7 Google Docs Shortcuts Everyone Shouldn't Forget

Most people never use anything other than Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V in Google Docs . But the shortcuts that really save time are the ones that get overlooked—especially when navigating long documents or quickly fixing formatting errors.

 

Once you use them, you'll wonder how you ever worked without them.

1. Paste without formatting to keep things tidy

This is a favorite shortcut, and for good reason. You copy text from a website, paste it into a document, and suddenly you're faced with weird fonts, random colors, and mismatched formatting. Instead of spending extra time cleaning up, just use Ctrl + Shift + V (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + V (Mac) to paste the content without formatting.

2. Add comments without text spacing

Adding comments to a document usually means highlighting text, right-clicking, and navigating through menus. The keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Alt + M (Windows) or Cmd + Option + M (Mac) allows you to add comments instantly without interrupting the flow of text you're typing.

 

To use this shortcut more effectively, combine it with other shortcuts in Google Docs. For example, you can combine it with Ctrl + Shift + Right/Left Arrow to select text with your keyboard, add a comment, type a note, and press Enter .

3. Voice typing is more efficient

Voice Typing in Google Docs turns your speech into text with impressive accuracy. When your fingers are tired but your brain is still churning, use Ctrl + Shift + S (works on Windows and Mac) to instantly activate voice typing. Google 's speech recognition is impressive, and it understands punctuation commands too.

For best results when voice typing, try to speak naturally and clearly, but don't speak too slowly. AI often works better with normal speech patterns than with overly careful pronunciation.

4. Quickly select the entire paragraph

When working with long documents, you often need to adjust entire sections at once. A common problem with click-and-drag selection is that you can often miss the first word or grab unwanted text from adjacent paragraphs. For precise selection, use Ctrl + Shift + Up/Down Arrow (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + Up/Down Arrow (Mac) to select an entire paragraph at once.

 

5. Move paragraphs up and down instantly

Often, when you need to rearrange paragraphs to make them more coherent, you just cut and paste blocks of text, which risks breaking the formatting. Alt + Shift + Up/Down Arrow (Windows) or Option + Shift + Up/Down Arrow (Mac) will move your current paragraph up or down without touching the clipboard.

6. Jump to the beginning or end without scrolling

Scrolling through a long document is no fun when you have to jump back and forth from the beginning to the end. On Windows, press Ctrl + Home to go to the beginning and Ctrl + End to go to the end. On a Mac, Cmd + Up Arrow will take you to the top of the page, and Cmd + Down Arrow will take you to the bottom of the page immediately.

7. Show all shortcuts when you forget

People use these shortcuts every day to speed up their Google Docs workflow and use their mouse less. But there are dozens of other shortcuts worth learning, even if they're hard to remember. Luckily, you can open a list of supported shortcuts in Google Docs by using Ctrl + / (Windows) or Cmd + / (Mac).

This list is also searchable. In the Keyboard shortcuts search bar, type format to find formatting shortcuts, insert to find insertion options, or browse the categories to discover shortcuts you didn't know existed.