Google Sheets has hundreds of keyboard shortcuts. Most of them aren't worth learning. This is the subset that comes up constantly — the ones that speed up real work, not just occasional tasks.
All shortcuts listed for both Windows/Linux and Mac.
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Navigation
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Move to the last cell with data in a row/column | Ctrl + Arrow key | Cmd + Arrow key | | Select to the last cell with data | Ctrl + Shift + Arrow | Cmd + Shift + Arrow | | Jump to a specific cell | Ctrl + G or F5 | Cmd + G | | Move to the beginning of a row | Home | Fn + Left | | Move to cell A1 | Ctrl + Home | Cmd + Fn + Left |
Most useful: Ctrl+End (or Cmd+Fn+Right on Mac) jumps to the last cell with data — useful for finding how big your dataset actually is.
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Selecting Cells
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Select entire row | Shift + Space | Shift + Space | | Select entire column | Ctrl + Space | Ctrl + Space | | Select entire sheet | Ctrl + A | Cmd + A | | Extend selection to last cell with data | Ctrl + Shift + End | Cmd + Shift + End | | Add to selection (multiple ranges) | Hold Ctrl, click | Hold Cmd, click |
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Editing
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Edit current cell | F2 | F2 | | Insert current date | Ctrl + ; | Cmd + ; | | Insert current time | Ctrl + Shift + ; | Cmd + Shift + ; | | Fill down (copy cell above to selection) | Ctrl + D | Cmd + D | | Fill right (copy cell left to selection) | Ctrl + R | Cmd + R | | Undo | Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Z | | Redo | Ctrl + Y | Cmd + Y | | Find and replace | Ctrl + H | Cmd + H |
Fill down (Ctrl+D) is one of the most underused shortcuts. Select the cell with your formula, select down to where you want to copy, press Ctrl+D — done. Faster than copy-paste.
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Formatting
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Bold | Ctrl + B | Cmd + B | | Italic | Ctrl + I | Cmd + I | | Underline | Ctrl + U | Cmd + U | | Strikethrough | Alt + Shift + 5 | Cmd + Shift + X | | Format as currency | Ctrl + Shift + 4 | Cmd + Shift + 4 | | Format as percentage | Ctrl + Shift + 5 | Cmd + Shift + 5 | | Format as date | Ctrl + Shift + 3 | Cmd + Shift + 3 | | Clear formatting | Ctrl + \ | Cmd + \ | | Open format cells dialog | Ctrl + 1 | Cmd + 1 |
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Rows and Columns
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Insert row above | Ctrl + Alt + = (with row selected) | Ctrl + Option + = | | Delete selected row | Ctrl + Alt + - | Ctrl + Option + - | | Insert column to the left | Ctrl + Alt + = (with column selected) | Ctrl + Option + = | | Hide row | Ctrl + Alt + 9 | Cmd + Option + 9 | | Hide column | Ctrl + Alt + 0 | Cmd + Option + 0 | | Unhide row | Ctrl + Shift + 9 | Cmd + Shift + 9 | | Unhide column | Ctrl + Shift + 0 | Cmd + Shift + 0 | | Group rows/columns | Alt + Shift + Right arrow | Option + Shift + Right arrow |
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Formulas
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Enter array formula | Ctrl + Shift + Enter | Cmd + Shift + Enter | | Show all formulas | Ctrl + (backtick) | Ctrl + | | Toggle absolute reference ($) | F4 | F4 | | Autocomplete formula | Tab | Tab |
Toggle absolute reference (F4) is critical for formula writing. When you're editing a cell reference in a formula, press F4 to cycle through A1 → $A$1 → A$1 → $A1 → A1. Essential for building formulas that copy correctly.
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Sheets and Files
| Action | Windows | Mac | |--------|---------|-----| | Open new sheet tab | Shift + F11 | Fn + Shift + F11 | | Move to next sheet | Ctrl + Page Down | Fn + Ctrl + Down | | Move to previous sheet | Ctrl + Page Up | Fn + Ctrl + Up | | Save (force sync) | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S | | Print | Ctrl + P | Cmd + P |
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A Note on Mac Function Keys
On a Mac, function keys (F1–F12) trigger system-level actions (brightness, volume) by default. To use them in Google Sheets, hold Fn first. Or go to System Preferences > Keyboard and enable "Use F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys."
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What to Build on Top of This
- How to Use Conditional Formatting in Google Sheets — use
Ctrl+to clear formatting before applying new rules - How to Use VLOOKUP in Google Sheets — F4 becomes essential when building lookup formulas with locked ranges
- How to Create Dependent Dropdowns in Google Sheets — keyboard shortcuts speed up the setup process considerably
Don't want to set this up yourself? Describe your task and it'll be configured for your sheet. Get it installed