macOS is a proprietary graphical operating systems developed by Apple Inc as primary operating system for Apple’s Mac computers. It has been in active development since 2001. macOS is the second most widely used desktop OS, after Microsoft Windows. This document captures the most common Keyboard shortcuts that will make you more efficient.
Mac menus and keyboards often use symbols for certain keys, including modifier keys:
- Command (or Cmd) ⌘
- Shift ⇧
- Option (or Alt) ⌥
- Control (or Ctrl) ⌃
- Caps Lock ⇪
- Fn
Here is a list of macOS Keyboard shortcuts that I frequently use to achieve efficiency.
| Command Control Q | Immediately lock your screen |
| Shift Command Q | Log out of your macOS user account. You will be asked to confirm |
| Command Control F | Activate a full-screen mode for an app on your macOS |
| Command Space | Show or hide the Spotlight search field |
| Command Option Space | Perform a Spotlight search from a Finder window |
| Control Command Space | Show the Character Viewer, from which you can choose emoji and other symbols. |
| Cmd Tab | Switch to the most recently used application or press tab repeatedly to cycle through your open applications. |
| Shift Cmd S | Save the current document with a new name. |
| Shift Command 3 | Take a screenshot. If you see a thumbnail in the corner of your screen, click it to edit the screenshot. Or wait for the screenshot to save to your desktop |
| Shift Command 4 | Capture a portion of the screen by manually selecting. |
| Shift Command 4 Space | Capture a window or menu. Click the window or menu to capture it. |
| Cmd Q | Quits the current app. |
Please help other macOS users by commenting about those Keyboard shortcuts you use on daily basis for quicker access to applications, documents and system utilities.
More reading:
How To Disable Homebrew Auto update on macOS
Install Bashtop – Terminal Resource Monitor for Linux | macOS | FreeBSD
