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The Only Adobe Premiere Pro Shortcut Cheat sheet You Need

Written by Timothy Brauning | December 13, 2021

You can use keyboard shortcuts for a wide variety of applications with Adobe Premiere Pro. Learning Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts might take time at first, but they will save you a lot of time in the long run and step up your video editing game.

Table of Contents

    1. What is a Premiere Pro Keyboard Shortcut?
    2. How to use Premiere Pro Shortcuts?
      1. The two types of Adobe Premiere Pro shortcuts
      2. Activate and use shortcuts in Adobe Premiere Pro
    3. Essential Adobe Premiere Pro Keyboard Shortcuts 
      1. The most used shortcuts in Premiere Pro video editing for Mac OS and Windows
      2. Command Shortcuts
      3. Clipboard Shortcuts
      4. Tool Shortcuts
      5. Navigation Shortcuts
      6. Markers Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts
      7. Panel Shortcut
      8. Premiere Pro Help
    4. Customized Keyboard Shortcuts
      1. How to customize Adobe Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts?
      2. Why should you customize shortcuts on Premiere Pro?

What is a Premiere Pro Keyboard Shortcuts?

A Premiere Pro keyboard shortcut is a combination of two or more keys on your keyboard that you can use to access commands quickly. A command is an action you can take in a software program, such as opening a file or quitting the program. When you press the shortcut keys, the command is executed.

Since learning mouse movements can be tedious and time-consuming, using shortcuts is the way to go. Keyboard shortcut keys are handy when working with Adobe Premiere Pro since many commands can be executed with them.

Keyboard shortcut keys are enabled by default in Adobe Premiere Pro to aid you in the development of your video editing skills.

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How to use Premiere Pro Shortcuts?

When making video edits and editing videos, learning Adobe Premiere shortcuts becomes indispensable. Adobe Premiere Pro supports a wide range of keyboard shortcuts that can be used to improve your workflow and boost your productivity while working on your next video

The two types of Adobe Premiere Pro shortcuts

Premiere Pro has two types of shortcuts: application shortcuts and panel shortcuts. Panel shortcuts work on specific panels, while application shortcuts function across the entire program.

Activate and use shortcuts in Adobe Premiere Pro

1- Enable your keyboard for shortcut keys

First, you want to double-check that Adobe Premiere shortcuts are enabled.

For Windows: Open Adobe Premiere Pro. Go to Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts. They should automatically be set to on. You can change these if you find a better workflow.

For Mac OS: Open Adobe Premiere Pro. Go to Premiere pro in the main menu > Keyboard Shortcuts. These should also automatically be set to on.

2- Memorize your Adobe Premiere Pro shortcuts and use them!

Once you've learned the shortcuts, it's time to put them into practice. To use a shortcut, press its key combination on your keyboard.

Essential Adobe Premiere Pro Keyboard Shortcuts 

Speed up your edit process with these Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts.

Both Windows and Mac OS support the use of Adobe Premiere keyboard shortcuts.

For Windows: Use Ctrl and Alt

For Mac OS: Use Command and Option

The most used keyboard shortcuts in Premiere Pro video editing for Mac OS and Windows

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Undo

Ctrl + Z

Cmd + Z

Redo

Ctrl + Shift + Y

Shift + Cmd + Y

Cut

Ctrl + X

Cmd + X

Copy

Ctrl + C

Cmd + C

Paste

Ctrl + V

Cmd + V

Select All

Ctrl + A

Cmd + A

Zoom In

Ctrl + + 

Cmd + +

Zoom Out

Ctrl + - 

Cmd + -

Play/Pause

Spacebar

Spacebar

Group

Ctrl + G

Cmd + G

Ungroup

Ctrl + T

Cmd + T

Close 

Ctrl + Shift + W

Shift + Cmd + W

Cancel Command or Operation

Esc

Esc

Clear

Delete

Forward Delete

Duplicate 

Ctrl + Shift + / 

Shift + Cmd + /

These are some of the most commonly used default keyboard shortcuts in Adobe Premiere Pro. Once you've learned and memorized these, you'll be able to speed up your editing process immensely.

Command Shortcuts

Command shortcuts are shortcuts that use the Command key on Mac OS and the Control key on Windows. These Premiere Pro shortcuts help you start, save, and close projects.

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Undo

Ctrl + Z

Cmd + Z

Redo

Ctrl + Shift + Y

Shift + Cmd + Y

Cut

Ctrl + X

Cmd + X

Copy

Ctrl + C

Cmd + C

Paste

Ctrl + V

Cmd + V

Past Insert

Ctrl + Shift + V

Shift + Cmd + V

Past Attribute

Ctrl + Alt + V

Opt + Cmd + V

Clear

Delete

Forward Delete

Ripple Delete / Ripple Edit Tool

Shift + Delete

Shift + Forward Delete

Select All 

Ctrl + A

Cmd + A

Deselect All 

Ctrl + Shift + A

Shift + Cmd + A

Find

Ctrl + F

Cmd + F

Edit Original

Ctrl + E

Cmd + E

Keyboard Shortcuts

Ctrl + Alt + K 

Cmd + Opt + K 

Duplicate 

Ctrl + Shift + / 

Shift + Cmd + /

Clipboard Shortcuts

Clipboard shortcuts help you copy/paste clips into your project. You can also use clipboard shortcuts to create a new sequence from various clips.

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Show Next Screen

Page Down

Page Down

Show Previous Screen

Page Up

Page Up

Make Subclip

Ctrl + U 

Cmd + U 

Audio Channels

Shift + G 

Shift + G

Audio Gain

G

G

Speed / Duration

Ctrl + R

Cmd + R

Insert

,

,

Overwrite

.

.

Enable

Shift + E

Shift + Cmd + E

Link

Ctrl + L

Cmd + L

Group

Ctrl + G

Cmd + G

Ungroup

Ctrl + T

Cmd + T

Decrease Audio Tracks Height 

Alt + - 

Opt + - 

Increase Audio Tracks Height

Alt + =

Opt + = 

Decrease Video Tracks Height 

Ctrl + - 

Cmd + - 

Increase Video Tracks Height 

Ctrl + = 

Cmd + = 

Nudge Clip Selection Left/Right Five Frames

Alt + Shift + Left/Right arrow

Shift + Cmd + Left/Right arrow

Nudge Clip Selection Left/Right One Frame

Alt + Left/Right arrow

Cmd + Left/Right arrow

Show Previous Screen

Page Up

Page Up

Tool Shortcuts

Tool shortcuts allow you to quickly select the tools you need while editing your video among the built-in Premiere Pro tools. These Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts are essential for a smooth workflow.

Arc Tool

A

A

Bold

Ctrl + B

Cmd + B

Ellipse Tool

E

E

Insert Copyright Symbol

Ctrl + Alt + Shift + C

Opt + Shift + Cmd + C

Insert Registered Symbol

Ctrl + Alt + Shift + R

Opt + Shift + Cmd + R

Italic

Ctrl + I

Cmd + I

Line Tool

L

L

Nudge Selected Object Down by Five Pixels

Shift + Down

Shift + Down

Nudge Selected Object Down by One Pixel

Down

Down

Nudge Selected Object Left by Five Pixels

Shift + Left

Shift + Left

Nudge Selected Object Left by One Pixel

Left

Left

Nudge Selected Object Right by Five Pixels

Shift + Right

Shift + Right

Nudge Selected Object Right by One Pixel

Right

Right

Nudge Selected Object Up by Five Pixels

Shift + Up

Shift + Up

Nudge Selected Object Up by One Pixel

Up

Up

Pen Tool

P

P

Position Objects to Bottom Title Safe Margin

Ctrl + Shift + D

Shift + Cmd + D

Position Objects to Left Title Safe Margin

Ctrl + Shift + F

Shift + Cmd + F

Position Objects to Top Title Safe Margin

Ctrl + Shift + O

Shift + Cmd + O

Rectangle Tool

R

R

Rotation Tool

O

O

Select Tool

V

V

Type Tool

T

T

Underline

Ctrl + U

Cmd + U

Vertical Type Tool

C

C

Wedge Tool

W

W

Navigation Shortcuts

Navigation shortcuts allow you to quickly navigate your Premiere Pro projects and browse media files.

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Render Effects in Work Area

Enter

Enter

Match Frame

F

F

Reverse Match Frame

Shift + R

Shift + R

Add Edit

Ctrl + K

Cmd + K

Add Edit to All Tracks

Ctrl + Shift + K

Shift + Cmd + K

Trim Edit

Shift + T

Cmd + T

Extend Selected Edit to Playhead

E

E

Apply Video Transition

Ctrl + D

Cmd + D

Apply Audio Transition

Ctrl + Shift + D

Shift + Cmd + D

Apply Default Transitions to Selection

Shift + D

Shift + D

Lift

;

;

Extract

'

'

Zoom In

=

=

Zoom Out

-

-

Next in Sequence

Shift + ;

Shift + ;

Previous in Sequence

Ctrl + Shift + ;

Opt + ;

Snap in Timeline

S

S

Make Subsequence 

Shift + U

Cmd + U

Add new caption track

Opt + Cmd + A

Ctrl + Alt + A

Add caption at playhead

Opt + Cmd + C

Ctrl + Alt + C

Go to next caption segment

Opt + Cmd + Down

Ctrl + Alt + Down

Go to previous caption segment

Opt + Cmd + Up

Ctrl + Alt + Up

Markers Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Mark In

I

I

Mark Out

O

O

Mark Clip

X

X

Mark Selection

/

/

Go to In

Shift + I

Shift + I

Go to Out

Shift + O

Shift + O

Clear In

Ctrl + Shift + I

Opt + I

Clear Out

Ctrl + Shift + O

Opt + O

Clear In and Out

Ctrl + Shift + X

Opt + X

Add Marker

M

M

Go to Next Marker

Shift + M

Shift + M

Go to Previous Marker

Ctrl + Shift + M

Shift + Cmd + M

Clear Selected Marker

Ctrl + Alt + M

Opt + M

Clear All Markers

Ctrl + Alt + Shift + M

Opt + Cmd + M

Panel Shortcut

The panel shortcut allows you to open and close the panels in Premiere Pro quickly.

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Reset to Saved Layout

Alt + Shift + 0

Opt + Shift + 0

Audio Clip Mixer

Shift + 9

Shift + 9

Audio Track Mixer

Shift + 6

Shift + 6

Effect Controls

Shift + 5

Shift + 5

Effects

Shift + 7

Shift + 7

Media Browser

Shift + 8

Shift + 8

Program Monitor

Shift + 4

Shift + 4

Projects

Shift + 1

Shift + 1

Source Monitor

Shift + 2

Shift + 2

Timelines

Shift + 3

Shift + 3

Premiere Pro Help

Use this Premiere Pro keyboard shortcut to access the Premiere Pro help documentation.

 

 

Windows 

Mac OS

Help

F1

F1

 

Mastering all these Adobe Premiere Pro default shortcuts will give you more time to focus on the story. Use these keyboard shortcuts and make your video editing faster, smarter and better!

Customized Keyboard Shortcuts

You can also customize keyboard shortcuts to suit your specific needs. Premiere Pro allows you to customize the keyboard shortcuts for each panel and the tools and commands.

How to customize Adobe Premiere Pro keyboard shortcuts?

To customize keyboard shortcuts:

  1. Go to Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts or use the shortcut ⌘+Option+K
  2. Select the panel, tool, or command to create a shortcut.

  1. Press the key combination you want to use as the shortcut in the field below.
  2. To save your changes, click OK.

You can find out which shortcuts are currently assigned by pressing the key combination you want to use, then holding down Shift-F1 until the help box shows the assigned shortcut. Press Esc to close the help box.

Why should you customize shortcuts on Premiere Pro?

Creating custom keyboard shortcuts can help you work more efficiently in Premiere Pro. For example, if you often use the Slip Clip Selection tool, you might want to create a custom keyboard shortcut for it. If you use the same combination of tools frequently, consider using one keyboard shortcut over another to save time.

Since Adobe Premiere Pro is based around panels rather than just floating windows, there are plenty of keyboard shortcuts to help you work more efficiently.

Conclusion

Learn as many key shortcuts as possible, and you will notice a significant improvement in work speed. The more shortcuts you know, the easier to edit, cut, and move clips around efficiently.

Learn more!

 

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