Notion Keyboard Shortcuts and Slash Commands: Write Without Reaching for the Mouse
Notion keyboard shortcuts for Mac and Windows: page navigation, text formatting, block editing, every slash command worth knowing, and the Cmd + Option number keys that convert a block in one press.
Where Notion shortcuts actually save time
Notion is a document editor, a database and a wiki at once, so the menus are deep. The fastest users rarely open them. They type / for a block, convert with a number key, and move on.
This guide covers three layers: the everyday shortcuts, the slash commands that insert blocks, and the conversions that change a block you already wrote.
On Windows and Linux, read Cmd as Ctrl and Opt as Alt.
The five to learn first
- / — open the block menu; type to filter
- Cmd + P — quick find: jump to any page by name
- Cmd + Shift + M — add a comment
- Tab / Shift + Tab — indent or outdent a block
- Cmd + D — duplicate the current block
/ is the one that unlocks the rest. Anything you can insert, you can insert by typing its name after a slash.
Basics: pages and navigation
| Action | Mac | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| New page | Cmd + N | Ctrl + N |
| New window | Cmd + Shift + N | Ctrl + Shift + N |
| Quick find | Cmd + P | Ctrl + P |
| Back | Cmd + [ | Ctrl + [ |
| Forward | Cmd + ] | Ctrl + ] |
| Go to the parent page | Cmd + Shift + U | Ctrl + Shift + U |
| Copy the page link | Cmd + L | Ctrl + L |
| Toggle dark mode | Cmd + Shift + L | Ctrl + Shift + L |
Basics: writing and formatting
| Action | Mac | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| Bold | Cmd + B | Ctrl + B |
| Italic | Cmd + I | Ctrl + I |
| Underline | Cmd + U | Ctrl + U |
| Strikethrough | Cmd + Shift + S | Ctrl + Shift + S |
| Inline code | Cmd + E | Ctrl + E |
| Add a link | Cmd + K | Ctrl + K |
| Apply the last used color | Cmd + Shift + H | Ctrl + Shift + H |
| New block | Enter | Enter |
| Line break inside a block | Shift + Enter | Shift + Enter |
The distinction between Enter and Shift + Enter matters more in Notion than in most editors. Enter ends the block; Shift + Enter keeps you inside it. Bullet lists that break apart when you did not want them to are almost always this.
Basics: moving blocks around
| Action | Mac | Windows |
|---|---|---|
| Indent | Tab | Tab |
| Outdent | Shift + Tab | Shift + Tab |
| Move block up or down | Cmd + Shift + Up / Down | Ctrl + Shift + Up / Down |
| Duplicate block | Cmd + D | Ctrl + D |
| Select / deselect the current block | Esc | Esc |
| Select all text, then all blocks | Cmd + A | Ctrl + A |
| Delete the selected block | Backspace | Backspace |
Esc is the quiet hero here. It lifts you out of typing and selects the block, so arrow keys and Backspace work on whole blocks instead of characters.
Intermediate: slash commands
Type / and then the name. These are the ones worth memorizing.
| Command | Inserts |
|---|---|
| /table | A simple table (type /Table view for an inline database) |
| /board | A board (kanban) view |
| /list | A list database |
| /calendar | A calendar view |
| /gallery | A gallery view |
| /timeline | A timeline view |
| /todo | A checkbox |
| /code | A code block |
| /quote | A quote block |
| /callout | A callout box |
| /divider | A divider |
| /embed | An embed block |
Intermediate: Markdown as you type
Notion converts Markdown while you type, which is usually faster than the slash menu for text.
| Type | Result |
|---|---|
| # then space | Heading 1 |
| ## then space | Heading 2 |
| ### then space | Heading 3 |
| * then space | Bullet list |
| 1. then space | Numbered list |
| [] then space | Checkbox |
| > then space | Toggle list |
| " then space | Quote |
| --- | Divider |
| text | Bold |
| [[ | Link to another page |
| + | Create a subpage and link it |
Advanced: convert a block you already wrote
This is the layer most people never reach, and it is where the real speed is. Put the cursor in a block and press — and note the exception to the rule above: on Windows these use Ctrl + Shift, not Ctrl + Alt.
| Shortcut | Converts to |
|---|---|
| Cmd + Opt + 0 | Plain text |
| Cmd + Opt + 1 | Heading 1 |
| Cmd + Opt + 2 | Heading 2 |
| Cmd + Opt + 3 | Heading 3 |
| Cmd + Opt + 4 | To-do checkbox |
| Cmd + Opt + 5 | Bullet list |
| Cmd + Opt + 6 | Numbered list |
| Cmd + Opt + 7 | Toggle |
| Cmd + Opt + 8 | Code block |
| Cmd + Opt + 9 | Page |
Two more that pair with them:
- Cmd + / — open the block menu for the current block (turn into, color, move)
- Cmd + Opt + T — expand or collapse every toggle on the page
Advanced: structure blocks
| Command | Inserts |
|---|---|
| /template | A template button |
| /linked | A linked database view of an existing database |
| /synced | A synced block that mirrors content elsewhere |
| /toc | A table of contents |
| /breadcrumb | A breadcrumb trail |
| /button | A button block |
| /equation | An inline TeX equation |
Cmd + Enter acts on the current block: it ticks a checkbox, opens a page link, or plays an embed, depending on what the block is.
How to make them stick
Notion has more shortcuts than anyone needs. The useful set is small:
- Learn / and Esc first. They change how you move, not just what you type.
- Add the three conversions you would use most — for most people that is heading 2, bullet list and to-do.
- Leave the database views until you actually build one.
Once a shortcut has replaced a menu trip for a week, it is yours. Until then it is a note you have to look up.