Video conferencing has been gaining more and more popularity in recent months. Many people have been calling family and friends more often. The need to work and study from home has increased dramatically. Joining a Zoom meeting is now part of the daily routine.
Reportedly, Zoom video calls increased from 10 million daily calls in December 2019 to over 200 million in March 2020.
Zoom allows users to join a meeting without needing to sign up. Use it to host large or small meetings, share your screen, chat, and much more. There is also the option to record the meeting and save it all to the cloud.
Like any other program, it permits the use of keyboard shortcuts instead of using the mouse. This can be helpful when attending and participating in many conferences a day.
This article created by our team at Amelia discusses the most important Zoom keyboard shortcuts for your preferred device.
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 a lot, but over a month it accumulates into a decent number of minutes saved.
Learn as many combinations as possible. Try a keyboard command a few times, and see how useful it can be.
Record a Meeting 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 Keys
Do you want to invite more people to the meeting? To do so at speed, use the following keys:
- Windows: Alt – i
- Mac OS: Command – i
Start and Stop Video Shortcut
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 Shortcut
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 Shortcut
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
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
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
Do you need to take a screenshot? Try the following shortcut:
- Windows: Alt – Shift – T
- Mac OS: Command – T
Active Speaker/ Gallery View
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 key combination:
- 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 full-screen mode
To adjust the screen mode, this shortcut will come in handy:
- Windows: Alt – F
- Mac OS: Command – Shift – F
Raise or lower hand
For participation, there is usually only a short time available to raise your hand. In this case, you need a quick key combination:
- Windows: Alt – Y
- Mac OS: Option – Y
Other 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 device:
Mac OS
General
Command – W: Close the current window
Command – L: Switch to portrait or landscape view
Ctrl – T: Switch from one tab to the next
Meeting
Command – J: Join meeting
Command – Control -V: Begin meeting
Command – J: Schedule meeting
Command – Control – S: Screen share using direct share
Command – Shift – A: Mute/unmute audio
Command – Control – M: Mute audio for everyone except the host (only available to the host)
Command – Control – U: Unmute audio for everyone except host (only available to the host)
Space: Push to talk
Command – Shift – V: Begin/finish video
Command – Shift – N: Switch camera
Command – Shift – S: Begin/finish screen share
Command – Shift – T: Pause or resume screen share
Command – Shift – R: Begin local recording
Command – Shift – C: Begin cloud recording
Command – Shift – P: Pause or resume recording
Command – Shift -W: Switch to active speaker view or gallery view
Ctrl – P: Show previous 25 participants in gallery view
Ctrl – N: Show next 25 participants in gallery view
Command – U: Show/hide participants panel
Command – Shift – H: Display/hide in-meeting chat panel
Command – I: Open invite window
Option – Y: Raise hand/lower hand
Ctrl – Shift – R: Gain remote control
Ctrl – Shift – G: Finish remote control
Command – Shift – F: Enter or leave fullscreen
Command – Shift – M: Switch to minimal window
Ctrl – Option – Command – H: Display/hide meeting controls
Ctrl – \: Toggle the Always Show meeting controls option in General settings
Command – W: Prompt to End or Leave Meeting
Chat
Command – K: Jump to chat with someone
Command – T: Screenshot
Phone
Ctrl – Shift – C: Call highlighted phone number
Ctrl – Shift – A: Accept inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – D: Decline inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – E: Finish the current call
Ctrl – Shift – M: Mute/unmute mic
Ctrl – Shift – H: Hold/resume the call
Windows
General
F6: Navigate among Zoom popup windows
Ctrl – Alt – Shift: Move focus to Zoom’s meeting controls
Meeting
PageUp: Display previous 25 video stream in gallery view
PageDown: Display next 25 video stream in gallery view
Alt: Turn on/off the option Always show meeting controls in General settings
Alt – F1: Switch to active speaker view
Alt – F2: Switch to gallery video view
Alt – F4: Close the current window
Alt – V: Begin/end video
Alt – A: Mute/unmute audio
Alt – M: Mute/unmute audio for everyone except the host
Alt – S: Launch share screen window and stop screen share (works only when meeting control toolbar is on-screen)
Alt – Shift – S: Start/finish new screen share (works only when meeting control toolbar is on-screen)
Alt – T: Pause or resume screen share (works only when meeting control toolbar is on-screen)
Alt – R: Begin/finish local recording
Alt – C: Begin/finish cloud recording
Alt – P: Pause or resume recording
Alt – N: Switch camera
Alt – F: Enter or leave fullscreen
Alt – H: Show/hide in-meeting chat panel
Alt – U: Show/hide participants panel
Alt – I: Open invite window
Alt – Y: Raise/lower hand
Alt – Shift – R: Gain remote control
Alt – Shift – G: Finish remote control
Ctrl – 2: Read active speaker name
Ctrl – Alt – Shift – H: Display/hide floating meeting controls
Chat
Alt – Shift – T: Screenshot
Alt – L: Switch to Portrait/Landscape View
Ctrl – W: Close current chat session
Ctrl – Up: Go to previous chat
Ctrl – Down: Go to next chat
Ctrl – T: Jump to chat with someone
Ctrl – F: Search
Ctrl – Tab: Move to the next tab (right)
Ctrl – Shift – Tab: Move to the previous tab (left)
Phone
Ctrl – Shift – P: Call highlighted phone number
Ctrl – Shift – A: Accept inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – E: Finish the current call
Ctrl – Shift – D: Decline inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – M: Mute/unmute mic
Ctrl – Shift – H: Hold/resume the call
Linux
General
Ctrl – Tab: Switch from one tab to the next
Meeting
Alt: Toggle the Always show meeting controls option in General settings
Alt – V: Begin/finish the video
Alt – A: Mute/unmute my audio
Alt – M: Mute/unmute audio for everyone except the host (available only to the host)
Alt – S: Begin/finish screen sharing
Alt – T: Pause/resume screen sharing
Alt – R: Begin/finish local recording
Alt – C: Begin/finish cloud recording
Alt – P: Pause/resume recording
Alt – N: Switch camera
Esc: Enter/leave full-screen mode
Alt – U: Display/hide participants panel
Alt – I: Open the invite window
Alt – Y: Raise/lower hand
Alt – Shift – R: Begin remote control
Alt – Shift – G: Revoke remote control permission
Chat
Alt – Shift – T: Screenshot
Ctrl – W: Close current chat session
Phone
Ctrl – Shift – A: Accept inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – E: Finish the current call
Ctrl – Shift – D: Decline inbound call
Ctrl – Shift – M: Mute/unmute mic
Ctrl – Shift – H: Hold/resume the call
iPad OS
Command – Shift – A: Mute/unmute my audio
Command – Shift – V: Begin/finish my video
Command – Shift – H: Display/hide chat
Command – Shift – M: Minimize meeting
Command – U: Display/hide manage participants
Command – W: Close the front window, such as the participants or meeting settings window
Ending thoughts on these Zoom keyboard shortcuts
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.
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.
If you enjoyed reading this article on Zoom keyboard shortcuts, you should check out this one about Zoom integrations.
We also wrote about a few related subjects like how to change your background on Zoom, how to record a Zoom meeting, create a Zoom meeting, how does Zoom work, Zoom waiting room, how to add Zoom to Google Calendar and how to schedule a Zoom meeting.
