Terminal is a command-line interface (CLI) in Mac which allows users to interact with the Unix based macOS operating system. You can make use of this app for various purposes which can’t be done from the graphical user interface (CGI). If you are already using or want to use the Terminal app in Mac, learning the keyboard shortcuts can help to finish the tasks quickly.
Note: Windows operating system also has a Terminal app as a command-line interface. If you have wrongly landed in this article, check out the complete keyboard shortcuts for Windows Terminal app.
Mac Terminal Keyboard Shortcuts
You can find some of the keyboard shortcuts by navigating through the menu items. For example, pressing “Command D” will split the app window and “Command Shift D” will close the previously split pane. You can find these shortcuts under “View” menu. However, there are many other shortcuts which are not part of the default menu items. For example, you can press “Control A” and “Control E” to move the cursor to start / end of the line. This kind of stuffs will make your life easier for moving the cursor to required position and adjust the command.
So, below is a table listing complete keyboard shortcuts for Mac Terminal app:
| Terminal Shortcut | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ⇧ ← | Select text leftward |
| ⇧ → | Select text rightward |
| ⇧ ↑ | Select text upward |
| ⇧ ↓ | Select text downward |
| ⇧ ⇞ | Scroll Terminal output one page up |
| ⇧ ⇟ | Scroll Terminal output one page down |
| ⌃ ↑ | Scroll Terminal output one line up |
| ⌃ ↓ | Scroll Terminal output one line down |
| ⌃ ⇥ | Show next tab |
| ⌃ ⇧ ⇥ | Show previous tab |
| ⌃ A | Move to beginning of the line |
| ⌃ B | Move cursor backward one character |
| ⌃ C | Terminate the current command |
| ⌃ D | Delete the character under cursor (same as Delete) |
| ⌃ E | Move to end of the line |
| ⌃ F | Move cursor forward one character |
| ⌃ H | Delete the character before cursor (same as Backspace) |
| ⌃ K | Delete from the cursor to end of the line |
| ⌃ L | Clear screen |
| ⌃ R | Search command history (type to search, press Enter to execute) |
| ⌃ T | Swap last two characters before cursor |
| ⌃ U | Delete from the cursor to beginning of the line |
| ⌃ W | Delete the word before cursor |
| ⌘ – | Smaller font |
| ⌘ , | Open Terminal Settings |
| ⌘ ` | Cycle through windows Terminal |
| ⌘ ↑ | Jump to previous mark |
| ⌘ ↓ | Jump to next mark |
| ⌘ ↩ | Mark line and send return |
| ⌘ ⇞ | Page up |
| ⌘ ⇟ | Page down |
| ⌘ ⇧ [ | Switch between tabs in the same window, backward |
| ⌘ ⇧ ] | Switch between tabs in the same window, forward |
| ⌘ ⇧ \ | Show all tabs |
| ⌘ ⇧ ↑ | Select to previous mark |
| ⌘ ⇧ ↓ | Select to next mark |
| ⌘ ⇧ ↩ | Send return without marking |
| ⌘ ⇧ ⇟ | Show alternate screen |
| ⌘ ⇧ A | Select between marks |
| ⌘ ⇧ C | Show colors |
| ⌘ ⇧ F | Hide find bar |
| ⌘ ⇧ G | Find previous |
| ⌘ ⇧ I | Edit title (through Inspector) |
| ⌘ ⇧ K | New remote connection |
| ⌘ ⇧ M | Inert bookmark |
| ⌘ ⇧ N | New command |
| ⌘ ⇧ S | Export selected text from Terminal |
| ⌘ ⇧ T | Hide tab bar |
| ⌘ ⇧ U | Unmark |
| ⌘ ⇧ V | Paste selection |
| ⌘ ⇧ Z | Redo last action |
| ⌘ ⇱ | Scroll to top |
| ⌘ ⇲ | Scroll to bottom |
| ⌘ + | Bigger font |
| ⌘ ⌃ ? | Open man page for selection |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⇧ C | Copy text without background color |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⇧ V | Paste escaped selection |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⌥ / | Search man page index for selection |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⌥ C | Copy plain text |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⌥ L | Fill screen |
| ⌘ ⌃ ⌥ R | Hard reset the app |
| ⌘ ⌃ L | Clear screen |
| ⌘ ⌃ N | Open new window with the same command |
| ⌘ ⌃ T | Open new tab with the same command |
| ⌘ ⌃ V | Paste escaped text |
| ⌘ ⌥ ↑ | Jump to previous bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ ↓ | Jump to next bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ ⇞ | Jump to previous line |
| ⌘ ⌥ ⇟ | Jump to next line |
| ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ ↑ | Select to previous bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ ↓ | Select to next bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ ⇧ M | Insert bookmark with name |
| ⌘ ⌥ 1 to 9 | Go to tab 1 to 9 |
| ⌘ ⌥ H | Hide others |
| ⌘ ⌥ I | Edit background color (through Inspector) |
| ⌘ ⌥ K | Clear scrollback |
| ⌘ ⌥ L | Clear to previous bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ M | Minimize all |
| ⌘ ⌥ O | Use Option as meta key |
| ⌘ ⌥ P | Print only the selected text |
| ⌘ ⌥ Q | Quit and keep windows |
| ⌘ ⌥ R | Reset the app |
| ⌘ ⌥ U | Mark as bookmark |
| ⌘ ⌥ W | Close all windows |
| ⌘ 0 | Default font size |
| ⌘ A | Select all text |
| ⌘ C | Copy selected text |
| ⌘ D | Split pane |
| ⌘ E | Use selection for find |
| ⌘ F | Find within Terminal app |
| ⌘ G | Find next |
| ⌘ H | Hide Terminal |
| ⌘ I | Show Inspector |
| ⌘ J | Jump to selection |
| ⌘ K | Clear to start |
| ⌘ L | Clear to start of selection |
| ⌘ M | Minimize |
| ⌘ N | Open a new window |
| ⌘ O | Open |
| ⌘ P | Open print dialog box |
| ⌘ Q | Quit Terminal |
| ⌘ R | Allow mouse reporting |
| ⌘ S | Export text content from Terminal |
| ⌘ T | Open a new tab |
| ⌘ Tab | Switch between applications |
| ⌘ U | Mark |
| ⌘ V | Paste text from clipboard |
| ⌘ W | Close the current tab or window |
| ⌘ X | Cut selected text |
| ⌘ Z | Undo last action |
| ⌥ ← | Move cursor one word backward |
| ⌥ → | Move cursor one word forward |
| ⌥ ⌫ | Delete the word before the cursor |
| Fn + ↑ | Scroll to the top of Terminal output |
| Fn + ↓ | Scroll to the bottom of Terminal output |
| Fn + E | Emoji & symbols (open Character Viewer) |
| Fn + F | Enter full screen |
| Fn ⌫ | Forward delete (delete the character to the right of the cursor) |
Mac Keyboard Keys
If you are not familiar with Mac keyboard keys, here is an explanation. Note that the availability of some of these keys depend on your Mac / keyboard model. Generally, you will not find Page Up or Page Down keys in MacBook keyboard layout while they are part of Magic Keyboard with numeric pad.
- Command – ⌘
- Control – ⌃
- Option – ⌥
- Shift – ⇧
- Delete – ⌫
- Page Up – ⇞
- Page Down – ⇟
- Up Arrow – ↑
- Down Arrow – ↓
- Left Arrow – ←
- Right Arrow – →
- Home – ⇱
- End – ⇲
- Tab – ⇥
- Function or Globe – Fn
You can download the Mac Terminal keyboard shortcuts as a PDF file for free.
