Scrivener is one of the best environments for long-form writing. You can rely on its solid organizational features to manage research papers, novels, manuals, plays, scripts, and more. Whether you want to dig into a specific snippet of writing or get a bird's-eye view of everything you've written, Scrivener has the right set of tools to make your job easier.

If you use Scrivener on your MacBook or plan to do so, we suggest adding keyboard shortcuts to your workflow. Given that Scrivener is quite complex, learning how to navigate it with shortcuts alone can transform how you use the app.

There's a long list of Scrivener keyboard shortcuts to pick from and you can discover the best of them in our cheat sheet below. The cheat sheet contents are applicable to Scrivener 3, the latest version of the app.

FREE DOWNLOAD: This cheat sheet is available as a downloadable PDF from our distribution partner, TradePub. You will have to complete a short form to access it for the first time only. Download The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac.

The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac

Shortcut

Action

General Shortcuts

Command + ,

Preferences

Command + H

Hide Scrivener

Option + Command + H

Hide Others

Command + Q

Quit Scrivener

File

Shift + Command + N

New Project

Command + O

Open…

Shift + Command + W

Close Project

Option + Shift + Command + W

Close Project and Clear Interface Settings

Command + W

Close Window

Command + S

Save

Option + Command + S

Save and Rebuild Search Indexes

Shift + Command + S

Save As…

Shift + Command + I

Import > Files…

Option + Command + W

Import > Web Page…

Shift + Command + E

Export > Files…

Shift + Command + P

Page Setup…

Command + P

Print Current Document…

Option + Command + E

Compile Draft…

Edit

Command + Z

Undo

Shift + Command + Z

Redo

Command + X

Cut

Command + C

Copy

Option + Shift + Command + C

Copy Special > Copy without Comments and Footnotes

Command + V

Paste

Option + Shift + Command + V

Paste and Match Style

Command + A

Select All

Option + Command + A

Select Current Text

Option + Esc

Complete

Control + Esc

Complete Document Title

Option + Command + Return

Insert > Line Break

Shift + Command + B

Insert > Bookmark Annotation

Option + Shift + Command + D

Insert > Current Date & Time

Command + L

Scrivener Link > New Link…

Command + F

Find > Find…

Command + G

Find > Find Next

Shift + Command + G

Find > Find Previous

Command + E

Find > Use Selection for Find

Command + J

Find > Jump to Selection

Control + Option + F

Find > Project Search

Control + Option + Command + F

Find > Find by Formatting…

Option + Shift + Command + G

Find > Find Next Formatting

Control + Option + Command + G

Find > Find Previous Formatting

Command +

Spelling and Grammar > Show Spelling and Grammar

Command + ;

Spelling and Grammar > Check Document Now

Command + \

Spelling and Grammar > Check Spelling While Typing

Option + Command + T

Special Characters

View

Command + 1

Document/Scrivenings

Command + 2

Corkboard

Command + 3

Outline

Shift + Command + >

Zoom > Zoom In

Shift + Command + <

Zoom > Zoom Out

Option + Command + ↑

Go To > Previous Document

Option + Command + ↓

Go To > Next Document

Control + Command + R

Go To > Enclosing Group

Command + 4

Go To > Editor Selection

Option + Command + B

Layout > Show/Hide Binder

Option + Command + I

Layout > Show/Hide Inspector

Option + Command + =

Layout > Split Horizontally

Command + ”

Layout > Split Vertically

Shift + Command + )

Layout > Show Layouts

Option + Command + L

Editor > Lock in Place

Command + ]

Editor > Forward in Document History

Command + [

Editor > Backward in Document History

Option + Command + [

Editor > Other Editor > Backward in History

Control + Option + Command + ↑

Editor > Other Editor > Scroll Up

Control + Option + Command + ↓

Editor > Other Editor > Scroll Down

Command + Return

Media > Play Media File

Option + Command + }

Media > Fast Forward

Option + Command + {

Media > Rewind

Option + Shift + Command + P

Page View > Show/Hide Page View

Control + Command + P

Corkboard > Show Pins

Control + Command + S

Corkboard > Show Stamps

Control + Command + K

Corkboard > Show Keyword Colors

Control + ⇥

Move Focus To > (Next Pane)

Control + Option + Command + B

Move Focus To > Binder

Control + Option + Command + E

Move Focus To > (Left/Bottom) Editor

Control + Option + Command + R

Move Focus To > Right/Top/Supporting Editor

Control + Option + Command + I

Inspect > Synopsis

Control + Option + Command + H

Inspect > Notes

Control + Option + Command + N

Inspect > References

Control + Option + Command + J

Inspect > Keywords

Control + Option + Command + M

Inspect > Custom Meta-Data

Control + Option + Command + M

Inspect > Snapshots

Control + Option + Command + K

Inspect > Comments and Footnotes

Command + 9

Outline > Expand All

Command + 0

Outline > Collapse All

Control + Option + ↑

Outline > Previous Container

Control + Option + ↓

Outline > Next Container

Option + Command + R

Reveal in Binder

Control + Command + F

Enter/Exit Full Screen

Option + Command + F

Enter/Exit Composition Mode

Project

Command + N

New Text

Option + Command + N

New Folder

Option + Shift + Command + N

New From Template > (First Template Document)

Shift + Command + T

Show/Hide Project Targets

Control + Option + Command + S

Text Statistics

Option + Shift + Command + S

Project Statistics

Option + Command + P

Project Notes

Option + Shift + Command + H

Show/Hide Project Keywords

Option + Command + ,

Meta-Data Settings…

Documents

Option + Command + O

Open > in (Left/Bottom) Editor

Shift + Command + O

Open > in Right/Top/Other Editor

Option + Shift + Command + O

Open > With All Subdocuments > On Editor Corkboard

Control + Command + O

Open > in External Editor

Command + 5

Snapshots > Take Snapshot

Shift + Command + %

Snapshots > Take Snapshot With Title

Control + Command + ]

Snapshots > Show Changes > Next Change

Control + Command + [

Snapshots > Show Changes > Previous Change

Command + D

Duplicate > with Subdocuments and Unique Title

Shift + Command + D

Duplicate > without Subdocuments

Option + Shift + Command + T

Set Selection as Title

Command + Delete

Move to Trash

Command + K

Split > at Selection

Option + Command + K

Split > with Selection as Title

Shift + Command + M

Merge

Option + Command + G

Group

Option + Command + U

Ungroup

Control + Command + ←

Move > Left

Control + Command + →

Move > Right

Control + Command + ↑

Move > Up

Control + Command + ↓

Move > Down

Format

Command + T

Font > Show Fonts

Command + B

Font > Bold

Command + I

Font > Italic

Command + U

Font > Underline > Single

Shift + Command + _

Font > Strikethrough

Command + +

Font > Bigger

Command + -

Font > Smaller

Shift + Command + C

Font > Show Colors

Option + Command + C

Font > Copy Font

Option + Command + V

Font > Paste Font

Command + {

Text > Align Left

Command + |

Text > Center

Option + Command + |

Text > Justify

Command + }

Text > Align Right

Control + Command + C

Text > Copy Ruler

Control + Command + V

Text > Paste Ruler

Option + Command + →

Lists > Next List Style

Option + Command + ←

Lists > Previous List Style

Control + Option + Command + C

Formatting > Copy Formatting

Control + Option + Command + P

Formatting > Paste Formatting

Command + 8

Scriptwriting > Script Mode

Shift + Command + Y

Scriptwriting > Show Script Elements Menu

Command + R

Show/Hide Ruler

Shift + Command + R

Show/Hide Format Bar

Shift + Command + H

Highlight > Highlight

Shift + Command + *

Comment

Control + Command + 8

Footnote

Shift + Command + A

Inline Annotation

Shift + Command + F

Inline Footnote

Control + Command + T

Options > Typewriter Scrolling

Command + Y

Bibliography/Citations…

Window

Command + M

Minimize

Option + Command + M

Minimize All

Control + Command + -

Zoom

Control + Option + Command + -

Zoom All

Control + Command + =

Zoom to Fit Screen

Shift + Command + )

Layouts > Manage Layouts

Control + Command + Q

Float QuickReference Panels

Miscellaneous

Shift + Command + ?

Help

Shift + Command + Return

Open/Close Scratch Pad

Inspector

Command + 6

Document/Project Notes

Command + 6

Document/Project References

Is Scrivener Available on Windows and Linux?

Scrivener is one of the best programs for creative writers not only on macOS, but also on Windows. However, if you use a Linux distro, Scrivener is not an option. But the good news is that you'll find nice long-form writing apps for Linux too!