After Effects is one of those scary, complex pieces of software that every motion graphic designer and video editor needs to learn at some point. Keyboard shortcuts, like in any video editing or motion graphics software, make the user 20x more powerful.
They allow you to work quickly, get done sooner, deliver your projects on time, and give you the ability to take on more work or give you more free time if that’s what you desire.
After Effects is a powerful creative tool that many people find intimidating. But, as you work more with the software, you’ll realize the value of keyboard shortcuts If you wanted to increase your speed in After Effects by double what would you do? Some people might pay thousands of dollars on for a new Laptop, but there’s an easier way… keyboard shortcuts.
Keyboard shortcuts have the ability to save you a few seconds here or there and those seconds can add up to hours if not days saved on each one of your video motion projects.
In short, shortcuts rule. To help make it easier for you to learn those keyboard shortcuts in After Effects.
All of these shortcuts are guaranteed to save you time in Adobe After Effects. Some of them can even reduce your work time in half! So if you’re ready to turbo-charge your AE skills here are our favorite keyboard shortcuts in After Effects.
General
| ACTION | WINDOWS | MAC |
|---|---|---|
| Select all | Ctrl + A | Command + A |
| Deselect all | Ctrl + Shift + A | Command + Shift + A |
| Rename selected layer | Enter | Enter |
| Move selected layers down in stacking order | Ctrl + Alt + ↓ | Command + Option + ↓ |
| Move selected layers up in stacking order | Ctrl + Alt + ↑ | Command + Option + ↑ |
| Extend selection to next item in project panel | Shift + ↓ | Shift + ↓ |
| Extend selection to previous item in project panel | Shift + ↑ | Shift + ↑ |
| Duplicate selected layers etc. | Ctrl + D | Command + D |
| Quit | Ctrl + Q | Command + Q |
| Undo | Ctrl + Z | Command + Z |
| Redo | Ctrl + Shift + Z | Command + Shift + Z |
| Purge all | Ctrl + Alt + [ | Command + Option + [ |
| Interrupt running a script | Esc | Esc |
Projects & Preferences
| ACTION | WINDOWS | MAC |
|---|---|---|
| New project | Ctrl + Alt + N | Command + Option + N |
| Open project | Ctrl + O | Command + O |
| Most recent project | Ctrl + Alt + Shift + P | Command + Option + Shift + P |
| New folder in project panel | Ctrl + Alt + Shift + N | Command + Option + Shift + N |
| Open project settings dialog box | Ctrl + Alt + Shift + K | Command + Option + Shift + K |
| Find in project panel | Ctrl + F | Command + F |
| Open preferences dialog box | Ctrl + Alt + ; | Command + Option + ; |
Panels, Viewer, Workspace and Windows
| ACTION | WINDOWS | MAC |
|---|---|---|
| Open or close project panel | Ctrl + 0 | Command + 0 |
| Open or close render queue panel | Ctrl + Alt + 0 | Command + Option + 0 |
| Open or close tools panel | Ctrl + 1 | Command + 1 |
| Open or Close Info Panel | Ctrl + 2 | Command + 2 |
| Open or close Preview panel | Ctrl + 3 | Command + 3 |
| OPen or close Audio panel | Ctrl + 4 | Command + 4 |
| Open or close effects and Presets panel | Ctrl + 5 | Command + 5 |
| Open or close Character panel | Ctrl + 6 | Command + 6 |
| Open or close Paragraph panel | Ctrl + 7 | Command + 7 |
| Open or close Paint panel | Ctrl + 8 | Command + 8 |
| Open or close Brushes panel | Ctrl + 9 | Command + 9 |
| Open or close Effect controls panel for selected layer | Ctrl + Shift + T | Command + Shift + T |
| Switch to workspace | Shift + F10 | Shift + F10 |
| Close active viewer window | Ctrl + W | Command + W |
| Close all active viewer window | Ctrl + Shift + W | Command + Shift + W |
| Resize application window | Ctrl + \ | Command + \ |
| Move application window | Ctrl + Alt + \ | Command + Option + \ |
Activate Tools
| ACTION | WINDOWS | MAC |
|---|---|---|
| Activate selection tool | V | V |
| Activate Hand tool | H | H |
| Activate Zoom tool | Z | Z |
| Activate Rotation tool | W | W |
| Activate & cycle through Camera tools | C | C |
| Acivate Pane behind tool | Y | Y |
| Activate mash & Shape tools | Q | Q |
| Activate Brush, Clone stamp and Eraser tools | Ctrl + B | Command + B |
| Activate and cycle through Type tools | Ctrl + T | Command + T |
| Activate and cycle through Puppet tools | Ctrl + P | Command + P |
| Activate Roto Brush tool | Alt + W | Option + W |
| Open or close Effect controls panel for selected layer | Ctrl + Shift + T | Command + Shift + T |
| Switch to workspace | Shift + F10 | Shift + F10 |
| Close active viewer window | Ctrl + W | Command + W |
| Close all active viewer window | Ctrl + Shift + W | Command + Shift + W |
| Resize application window | Ctrl + \ | Command + \ |
| Move application window | Ctrl + Alt + \ | Command + Option + \ |