Use the keyboard to work with the ribbon

Do tasks quickly without using the mouse by pressing a few keys—no matter where you are in an Office program. You can get to every command on the ribbon by using an access key—usually by pressing two to four keys.

Important: If the selected command is a split button (that is, a button that opens a menu of additional options), press Alt+Down Arrow to activate it. Then, use the Tab key to move through the options. To select the current option, press Spacebar or Enter.

1. Press and release the ALT key.

   You see the little boxes called KeyTips over each command available in the current view.

   

   Note: For a list of the keyboard shortcuts that represent the Key Tips, see the table in the following section.

2. Press the letter shown in the KeyTip over the command you want to use.

3. Depending on which letter you pressed, you might see additional KeyTips. For example, if the Home tab is active and you pressed N, the Insert tab is displayed, along with the KeyTips for the groups in that tab.

4. Continue pressing letters until you press the letter of the specific command you want to use.

   Tip: To cancel the action you're taking and hide the KeyTips, press and release the ALT key.

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Keyboard shortcuts for KeyTips

The keyboard shortcuts in the following table can be used to activate the KeyTips described in the previous section.

To do this	Press
Open the File page.	Alt+F
Open the Home tab.	Alt+H
Open the Insert tab.	Alt+N
Open the Design tab.	Alt+G
Open the Transitions tab.	Alt+T
Open the Animations tab.	Alt+A
Open the Slide Show tab.	Alt+S
Open the Review tab.	Alt+R
Open the View tab.	Alt+W
Open the Tell me box.	Alt+Q, and then enter the search term

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Change the keyboard focus without using the mouse

Another way to use the keyboard to work with the ribbon is to move the focus among the tabs and commands until you find the feature you want to use. The following shows some ways to move the keyboard focus without using the mouse.

To do this	Press
Select the active tab and show the access keys.	ALT or F10. Press either of these keys again to move back to the Office file and cancel the access keys.
Move to another tab.	ALT or F10 to select the active tab, and then LEFT ARROW or RIGHT ARROW.
Move to another Group on the active tab.	ALT or F10 to select the active tab, and then CTRL+RIGHT ARROW or LEFT ARROW to move between groups.
Minimize (collapse) or restore the ribbon.	CTRL+F1
Display the shortcut menu for the selected item.	SHIFT+F10
Move the focus to select the active tab, your Office file, task pane, or status bar.	F6
Move the focus to each command in the ribbon, forward or backward.	ALT or F10, and then TAB or SHIFT+TAB
Move down, up, left, or right among the items in the ribbon.	DOWN ARROW, UP ARROW, LEFT ARROW, or RIGHT ARROW
Go to the selected command or control in the ribbon.	SPACE BAR or ENTER
Open the selected menu or gallery in the ribbon.	SPACE BAR or ENTER
Go to a command or option in the ribbon so you can change it.	ENTER
Finish changing the value of a command or option in the ribbon, and move focus back to the Office file.	ENTER
Get help on the selected command or control in the ribbon. (If no Help article is associated with the selected command, the Help table of contents for that program is shown instead.)	F1

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