Google Chrome is my favorite browser, and of course, it’s not perfect. Firefox is an alternative to consider and even Safari has its good things, but I’ve been using Chrome for more than a decade both personally and professionally. Considering the hours I spend using the Google browser, I have optimized my experience to the fullest. To get the most out of this browser, what I do is use key combinations that allow me to perform actions without lifting my hand from the keyboard. That being said, let’s look at the 10 Chrome keyboard shortcuts that I use all the time and that you should learn.
The 10 Chrome keyboard shortcuts you should learn as soon as possible
It’s not the first time I’ve recommended utilities for Chrome, a few days ago I shared the five extensions I use in my day-to-day life. This time I’m going to talk about keyboard shortcuts, there are an enormous amount of them and in general, they’re all useful. In my experience, the best ones are those that you can adapt to your use and, in addition, you only need one hand to be able to use them. Having made this clear, let’s go with the keyboard shortcuts for Chrome.
Ctrl + T: Open a new tab and access it
I don’t think it goes without saying that the usefulness of these shortcuts is based on simplifying and improving the Chrome experience. By using this key combination it is not necessary to move the mouse to create a new tab, I can simply do it from the keyboard.
Ctrl + N: Open a new window
This is the same case as the previous shortcut, what changes is that a window opens instead of a tab within the browser. In both cases, the comfort is the same: I don’t have to move the mouse and I can do everything simply with two keys.
Ctrl + Shift + T: reopen all closed tabs in the same order they were
I always end up missing tab groups by accident, this keyboard shortcut has saved my life on several occasions. It may be more complex to press because it is a combination of three keys, but once you get used to it it becomes a very useful tool.
Ctrl + W: Close the current tab
Opening and closing tabs from the keyboard is key to being able to use Chrome like a true pro. This key combination will allow you to close the tab once it is no longer useful, although if you make a mistake you can always resort to the previous shortcut and solve it.
Ctrl + F: Activate the search magnifier
Finding something specific on a page is within reach of a keyboard combination. I use this shortcut when reviewing texts or looking for information, I can enter the word I’m interested in in the search box and go directly to the content I want to see.
Ctrl + J: Open the Downloads panel in a new tab
It is not necessary to make a series of clicks to be able to access the Chrome download panel, the Google browser offers a combination of keys that will allow you to know the status of your downloads so that you do not have to periodically check their speed.
Ctrl + Tab: Move between open tabs
Normally, I have a dozen tabs open in Chrome, although I usually select the one I’m interested in with the mouse. This combination of keys allows me to move between them quickly and thus be able to see the different information found in these tabs.
Ctrl + D: Save the page as a bookmark
Yes, you can also save pages as bookmarks from your keyboard. It may be one of the most useful shortcuts on this list and, until I discovered that it could be done, I had to use the mouse to click on the star icon; Now I just press two keys.
Ctrl + Scroll the mouse wheel up/down: increase or decrease the size of the page content
Enlarging or decreasing the size of a page can be done without using the typical combination of ctrl and +. Instead, the combination of the keyboard next to the mouse makes doing this much more comfortable. Yes, in this case it is necessary to use both hands; but it’s worth it.
Shift + Tab: scroll backwards between all linked elements
Pages that offer information usually have elements that integrate links. This shortcut is used to navigate between these elements without having to use the mouse wheel to scroll. This is useful when checking what content is linked.
These are the 10 Chrome keyboard shortcuts that I use all the time and I recommend memorizing, although the full list is huge. Of course, my recommendation is that the shortcuts you are looking to learn do not require having both hands on the keyboard because that limits your freedom with the mouse.
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