stop playback and move the cursor to the position where playback was stopped.
Play One Second 1 Plays for one second centered on the current pointer position (not from the current cursor position). See this page for an example.
Play To Selection B Plays to or from the current pointer position to or from the start or end of the selection, depending on the pointer position. See this page for more details.
Play Cut Preview C Plays for 1 second before the current selection and one second after the current selection, as if the current selection had been cut or deleted. Useful for previewing what the audio will sound like after the cut. The length of time that is played before and after the selection can be set in the Cut Preview section of Playback Preferences.
Seek left short period during playback LEFT Skips the playback cursor back one second.
Seek right short period during playback RIGHT Skips the playback cursor forward one second.
Seek left long period during playback SHIFT + LEFT Skips the playback cursor back five seconds.
Seek right long period during playback SHIFT + RIGHT Skips the playback cursor forward five seconds.
Note: the long and short seek times can be set in the Seek Time When Playing section of Playback Preferences.

Tracks menu

Action Key
Add New > Audio Track SHIFT + CTRL + N
Mute All Tracks CTRL + U
Unmute All Tracks SHIFT + CTRL + U
Add Label at Selection CTRL + B
Add Label at Playback Position CTRL + M *
  • Mac - COMMAND + M is a system command to minimize the front window. Mac users will want to assign a different shortcut to this command.

Tracks commands not in any menu

Action Key Description
Mix and Render to New Track SHIFT + CTRL + M Same as File > Mix and Render, except that the original tracks are preserved and a new track is created containing the resulting mix.
Change pan on focused track SHIFT + P Bring up the Pan dialog for the focused track where you can enter a pan value, or use the slider for finer control of panning than is available when using the track pan slider.
Pan left on focused track ALT + SHIFT + LEFT Control the pan slider on the focused track. Each keypress changes the pan value by 10% left.
Pan right on focused track ALT + SHIFT + RIGHT Control the pan slider on the focused track. Each keypress changes the pan value by 10% right.
Change gain on focused track SHIFT + G Bring up the Gain dialog for the focused track where you can enter a gain value, or use the slider for finer control of gain than is available when using the track pan slider.
Increase gain on focused track ALT + SHIFT + UP Control the gain slider on the focused track. Each keypress increases the gain value by 1 dB.
Decrease gain on focused track ALT + SHIFT + DOWN Control the gain slider on the focused track. Each keypress decreases the gain value by 1 dB.
Mute/Unmute focused track SHIFT + U Toggle the Mute button on the focused track.
Open menu on focused track SHIFT + M Open the track menu on the focused track. Use the Up and Down keys to navigate the menu, the Right key to open a hierarchical menu, the Left key to move from a hierarchical menu to the main menu and the Enter key to select a menu item.
Solo/Unsolo focused track SHIFT + S Toggle the Solo button on the focused track.
Close focused track SHIFT + C Close (delete) the focused track.


Effect Menu

Action Key
Repeat Last Effect CTRL + R

Analyze Menu

Action Key
Contrast ... SHIFT + CTRL + T


Tool Selection

Action Key Description
Cycle backward through Dock, Track View, and Selection Bar CTRL + SHIFT + F6 Each keypress moves the keyboard focus as indicated.
Cycle forward through Dock, Track View, and Selection Bar CTRL + F6 Each keypress moves the keyboard focus as indicated.
Selection Tool F1 Choose the Selection tool.
Envelope Tool F2 Choose the Envelope tool.
Draw Tool F3 Choose the Draw tool.
Zoom Tool F4 Choose the Zoom tool.
Time Shift Tool F5 Choose the Time Shift tool.
Multi-Tool F6 Choose the Multi-tool.
Next Tool D Cycles through the tools: Selection to Envelope to Draw to Zoom to Time Shift to Multi-tool to Selection etc.
Previous Tool A Cycles through the tools: Selection to Multi-tool to Time Shift to Zoom to Draw to Envelope to Selection etc.

Commands with no keyboard shortcut

The following commands are not assigned a shortcut in a default installation of Audacity. You can assign your own shortcuts to these (or any) command through the Keyboard Preferences dialog

File Menu

  • Save Project As
  • Save Compressed Copy of Project...
  • Check Dependencies
  • Open Metadata Editor
  • Import Labels
  • Import MIDI
  • Import Raw Data
  • Export
  • Export Selection
  • Export Labels
  • Export Multiple
  • Apply Chain
  • Edit Chains
  • Page Setup
  • Print

Edit Menu

  • Select Start to Cursor
  • Select Cursor to End
  • Move Cursor to Selection Start
  • Move Cursor to Selection End
  • Move Cursor to Track Start
  • Move Cursor to Track End
  • Region Save
  • Region Restore
  • Play Region Lock
  • Play Region Unlock

View Menu

  • Show Clipping
  • History...
  • Karaoke...
  • Toolbars > Control Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Device Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Edit Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Meter Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Mixer Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Selection Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Tools Toolbar
  • Toolbars > Transcription Toolbar
  • Reset Toolbars

Transport Menu

  • Overdub (on/off)
  • Software Playthrough (on/off)
  • Sound Activated Recording (on/off)
  • Sound Activation Level...

Tracks Menu

  • Add New Stereo Track
  • Add New Label Track
  • Add New Time Track
  • Stereo to Mono
  • Mix and Render
  • Resample...
  • Remove Tracks
  • Link Audio and Label Tracks
  • Edit Labels
  • Sort Tracks By Start Time
  • Sort Tracks By Name

Analyse Menu

  • Plot Spectrum

Help Menu

  • About Audacity
  • Quick Help (in web browser)
  • Manual (in web browser)
  • Show Log
  • Screenshot Tools
  • Run Benchmark
  • Audio Device Info...

Commands with no menu item

  • Set (or Extend) Left Selection
  • Set (or Extend) Right Selection
  • Snap To On
  • Snap To Off
  • Adjust Output Gain
  • Decrease Output Gain
  • Adjust Input Gain
  • Increase Input Gain
  • Decrease Input Gain
  • Adjust Input Source
  • Play at speed
  • Adjust playback speed
  • Increase playback speed
  • Decrease playback speed

Older version

File Commands

Action Key
New Project CTRL+N
Open Project CTRL+O
Close Project CTRL+W
Save Project CTRL+S
Preferences CTRL+P  Mac: CTRL +,

Editing Tools

Action Key
Selection Tool F1
Envelope Tool F2
Editing Tool F3
Zoom Tool F4
Timeshift Tool F5
Multi Tool F6
Next tool in Tools Toolbar D
Previous tool in Tools Toolbar A

Edit Commands

Action Key
Undo CTRL+Z
Redo (Windows) CTRL+Y
Redo (Mac/Linux) CTRL+SHIFT+Z
Cut CTRL+X
Copy CTRL+C
Paste CTRL+V
Delete CTRL+K or DELETE
Silence CTRL+L
Duplicate CTRL+D
Select All CTRL+A
Find Zero Crossings Z

Navigation, Playback & Recording

Action Key
Play/Stop SPACE
Loop SHIFT+SPACE or L
Pause P
Record R
Preview 1 second 1
Play From Cursor To Selection B
Zoom In CTRL+1
Zoom Normal CTRL+2
Zoom Out CTRL+3
Fit In Window CTRL+F
Fit Vertically CTRL+SHIFT+F
Zoom to Selection CTRL+E
Import Audio CTRL+I
Create Label CTRL+B
Repeat Last Effect CTRL+R

Raw list of shortcuts

I've pasted in below (unformatted) all the current commands which can have an associated shortcut, and the default commands (because the list above is incomplete). 1) Should we stick with a natural, functional grouping as above, or stick to the order in the Preferences? 2) Should we list (separately?) commands which can have an associated shortcut but which by default don't have one? I think yes on balance, as even the JAWS guide does not have that information. There are still a number of commands you can't have shortcuts for, even in the menus (is this an oversight we should fix, in which case maybe we don't need a list of all the commands you can set bindings for? ) - Gale 


   * Menus
   * Cycle through Dock, Track View and Selection Bar
   * Tools Toolbar
   * Control Toolbar and associated Play commands
   * Additional Delete keys
   * Seek during playback
   * Move and toggle track focus
   * Move cursor
   * Adjust selection regions
   * Track Panel and Track Drop-Down Menu commands for focused track
   * Snap To


New CTRL + N
Open... CTRL + O
Close CTRL + W
Save Project CTRL + S
Save Project As  
Check Dependencies  
Open Metadata Editor  
Import Audio CTRL + SHIFT + I
Import Labels  
Import MIDI  
Import Raw Data  
Export  
Export Selection  
Export Labels  
Export Multiple  
Apply Chain  
Edit Chains  
Page Setup  
Print  
Exit CTRL + Q
Undo CTRL + Z
Redo CTRL + Y Mac/Linux: CTRL + SHIFT + Z
Cut CTRL + X
Spilt Cut CTRL + ALT + X
Copy CTRL + C
Paste CTRL + V
Trim CTRL + T
Delete CTRL + K
Split Delete CTRL + ALT + K
Silence CTRL + L
Split CTRL + I
Split New CTRL + ALT + I
Join CTRL + J
Disjoin CTRL + ALT + J
Duplicate CTRL + D
Cut Labels ALT + X
Split Cut Labels SHIFT + ALT + X
Copy Labels SHIFT + ALT + C
Delete Labels ALT + K
Split Delete Labels SHIFT + ALT + K
Silence Labels ALT + L
Split Labels ALT + I
Join Labels ALT + J
Disjoin Labels SHIFT + ALT + J
Select All CTRL + A
None CTRL + SHIFT + A
Left at Playback Position [
Right at Playback Position ]
Select Start to Cursor  
Select Cursor to End  
Find Zero Crossings Z
Cursor to Selection Start  
Cursor to Selection End  
Cursor to Track Start  
Cursor to Track End  
Selection Save  
Selection Restore  
Lock Play Region  
Unlock Play Region  
Preferences CTRL + P  Mac: CTRL +,
Zoom In CTRL + 1
Normal Zoom CTRL + 2
Zoom Out CTRL + 3
Fit In Window CTRL + F
Fit Vertically CTRL + SHIFT + F
Zoom to Selection CTRL + E
Collapse All Tracks CTRL + SHIFT + C
Expand All Tracks CTRL + SHIFT + X
Show Clipping  
Undo History  
Show Control Toolbar  
Show Device Toolbar  
Show Edit Toolbar  
Show Meter Toolbar  
Show Mixer Toolbar  
Show Selection Toolbar  
Show Tools Toolbar  
Show Transcription Toolbar  
Reset Toolbars  
Simplified View  
New Audio Track CTRL + SHIFT + N
New Stereo Track  
New Label Track  
New Time Track  
Timer Record  
Stereo to Mono  
Mix and Render  
Mix and Render to New Track CTRL + SHIFT + M
Resample  
Remove Tracks  
Mute All Tracks CTRL + U
UnMute All Tracks CTRL + SHIFT + U
Add Label At Selection CTRL + B
Add Label At Playback Position CTRL + M
Edit Labels  
Sort By Time  
Sort By Name  
Repeat Last Effect CTRL + R
Plot Spectrum  
About Audacity  
Show Welcome Message  
Help Index  
Run Benchmark  
Audio Device Info...  
Cycle backward through Dock, Track View, and Selection Bar CTRL + SHIFT + F6
Cycle forward through Dock, Track View, and Selection Bar CTRL + F6
Selection Tool F1
Envelope Tool F2
Draw Tool F3
Zoom Tool F4
Time Shift Tool F5
Multi-Tool
Next Tool D
Previous Tool A
Play/Stop SPACEBAR
Stop S
Pause P
Record R
Record Append SHIFT + R
Play/Stop and Set Cursor SHIFT + A
Play One Second 1
Play To Selection B
Play Looped L
Play Looped SHIFT + SPACEBAR
Play Cut Preview C
Skip to Start HOME
Skip to End END
Selection to Start SHIFT + HOME
Selection to End SHIFT + END
Delete Key BACKSPACE
Delete Key 2 DELETE
Seek left short period during playback LEFT
Seek right short period during playback RIGHT
Seek left long period during playback SHIFT + LEFT
Seek right long period during playback SHIFT + RIGHT
Move Focus to Previous Track UP
Move Focus to Previous and Change Selection SHIFT + UP
Move Focus to Next Track DOWN
Move Focus to Next and Change Selection SHIFT + DOWN
Toggle Focused Track RETURN
Toggle Focused Track NUMPAD_ENTER
Toggle Focused Track CTRL + SPACEBAR
Cursor Left LEFT
Cursor Right RIGHT
Cursor Short Jump Left ,
Cursor Short Jump Right .
Cursor Long Jump Left SHIFT + ,
Cursor Long Jump Right SHIFT + .
Selection Extend Left SHIFT + LEFT
Selection Extend Right SHIFT + RIGHT
Set (or Extend) Left Selection  
Set (or Extend) Right Selection  
Selection Contract Left CTRL + SHIFT + LEFT
Selection Contract Right CTRL + SHIFT + RIGHT
Change pan on focused track SHIFT + P
Pan left on focused track ALT + SHIFT + LEFT
Pan right on focused track ALT + SHIFT + RIGHT
Change gain on focused track SHIFT + G
Increase gain on focused track ALT + SHIFT + UP
Decrease gain on focused track ALT + SHIFT + DOWN
Open menu on focused track SHIFT + M
Mute/Unmute focused track SHIFT + U
Solo/Unsolo focused track SHIFT + S
Close focused track SHIFT + C
Snap To On  
Snap To Off  
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