Adobe Photoshop Keyboard Shortcuts: The Complete Guide for Mac
Master Adobe Photoshop with this comprehensive keyboard shortcuts guide for Mac. From essential tools to advanced layer operations, become a Photoshop power user.
Adobe Photoshop is the industry-standard image editing software used by photographers, designers, and digital artists worldwide. Mastering keyboard shortcuts can dramatically speed up your workflow and help you focus on creativity rather than clicking through menus.
Essential tool shortcuts
These shortcuts let you quickly switch between Photoshop's most-used tools.
| Tool | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Move Tool | V |
| Marquee Selection Tools | M |
| Lasso Tools | L |
| Quick Selection / Magic Wand | W |
| Crop Tool | C |
| Eyedropper / Color Sampler | I |
| Spot Healing Brush / Healing Brush | J |
| Brush / Pencil | B |
| Clone Stamp / Pattern Stamp | S |
| History Brush / Art History Brush | Y |
| Eraser Tools | E |
| Gradient / Paint Bucket | G |
| Dodge / Burn / Sponge | O |
| Pen Tools | P |
| Type Tools | T |
| Path Selection / Direct Selection | A |
| Rectangle / Shape Tools | U |
| Hand Tool | H |
| Rotate View Tool | R |
| Zoom Tool | Z |
Pro tip: Press ⇧ (Shift) + the tool shortcut to cycle through hidden tools in the same group.
File operations
Manage your documents efficiently with these essential file shortcuts.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| New Document | ⌘ + N |
| Open File | ⌘ + O |
| Open As | ⌥ + ⌘ + O |
| Close Document | ⌘ + W |
| Close All Documents | ⌥ + ⌘ + W |
| Save | ⌘ + S |
| Save As | ⇧ + ⌘ + S |
| Save for Web (Legacy) | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + S |
| Export As | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + W |
⌘ + P | |
| Quit Photoshop | ⌘ + Q |
View and navigation
Navigate your canvas and control how you view your work.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Zoom In | ⌘ + + |
| Zoom Out | ⌘ + - |
| Fit on Screen | ⌘ + 0 |
| Actual Pixels (100%) | ⌘ + 1 |
| Toggle Full Screen Mode | F |
| Show/Hide Rulers | ⌘ + R |
| Show/Hide Guides | ⌘ + ; |
| Show/Hide Grid | ⌘ + ' |
| Lock Guides | ⌥ + ⌘ + ; |
| Show/Hide Extras | ⌘ + H |
| Scroll Left/Right | ⌘ + Scroll |
Pro tip: Hold Space to temporarily switch to the Hand Tool for panning, then release to return to your previous tool.
Selection shortcuts
Master selections to edit precisely what you need.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Select All | ⌘ + A |
| Deselect | ⌘ + D |
| Reselect | ⇧ + ⌘ + D |
| Inverse Selection | ⇧ + ⌘ + I |
| Select All Layers | ⌥ + ⌘ + A |
| Feather Selection | ⇧ + F6 |
| Select and Mask | ⌥ + ⌘ + R |
| Color Range | Access via Select menu |
| Grow Selection | Access via Select menu |
| Similar Selection | Access via Select menu |
Selection modifiers
| Modifier | Effect |
|---|---|
⇧ + Selection Tool | Add to existing selection |
⌥ + Selection Tool | Subtract from selection |
⇧ + ⌥ + Selection Tool | Intersect with selection |
Layer operations
Layers are the heart of non-destructive editing in Photoshop.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| New Layer | ⇧ + ⌘ + N |
| New Layer (no dialog) | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + N |
| Duplicate Layer | ⌘ + J |
| Cut to New Layer | ⇧ + ⌘ + J |
| Group Layers | ⌘ + G |
| Ungroup Layers | ⇧ + ⌘ + G |
| Merge Down | ⌘ + E |
| Merge Visible | ⇧ + ⌘ + E |
| Stamp Visible | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + E |
| Flatten Image | ⇧ + ⌘ + F |
| Bring to Front | ⇧ + ⌘ + ] |
| Bring Forward | ⌘ + ] |
| Send Backward | ⌘ + [ |
| Send to Back | ⇧ + ⌘ + [ |
| Select Layer Above | ⌥ + ] |
| Select Layer Below | ⌥ + [ |
Brush and painting
Fine-tune your brushes on the fly while painting.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Decrease Brush Size | [ |
| Increase Brush Size | ] |
| Decrease Brush Hardness | ⇧ + [ |
| Increase Brush Hardness | ⇧ + ] |
| Previous Brush | , |
| Next Brush | . |
| First Brush | < |
| Last Brush | > |
| Set Brush Opacity 10–100% | 1 – 0 |
| Set Brush Flow 10–100% | ⇧ + 1 – ⇧ + 0 |
| Toggle Airbrush Mode | ⌥ + ⇧ + P |
| Sample Background Color | ⌥ + Click |
| Swap Foreground/Background Colors | X |
| Default Colors (Black/White) | D |
Pro tip: Hold ⌃ + ⌥ and drag left/right to change brush size, or drag up/down to change hardness.
Transform and edit
Transform and manipulate your layers and selections.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Free Transform | ⌘ + T |
| Transform Again | ⇧ + ⌘ + T |
| Warp | After ⌘ + T, right-click → Warp |
| Scale (proportional) | ⇧ + Drag corner |
| Rotate 15° increments | ⇧ + Rotate |
| Distort | ⌘ + Drag corner |
| Skew | ⌘ + ⇧ + Drag side |
| Apply Transform | Return |
| Cancel Transform | Escape |
Color and adjustments
Apply color corrections and adjustments.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Levels | ⌘ + L |
| Curves | ⌘ + M |
| Hue/Saturation | ⌘ + U |
| Color Balance | ⌘ + B |
| Black & White | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + B |
| Desaturate | ⇧ + ⌘ + U |
| Invert | ⌘ + I |
| Auto Tone | ⇧ + ⌘ + L |
| Auto Contrast | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + L |
| Auto Color | ⇧ + ⌘ + B |
Pro tip: Add ⌥ to most adjustment shortcuts to open them as adjustment layers for non-destructive editing.
Copy, paste, and undo
Essential editing operations you'll use constantly.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Undo | ⌘ + Z |
| Redo | ⇧ + ⌘ + Z |
| Step Backward (History) | ⌥ + ⌘ + Z |
| Step Forward (History) | ⇧ + ⌘ + Z |
| Cut | ⌘ + X |
| Copy | ⌘ + C |
| Copy Merged | ⇧ + ⌘ + C |
| Paste | ⌘ + V |
| Paste in Place | ⇧ + ⌘ + V |
| Paste Into | ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + V |
| Fill | ⇧ + F5 |
| Fill with Foreground Color | ⌥ + Delete |
| Fill with Background Color | ⌘ + Delete |
| Content-Aware Fill | ⇧ + Delete |
Filters and effects
Apply filters and effects quickly.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Last Filter | ⌘ + F |
| Last Filter with Dialog | ⌥ + ⌘ + F |
| Fade Last Filter | ⇧ + ⌘ + F |
| Liquify | ⇧ + ⌘ + X |
| Vanishing Point | ⌥ + ⌘ + V |
Text editing
Work efficiently with type layers.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Commit Text | ⌘ + Return |
| Cancel Text Edit | Escape |
| Select All Text | ⌘ + A |
| Increase Font Size | ⇧ + ⌘ + > |
| Decrease Font Size | ⇧ + ⌘ + < |
| Increase Leading | ⌥ + ↓ |
| Decrease Leading | ⌥ + ↑ |
| Increase Tracking/Kerning | ⌥ + → |
| Decrease Tracking/Kerning | ⌥ + ← |
| Align Left | ⇧ + ⌘ + L |
| Align Center | ⇧ + ⌘ + C |
| Align Right | ⇧ + ⌘ + R |
| Toggle Bold | ⇧ + ⌘ + B |
| Toggle Italic | ⇧ + ⌘ + I |
| Toggle Underline | ⇧ + ⌘ + U |
Blend modes
Cycle through blend modes quickly while a layer or tool is selected.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Cycle Blend Modes Forward | ⇧ + + |
| Cycle Blend Modes Backward | ⇧ + - |
| Normal | ⌥ + ⇧ + N |
| Dissolve | ⌥ + ⇧ + I |
| Multiply | ⌥ + ⇧ + M |
| Screen | ⌥ + ⇧ + S |
| Overlay | ⌥ + ⇧ + O |
| Soft Light | ⌥ + ⇧ + F |
| Hard Light | ⌥ + ⇧ + H |
| Color Dodge | ⌥ + ⇧ + D |
| Color Burn | ⌥ + ⇧ + B |
| Darken | ⌥ + ⇧ + K |
| Lighten | ⌥ + ⇧ + G |
| Difference | ⌥ + ⇧ + E |
| Exclusion | ⌥ + ⇧ + X |
| Hue | ⌥ + ⇧ + U |
| Saturation | ⌥ + ⇧ + T |
| Color | ⌥ + ⇧ + C |
| Luminosity | ⌥ + ⇧ + Y |
Panels and workspace
Show, hide, and manage your workspace.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Show/Hide All Panels | Tab |
| Show/Hide Side Panels | ⇧ + Tab |
| Brushes Panel | F5 |
| Color Panel | F6 |
| Layers Panel | F7 |
| Info Panel | F8 |
| Actions Panel | ⌥ + F9 |
| Show/Hide Options Bar | Access via Window menu |
Customize your shortcuts
Photoshop lets you customize every keyboard shortcut to match your workflow. Go to Edit → Keyboard Shortcuts (or press ⌥ + ⇧ + ⌘ + K) to create your own custom shortcut sets.
Show your shortcuts on screen
Teaching Photoshop or creating tutorials? KeyScreen displays your keystrokes beautifully on screen so your audience always knows what shortcuts you're using—perfect for professional-looking tutorials and live demonstrations.