macOS Finder Cheat Sheet Cheatsheet

Navigation Shortcuts

Basic Navigation

Cmd + Shift + C: Open the Computer window.
Quickly access all connected drives and devices.

Cmd + Shift + D: Open the Desktop folder.
Instantly navigate to your desktop.

Cmd + Shift + H: Open the Home folder.
Go directly to your user account’s home directory.

Cmd + Opt + L: Open the Downloads folder.
Quick access to your downloaded files.

Cmd + Shift + O: Open the Documents folder.
Navigate to your documents folder.

Cmd + Shift + I: Open the iCloud Drive.
Access your iCloud Drive directly from Finder.

Cmd + Shift + K: Open the Network window.
Browse shared network resources.

Cmd + Shift + U: Open the Utilities folder.
Quickly access system utilities.

Folder Navigation

`Cmd + Up`	Open the folder containing the current folder.
`Cmd + Ctrl + Up`	Open the folder containing the current folder in a new window.
`Cmd + Down`	Open the selected item.
`Cmd + [`	Go to the previous folder.
`Cmd + ]`	Go to the next folder.
`Right` (in list view)	Open the selected folder.
`Left` (in list view)	Close the selected folder.

File Management Shortcuts

Basic File Operations

Cmd + N: Open a new Finder window.

Cmd + Shift + N: Create a new folder.

Cmd + D: Duplicate the selected files.

Cmd + Del: Move the selected item to the Trash.

Cmd + Shift + Del: Empty the Trash.

Cmd + Opt + Shift + Del: Empty the Trash without confirmation.

Cmd + I: Show the Get Info window for a selected file.

Advanced File Operations

`Cmd + Ctrl + A`	Make an alias of the selected item.
`Cmd + Opt + V`	Move files from their original location to the current location (after copying).
`Cmd + Y`	Use Quick Look to preview the selected files.
`Cmd + Opt + Y`	View a Quick Look slideshow of the selected files.
`Cmd + R`	Show the original file for a selected alias.
`Cmd + E`	Eject the selected disk or volume.

Finder Window Options

View and Display

Cmd + Shift + P: Show/hide the Preview pane.

Cmd + Opt + P: Hide or show the path bar.

Cmd + Opt + S: Hide or show the Sidebar.

Cmd + /: Hide or show the status bar.

Cmd + J: Show View Options.

Cmd + T: Show or hide the tab bar (single tab).

Cmd + Opt + T: Show/hide toolbar (single tab).

View Modes

`Cmd + 1`	View items as icons.
`Cmd + 2`	View items as a list.
`Cmd + 3`	View items in columns.
`Cmd + 4`	View items in a gallery.

System and Other Shortcuts

System Shortcuts

Cmd + Opt + D: Show or hide the Dock.

Cmd + Brightness Down: Turn video mirroring on/off (multiple displays).

Cmd + Brightness Up: Open Displays preferences.

Ctrl + Brightness: Change external display brightness (if supported).

Opt + Shift + Brightness: Adjust brightness in smaller steps.

Ctrl + Down: Show all windows of the front app.

Opt + Vol: Open Sound preferences.

Additional Finder Functions

`Cmd + F`	Start a Spotlight search in the Finder window.
`Cmd + Shift + G`	Open a ‘Go to Folder’ window.
`Cmd + Shift + R`	Open the AirDrop window.
`Cmd + K`	Open the ‘Connect to Server’ window.
`Ctrl + Cmd + Shift + T`	Add selected Finder items to the Dock.
`Cmd + Ctrl + T`	Add the selected item to the sidebar.