Zoom Keyboard Shortcuts You Should Know

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Video conferencing has been gaining more and more popularity in recent months, with Zoom being the most popular online meeting tool. People use Zoom to host large or small meetings, share their screens, chat, and much more. However, those who are true Zoom masters have a few tricks up their sleeves that help them use this great tool more efficiently. One of those tricks is using Zoom keyboard shortcuts or hotkeys.

These shortcuts can be helpful in preventing confusion and (un)successful attempts to find the right button in the middle of the meeting.

Below are the most useful Zoom keyboard shortcuts sure to come in handy during your video calls.

Table of Contents

The Most Used Zoom Keyboard Shortcuts

Instead of reaching for the mouse, try these popular keyboard shortcuts to promptly change the command. They can save you a few seconds each time. It may not seem like a lot, but over a month it accumulates into a decent number of minutes saved.

Learn as many combinations as possible – trust us, you will need them eventually.

Record a Meeting Zoom keyboard shortcut

Use this combination to start recording in an instant.

Windows:

Begin local recording: Alt-R

Begin cloud recording: Alt-C

Pause or resume recording: Alt-P

Mac OS:

Begin local recording: Command(⌘)-Shift-R

Begin cloud recording: Command(⌘)-Shift-C

Pause or resume recording: Command(⌘)-Shift-P

Quick Invite Zoom keyboard shortcuts

Do you want to invite more people to the meeting? To do so at speed, use the following Zoom keyboard shortcuts:

Windows: Alt – i
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – i

Start and Stop Video hotkeys

It may be helpful to have the camera set by default to ‘off’ when joining a new meeting. If it is in use, switching it off during the meeting can increase the clarity of the call. Should the need arise to turn the camera off quickly, use the keyboard shortcut below:

Windows: Alt – V
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – Shift – V

Share Screen Zoom keyboard shortcuts

This is one of the most important Zoom functions for both business meetings and virtual classes. Have this combination ready for instant screen sharing:

Windows:

Share a share screen: Alt – S

Pause or resume share screen: Alt – T

Mac OS:

Share a screen: Command(⌘) – Shift – S

Pause or resume share screen: Command(⌘) – Shift – T

Jump to Chat With Someone hotkeys

The Chat function is another very useful tool on Zoom. You can send a quick message to all participants, or to an individual. If joining a large meeting, the long list of names can be overwhelming. This shortcut will be handy for sending quick messages to colleagues or classmates:

Windows: Ctrl – T
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – K

Join a Meeting Zoom keyboard shortcuts

Are you running late? With this shortcut quickly enter the details of the meeting you need to join:

Windows: Alt – J
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – J

Mute and Unmute Everyone hotkeys

This function is useful for larger groups. It encourages everyone to wait for their turn to speak. It can also assist when participants are experiencing some background noise:

Windows: Alt – M
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – Ctrl – M

Taking a Screenshot Zoom shortcut

Do you need to take a screenshot? Try the following Zoom hotkeys combo:

Windows: Alt – Shift – T
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – T

Active Speaker/ Gallery View Zoom hotkeys

Both views have their advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes it’s necessary to focus on the speaker alone. At other times a gallery view of all the participants is best. To quickly switch from one view to another, use the following Zoom keyboard shortcuts:

Windows:

Switch to active speaker view in video meeting: Alt – F1

Switch to gallery view in video meeting: Alt – F2

Mac OS:

Toggle between active speaker view and gallery view: Command(⌘)+Shift+W

Enter or leave the full-screen mode keyboard shortcut

To adjust the screen mode, this shortcut will come in handy:

Windows: Alt – F
Mac OS: Command(⌘) – Shift – F

Raise or lower hand Zoom keyboard shortcut

When participating in a meeting, you usually have a limited amount of time to raise a hand and ask a question/share your viewpoint. That’s why you need a quick key combination:

Windows: Alt – Y
Mac OS: Option – Y

Other Useful Zoom Keyboard Shortcuts

You can view and edit keyboard shortcuts in the Zoom desktop app. Open the Zoom home screen and click on the “Settings” icon. This is located under your profile picture. In the left-hand menu go to “Keyboard Shortcuts” to view a full list of the shortcuts available.

It’s also possible to modify the shortcuts here. To edit, click in the “Shortcut” field and type in the combination you prefer. Enter any shortcut using just a single key, or modify it with Alt, Ctrl, or Shift (or on a Mac: Command(⌘), Ctrl, or Shift).

You can enable some of the combinations to become global shortcuts as well.

Here is a list of all the shortcuts for Zoom categorized by the device.

Zoom meeting keyboard shortcuts

Command	macOS	Windows	Linux
Close the current window	Command(⌘) – W	Alt – F4	/
Switch to portrait or landscape view	Command(⌘) – L	Alt – L	/
Switch from one tab to the next	Control – T	/	Ctrl – Tab
Join meeting	Command(⌘) – J	/	/
Begin meeting	Command(⌘) – Control -V	/	/
Schedule meeting	Command(⌘) – J	/	/
Share screen	Command(⌘) – Control – S	Alt – S	/
Mute/unmute audio	Command(⌘) – Shift – A	Alt – A	Alt – A
Mute audio for everyone except the host (only available to the host)	Command(⌘) – Control – M	Alt – M	Alt – M
Unmute audio for everyone except the host (only available to the host)	Command(⌘) – Control – U	Alt – M	Alt – M
Push to talk	Space	/	/
Begin/finish video	Command(⌘) – Shift – V	Alt – V	Alt – V
Switch camera	Command(⌘) – Shift – N	Alt – N	Alt – N
Begin/finish screen share	Command(⌘) – Shift – S	Alt – Shift – S	Alt – S
Pause/resume screen share	Command(⌘) – Shift – T	Alt – T	Alt – T
Begin/finish local recording	Command(⌘) – Shift – R	Alt – R	Alt – R
Begin/finish cloud recording	Command(⌘) – Shift – C	Alt – C	Alt – C
Pause or resume recording	Command(⌘) – Shift – P	Alt – P	Alt – P
Switch between active speaker view or gallery view	Command(⌘) – Shift -W	Alt – F1 Alt – F2	/
Show the previous 25 participants in gallery view	Control – P	PageUp	/
Show the next 25 participants in gallery view	Control – N	PageDown	/
Show/hide participants panel	Command(⌘) – U	Alt – U	Alt – U
Display/hide in-meeting chat panel	Command(⌘) – Shift – H	Alt – H	/
Open invite window	Command(⌘) – I	Alt – I	Alt – I
Copy invite link	Command(⌘) – Shift – I	Alt – Shift – I	/
Raise hand/lower hand	Option – Y	Alt – Y	Alt – Y
Begin remote control	Control – Shift – R	Alt – Shift – R	Alt – Shift – R
Stop remote control	Control – Shift – G	Alt – Shift – G	Alt – Shift – G
Enter or leave fullscreen	Command(⌘) – Shift – F	Alt – F	Esc
Switch to minimal window	Command(⌘) – Shift – M	/	/
Enable/disable dual monitor mode	Command(⌘) – Shift – D	/	/
Display/hide meeting controls	Control – Option – Command(⌘) – H	Ctrl – Alt – Shift – H	/
Read the name of the active speaker	Command(⌘) – 2	Ctrl – 2	/
Toggle the Always Show meeting controls option in General settings	Control – \	Alt	Ctrl – \
Toggle between Zoom popup windows	/	F6	/
Focus Zoom’s meeting controls	/	Ctrl – Alt – Shift	/
Open/close meeting chat panel	/	Alt – H	/
End/leave meeting prompt	/	Alt – Q	/

Zoom chat keyboard shortcuts

Command	macOS	Windows	Linux
Screenshot	Command(⌘) – T	Alt – Shift – T	Alt – Shift – T
Increase the size of chat display	Command(⌘) – +	/	/
Decrease the size of chat display	Command(⌘) – –	/	/
Go back in chat history	Command(⌘) – [	Alt – Left	Alt – Left
Go forward in chat history	Command(⌘) – ]	Alt – Right	Alt – Right
Start new chat	Command(⌘) – N	Ctrl – N	/
Chat search	Command(⌘) – F	Ctrl – F	/
Add new members to current chat	Command(⌘) – Option – I	Ctrl – Alt – I	/
List of all channels and chats	Command(⌘) – Shift – L	Ctrl – L	/
Jump to the first message	Command(⌘) – Control – L	Alt – N	/
Jump to the last message	Command(⌘) – Shift – U	Ctrl – U	/
Toggle between Landscape and Portrait views	/	Alt – L	/
Close current chat session	/	Ctrl – W	Ctrl – W
Go to previous chat	/	Ctrl – Up	/
Go to next chat	/	Ctrl – Down	/
Collapse all chat sessions	/	/	Alt – Shift – Left

Zoom phone keyboard shortcuts

Command	macOS	Windows	Linux
Call highlighted phone number	Control – Shift – C	Ctrl – P	/
Accept inbound call	Control – Shift – A	Ctrl – Shift – A	Ctrl – Shift – A
Decline inbound call	Control – Shift – D	Ctrl – Shift – D	Ctrl – Shift – D
Finish the current call	Control – Shift – E	Ctrl – Shift – E	Ctrl – Shift – E
Mute/unmute mic	Control – Shift – M	Ctrl – Shift – M	Ctrl – Shift – M
Hold/resume the call	Control – Shift – H	Ctrl – Shift – H	Ctrl – Shift – H
Call transfer	Control – Shift – T	Ctrl – Shift – T	/

iOS Zoom keyboard shortcuts

Mute/unmute my audio: Command – Shift – A

Begin/finish my video: Command – Shift – V

Display/hide chat: Command – Shift – H

Minimize meeting: Command – Shift – M

Display/hide manage participants: Command – U

Close the front window, such as the participants or meeting settings window: Command – W

Ending Thoughts

Zoom is a great video conferencing tool. The keyboard shortcuts make it quicker and easier to access its features. Participating in or hosting a meeting is less stressful.

One of the shortcuts every participant appreciates is the ‘Push to Talk’ feature. It allows participants to mute and unmute their microphones. When it’s your turn to speak, just press and hold the spacebar. Or if unexpected background noise occurs, use this feature to block it out.

If you are new to Zoom, having a brief list of favorite shortcuts can be helpful. The more you use them, the quicker you will master them. They will make life much easier, especially if you attend multiple video meetings a day.

On a side note, the Zoom app can be used with Amelia. Amelia is an appointment booking software that can assist with arranging and managing online meetings through audio, chat, and/or video call. Your team can add Zoom links when arranging video call meetings, without leaving their Lever workflow. Good tools save time for other important tasks.

Setting up Zoom integration only takes a few steps. Create a Zoom account and complete the Basic Information. Following this, the App Credentials will open.

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