Windows and Mac keyboards: which key is which

People who move between a Windows computer and a Mac, or who plug one kind of keyboard into the other kind of computer, are tripped up by the same few keys. This guide matches them up.

The modifier keys

Windows keyboard	Mac keyboard	Notes
Ctrl	Command (Cmd, ⌘)	For most shortcuts, Cmd on a Mac does what Ctrl does on Windows
Alt	Option (⌥)	Used for alternatives, and for typing special characters on a Mac
Windows key	Command, when a Windows keyboard is plugged into a Mac	The Windows key sits where Cmd would be
Ctrl	Control (⌃)	A Mac has a Control key too, but uses it far less
Shift	Shift (⇧)	The same
Fn	Fn, or the globe key	Reaches the second job of the top-row keys

The one-line summary: on a Mac, think Command where you would press Ctrl.

The order of the keys

Beside the space bar, a Windows keyboard has Ctrl, Windows, Alt. A Mac keyboard has Control, Option, Command. So the key your thumb finds for copy and paste is in a different place: next to the space bar on a Mac, at the corner on Windows. This is what feels strange for the first week, more than any difference in the shortcuts themselves.

Other keys that differ

Job	Windows keyboard	Mac keyboard
Delete to the left	Backspace	Delete
Delete to the right	Delete	Fn + Delete
Confirm, new line	Enter	Return
Start or end of line	Home, End	Cmd + Left arrow, Cmd + Right arrow
Screen up or down	Page Up, Page Down	Fn + Up arrow, Fn + Down arrow
Right-click menu	Menu key, or Shift + F10	Ctrl + click
Capture the screen	PrtScn	Cmd + Shift + 3 or 4

The key marked Delete on a Mac laptop deletes backwards, like Backspace. That surprises almost every switcher.

The same job on each system

Windows	Mac	What it does
`Ctrl` + `C`	`Cmd` + `C`	Copy
`Ctrl` + `V`	`Cmd` + `V`	Paste
`Ctrl` + `X`	`Cmd` + `X`	Cut
`Ctrl` + `Z`	`Cmd` + `Z`	Undo
`Ctrl` + `Y`	`Cmd` + `Shift` + `Z`	Redo
`Ctrl` + `S`	`Cmd` + `S`	Save
`Ctrl` + `F`	`Cmd` + `F`	Find
`Ctrl` + `A`	`Cmd` + `A`	Select all
`Ctrl` + `P`	`Cmd` + `P`	Print
`Ctrl` + `W`	`Cmd` + `W`	Close the window or tab
`Alt` + `F4`	`Cmd` + `Q`	Quit the program
`Alt` + `Tab`	`Cmd` + `Tab`	Switch programs
`Win`	`Cmd` + `Space`	Open the launcher: Start menu or Spotlight
`Win` + `E`	`Cmd` + `Option` + `Space`	Open the file manager: File Explorer or a Finder search window
`Win` + `L`	`Ctrl` + `Cmd` + `Q`	Lock the screen
`Win` + `D`	`Fn` + `F11`	Show the desktop
`Win` + `Shift` + `S`	`Cmd` + `Shift` + `4`	Capture part of the screen
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `Esc`	`Cmd` + `Option` + `Esc`	Deal with a frozen program: Task Manager or Force Quit
`F2`	`Return`	Rename the selected file
`Alt` + `Enter`	`Cmd` + `I`	Properties, or Get Info, of the selected file
`Delete`	`Cmd` + `Delete`	Send the selected file to the bin
`Win` + `.`	`Ctrl` + `Cmd` + `Space`	Open the emoji panel

Things that work differently, not just with different keys

Quitting. On Windows, closing the last window of a program ends it. On a Mac, most programs keep running with no windows open, until you press Cmd + Q.

Switching. Alt + Tab on Windows steps through windows. Cmd + Tab on a Mac steps through programs. To move between two windows of the same program on a Mac, press Cmd and the grave accent key, above Tab.

Moving files. Windows uses cut and paste, Ctrl + X then Ctrl + V. In the Mac's Finder you copy with Cmd + C and then press Cmd + Option + V at the destination to move.

Renaming. F2 on Windows. On a Mac, Return renames and Cmd + O opens.

Maximising. The Windows maximise button fills the screen and keeps the taskbar. The Mac's green button goes to a separate full-screen space. Hold Option while clicking it for a plain enlarge.

Using the other kind of keyboard

A Windows keyboard on a Mac. It works. The Windows key acts as Command and Alt acts as Option, which puts them the opposite way round from a Mac keyboard. System Settings, Keyboard, Keyboard Shortcuts, Modifier Keys lets you swap them so that your fingers find Command next to the space bar.

A Mac keyboard on Windows. Command acts as the Windows key and Option as Alt. Keys that the Mac keyboard lacks, such as PrtScn, have on-screen or shortcut alternatives, for example Win + Shift + S for a screen capture.

Chromebooks

A Chromebook keyboard follows the Windows pattern, with Ctrl and Alt. In place of Caps Lock it has a launcher or search key, which works rather like the Windows key. The top row has browser keys in place of F1 to F12. A Chromebook has its own searchable list of shortcuts, in the Key Shortcuts app.

Symbols for the keys

Mac menus show shortcuts with symbols, which puzzles newcomers: ⌘ is Command, ⌥ is Option, ⌃ is Control, ⇧ is Shift, ⌫ is Delete and ⎋ is Esc. Windows menus spell the names out.

This is an independent reference site. It is not connected with Microsoft, Apple, Google or any other maker of the programs named here. Product names belong to their owners and are used only to say where a shortcut works. Programs change; if a shortcut does not work for you, check the program's own help.