Computer Keyboard Shortcuts List: Windows, Chrome, Word, Excel and Tally

Keyboard shortcuts are the quickest way to look experienced on a computer. An office assistant who saves with Ctrl+S, switches windows with Alt+Tab and jumps to the last row of a sheet with Ctrl+Down Arrow finishes the same work in less time, and makes fewer mouse mistakes. This page lists the shortcuts that matter for everyday office work, grouped by program, followed by a two-week routine to turn them into habit.

Every shortcut below has been checked against the current versions of Windows 10/11, Google Chrome, Microsoft Word and Excel (Microsoft 365 and 2016 onwards) and TallyPrime. Where a shortcut works only in some versions, the table says so. You do not need to learn all of them. Start with the ones marked in the practice routine at the end.

How to read and press a shortcut

A shortcut written as Ctrl+S means: press and hold Ctrl, tap S once, then release both. The first key (Ctrl, Alt, Shift or the Windows key) is a "modifier" — it changes what the next key does. Three habits make shortcuts reliable:

• Hold the modifier with your left thumb or little finger and press the letter with the other hand. Do not press both keys at exactly the same moment.
• The Windows key is the one with the Windows logo, usually between Ctrl and Alt on the left. In the tables it is written as Win.
• On many laptops the F1–F12 keys control brightness or volume by default. If F2 changes the brightness instead of renaming a file, press Fn+F2, or turn on "Fn Lock" (often Fn+Esc — check your laptop's manual).

Universal shortcuts that work almost everywhere

These work in Windows, Word, Excel, Chrome, Notepad and most other programs. Learn these ten first.

Windows 10 and 11 shortcuts

File Explorer shortcuts

File handling is where shortcuts save the most time in data entry and office work.

Google Chrome shortcuts

Most of these also work in Microsoft Edge and Firefox.

MS Word shortcuts

For page setup, styles and letter formatting, see the MS Word professional documents guide.

MS Excel shortcuts

To practise these on real data, use the invoice sheet in the Excel formulas guide: jump with Ctrl+Down, AutoSum with Alt+=, and filter with Ctrl+Shift+L.

TallyPrime shortcuts

Tally is used almost entirely from the keyboard, so these keys matter more than in any other program. The table is for TallyPrime. Older Tally.ERP 9 uses the same voucher keys (F4–F9) but several menu keys differ, noted in the last column.

A two-week practice routine

Reading a list does not create a habit. Doing the same small task with the keyboard every day does. Spend 15 minutes a day on this plan. The rule for all 14 days: if you know the shortcut, you are not allowed to use the mouse for that action.

Print this page or copy the shortcuts you are learning onto a small card and keep it next to the keyboard for the two weeks. Remove a shortcut from the card once you use it without thinking.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

• Shift+Delete by accident. It skips the Recycle Bin. Use plain Delete unless you are sure.
• Ctrl+W in the wrong window. In Chrome it closes the tab; in Word it closes the document. If you lose a tab, Ctrl+Shift+T brings it back.
• Insert key pressed. If typing starts replacing letters instead of inserting them, overtype mode is on. Press Insert again (Word turns the key off by default, so this happens mostly in older programs).
• Num Lock off. If the number pad moves the cursor instead of typing numbers, press Num Lock. Data entry staff should check this first thing every morning.
• Different language layout. If keys type the wrong symbols (for example @ and " are swapped), the keyboard layout has changed. Press Win+Space to switch between installed layouts.

Interviewers for office and data entry jobs often ask "Which shortcuts do you use?" Name five you actually use daily and offer to show them. For other skills employers test, see the basic computer skills checklist.

Frequently asked questions