Updated May 2026 · 9 min read
Photoshop Keyboard Shortcuts: Complete Cheat Sheet (Windows & Mac)
Adobe Photoshop has hundreds of keyboard shortcuts covering every tool, operation, and panel. Professional retouchers and designers use them constantly — the difference between a beginner and a Photoshop power user is largely how many of these they have memorized. This guide covers all major categories in one place.
For the full interactive reference, see the Photoshop shortcuts cheat sheet.
Tool Shortcuts (Single Key)
The tool palette is the heart of Photoshop. These single-key shortcuts eliminate all tool-switching clicks.
| Tool | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Move | V |
| Marquee (Rectangle / Ellipse) | M |
| Lasso | L |
| Magic Wand / Quick Selection | W |
| Crop | C |
| Eyedropper | I |
| Healing Brush / Patch | J |
| Brush / Pencil | B |
| Clone Stamp | S |
| Eraser | E |
| Gradient | G |
| Dodge / Burn / Sponge | O |
| Pen | P |
| Type | T |
| Shape | U |
| Hand (pan) | H |
| Zoom | Z |
Brush Shortcuts
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Decrease brush size | [ |
| Increase brush size | ] |
| Decrease brush hardness | Shift+[ |
| Increase brush hardness | Shift+] |
| Sample color (while brush active) | Hold Alt / Option |
| Set brush opacity 10–100% | Number keys 1–9, 0 |
| Set brush flow | Shift+1–9, 0 |
Layer Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| New layer | Ctrl+Shift+N | ⌘+Shift+N |
| Duplicate layer | Ctrl+J | ⌘+J |
| Merge visible layers (stamp) | Ctrl+Shift+Alt+E | ⌘+Shift+Option+E |
| Flatten image | Ctrl+Shift+E | ⌘+Shift+E |
| Group layers | Ctrl+G | ⌘+G |
| Ungroup layers | Ctrl+Shift+G | ⌘+Shift+G |
| Bring layer forward | Ctrl+] | ⌘+] |
| Send layer back | Ctrl+[ | ⌘+[ |
| Bring to front | Ctrl+Shift+] | ⌘+Shift+] |
| Send to back | Ctrl+Shift+[ | ⌘+Shift+[ |
| Select all layers | Ctrl+Alt+A | ⌘+Option+A |
| Toggle layer visibility | Click eye icon / Alt+click to solo | Same |
Selection Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Select all | Ctrl+A | ⌘+A |
| Deselect | Ctrl+D | ⌘+D |
| Reselect | Ctrl+Shift+D | ⌘+Shift+D |
| Inverse selection | Ctrl+Shift+I | ⌘+Shift+I |
| Select and Mask | Ctrl+Alt+R | ⌘+Option+R |
| Add to selection | Hold Shift | Hold Shift |
| Subtract from selection | Hold Alt | Hold Option |
| Feather selection | Shift+F6 | Shift+F6 |
View & Canvas Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Zoom in | Ctrl+= | ⌘+= |
| Zoom out | Ctrl+- | ⌘+- |
| Fit to screen | Ctrl+0 | ⌘+0 |
| 100% (actual pixels) | Ctrl+1 | ⌘+1 |
| Toggle screen mode | F | F |
| Show/hide rulers | Ctrl+R | ⌘+R |
| Show/hide guides | Ctrl+; | ⌘+; |
| Show/hide grid | Ctrl+' | ⌘+' |
| Toggle tab bar / panels | Tab | Tab |
Adjustment & Filter Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Curves | Ctrl+M | ⌘+M |
| Levels | Ctrl+L | ⌘+L |
| Hue/Saturation | Ctrl+U | ⌘+U |
| Color Balance | Ctrl+B | ⌘+B |
| Desaturate (Grayscale) | Ctrl+Shift+U | ⌘+Shift+U |
| Repeat last filter | Ctrl+F | ⌘+F |
| Fade last filter | Ctrl+Shift+F | ⌘+Shift+F |
Pro Tips for Photoshop Power Users
- [ and ] are the most-used shortcuts — changing brush size without going to the options bar is the single biggest productivity gain for painters and retouchers. Make these muscle memory immediately.
- Alt+click the eye icon to solo a layer — instantly hides all other layers so you can see just the one you're working on. Alt+click again to restore all visibility.
- Ctrl+Shift+Alt+E to stamp before destructive edits — always create a merged copy of all visible layers before running a filter or destructive adjustment. You preserve your original layers and have a backup in one keystroke.
- Hold Shift when using selection tools — add to an existing selection without starting over. Hold Alt/Option to subtract. Hold Shift+Alt/Option to intersect.
- Ctrl+Alt+Z for multiple undos — unlike most apps, Photoshop's Ctrl+Z toggles between undo and redo. For stepping back multiple history states, use Ctrl+Alt+Z repeatedly.
Download the Designer Shortcuts PDF
The Designer Pack PDF includes complete cheat sheets for Photoshop, Figma, Illustrator, After Effects, Lightroom, Canva, and Blender. Print-ready and formatted for desk reference.
Related Shortcut References
- Photoshop Shortcuts — Full Interactive Reference
- Illustrator Keyboard Shortcuts
- Figma Keyboard Shortcuts
- Lightroom Keyboard Shortcuts
- After Effects Keyboard Shortcuts
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most important Photoshop keyboard shortcut?
Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on Mac) — undo — is the most critical shortcut in any creative app. In Photoshop, pressing it repeatedly steps back through your history. But equally important are the single-letter tool shortcuts: B (Brush), E (Eraser), V (Move), M (Marquee), L (Lasso), and C (Crop). These eliminate tool-switching clicks entirely.
How do I quickly switch between Photoshop tools?
Every tool has a single-key shortcut. B = Brush, E = Eraser, M = Marquee selection, L = Lasso, V = Move, W = Magic Wand, C = Crop, T = Type, G = Gradient, P = Pen, Z = Zoom. Press Shift+the letter to cycle through tool variants within that group.
How do I merge all visible layers in Photoshop?
Press Ctrl+Shift+Alt+E (Cmd+Shift+Option+E on Mac) to stamp all visible layers into a new merged layer while keeping the originals intact. This is safer than Ctrl+Shift+E (Merge Visible) which flattens the layers you need for further editing.
What is the Photoshop shortcut to sample a color from the canvas?
Hold Alt (Option on Mac) while the Brush tool is active to temporarily switch to the Eyedropper and click any color on the canvas. Release Alt to return to the Brush with the sampled color. Alternatively, press I to select the Eyedropper tool permanently.
How do I resize a brush in Photoshop without using the options bar?
Press [ (left bracket) to decrease brush size and ] (right bracket) to increase it. Press Shift+[ to decrease brush hardness and Shift+] to increase it. These are arguably the most important modifier shortcuts for any painter or retoucher.