Photoshop keyboard shortcuts for Mac
60 shortcuts · Updated
These are the default Adobe Photoshop keyboard shortcuts on macOS, curated from Adobe's official default-shortcuts reference. Photoshop maps almost every tool to a single letter, so the fastest wins are the tool keys plus the bracket keys for brush size - the sections below cover tools, layers, selections, brushes, transform, and view.
Nothing matches - try fewer letters, or an action word like "close" or "split".
Or stop looking them up. Super Shortcuts puts the Photoshop commands you actually use one hyper key away: hold it, see every command for the app you're in, release a key to run it. No memorizing - the cheat sheet is the shortcut.
Get Super ShortcutsTools21
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| VV | Move tool (and Artboard tool) |
| MM | Rectangular and Elliptical Marquee tools |
| LL | Lasso, Polygonal Lasso, and Magnetic Lasso tools |
| WW | Object Selection, Quick Selection, and Magic Wand tools |
| CC | Crop and Slice tools |
| II | Eyedropper, Color Sampler, and Ruler tools |
| JJ | Spot Healing Brush, Healing Brush, and Patch tools |
| BB | Brush, Pencil, and Mixer Brush tools |
| SS | Clone Stamp and Pattern Stamp tools |
| EE | Eraser tools |
| GG | Gradient and Paint Bucket tools |
| OO | Dodge, Burn, and Sponge tools |
| PP | Pen tools |
| TT | Type tools |
| AA | Path Selection and Direct Selection tools |
| UU | Shape tools (Rectangle, Ellipse, Polygon, Line) |
| HH | Hand tool |
| ZZ | Zoom tool |
| Toggle Quick Mask mode | |
| DD | Reset to default foreground and background colors |
| XX | Swap foreground and background colors |
Layers14
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Command Shift N⌘⇧N | New layer |
| Command J⌘J | New layer via copy |
| Command G⌘G | Group the selected layers |
| Command Shift G⌘⇧G | Ungroup layers |
| Command Option G⌘⌥G | Create or release a clipping mask |
| Command Option A⌘⌥A | Select all layers |
| Command E⌘E | Merge the selected layers (or merge down) |
| Command Shift E⌘⇧E | Merge visible layers |
| Command Shift Option E⌘⇧⌥E | Stamp visible layers into a new layer |
| Option ]⌥] | Select the next layer up |
| Option [⌥[ | Select the next layer down |
| Command ]⌘] | Move the layer up |
| Command [⌘[ | Move the layer down |
| Command Click⌘Click | Load a layer's transparency as a selection (click its thumbnail) |
Selections & transform9
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Command A⌘A | Select all |
| Command D⌘D | Deselect |
| Command Shift D⌘⇧D | Reselect the last selection |
| Command Shift I⌘⇧I | Invert the selection |
| Shift Drag⇧Drag | Add to a selection (with any selection tool) |
| Option Drag⌥Drag | Subtract from a selection (with any selection tool) |
| Command Option R⌘⌥R | Open Select and Mask |
| Command T⌘T | Free Transform |
| Command Shift T⌘⇧T | Repeat the last transform |
Brushes & painting8
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| [[ | Decrease brush size |
| ]] | Increase brush size |
| {{ | Decrease brush hardness |
| }} | Increase brush hardness |
| ,, | Previous brush |
| .. | Next brush |
| Option Delete⌥⌫ | Fill with the foreground color |
| Command Delete⌘⌫ | Fill with the background color |
View & zoom8
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Command Plus⌘+ | Zoom in |
| Command -⌘- | Zoom out |
| Command 0⌘0 | Fit the image on screen |
| Command 1⌘1 | Zoom to 100% |
| SpaceSpace | Temporarily switch to the Hand tool |
| Command Space⌘Space | Temporarily switch to the Zoom In tool |
| Option Space⌥Space | Temporarily switch to the Zoom Out tool |
| FF | Cycle through screen modes |
Curated from the official Default keyboard shortcuts in Adobe Photoshop (Adobe Help). Defaults only - shortcuts you've remapped will differ.
Frequently asked questions
How do I view or customize keyboard shortcuts in Photoshop?
Open the Keyboard Shortcuts dialog with ⌥⇧⌘K (or Edit → Keyboard Shortcuts). It lists every command, lets you reassign keys, and can export a summary of your full shortcut set.
Which Photoshop shortcuts should I learn first?
Start with the tool letters you use daily - V (Move), B (Brush), M (Marquee), T (Type) - plus [ and ] for brush size, ⌘T for Free Transform, and ⌘D to deselect. Those eight cover most everyday edits.
How do I switch between tools that share the same key?
Hold Shift and press the tool's letter to cycle through its group - for example Shift L cycles the three Lasso tools. You can also Option-click the tool button in the toolbar to step through hidden tools.