Keyboard shortcut cheat sheet maker
Paste your shortcuts, one per line. They are read right here on this page, and nothing is sent anywhere.
Try an example:
What it does
Paste the keyboard shortcuts of your Mac app, one per line, written any way you like: ⇧⌘K, Shift-Command-K or cmd+shift+k, followed by what each one does. The tool writes every shortcut the way macOS menus show it, with the modifier keys in Apple's order, and lays them out as a cheat sheet you can print or paste into a README, a help page or a support reply. A line with no shortcut becomes a heading. Then it checks each shortcut against the ones macOS keeps for itself and the standard ones people expect in every Mac app, and against the rest of your list.
The order of the modifier keys
| Symbol | Key |
|---|---|
| ⌃ | Control |
| ⌥ | Option |
| ⇧ | Shift |
| ⌘ | Command |
Apple's Human Interface Guidelines ask apps to always list modifier keys in this order, so it is ⌃⌥⇧⌘K, never ⌘⇧K. A symbol that needs Shift to type, like ? or +, is shown without the ⇧, the way the Help menu shows ⌘?.
What it checks
- Taken by macOS: shortcuts the system uses first, such as
⌘Spacefor Spotlight,⌘Tabfor switching apps,⌥⌘Escfor Force Quit,⇧⌘3,⇧⌘4and⇧⌘5for screenshots and⌃⌘Qfor locking the screen. - Standard shortcuts:
⌘H,⌘Q,⌘W,⌘,and about fifty more that people expect to mean the same thing in every app. Using one for its usual job is fine. - Typing: a single key, Shift alone, or Option alone with a letter gets in the way when someone types.
- Apple's advice: the guidelines say to avoid Control as a modifier, and to keep Option for less common commands.
- Your own list: two actions on the same shortcut.
The lists come from Apple's Mac keyboard shortcuts page and the Keyboards page of the Human Interface Guidelines, read in November 2026. Symbols that need Shift follow a US keyboard. Other apps you have installed, like launchers and window managers, add global shortcuts of their own that no page can see.
In your code
Button("Clear History") { clear() }
.keyboardShortcut("k", modifiers: [.command, .shift])That is SwiftUI. Put every shortcut on a menu command, so people can find it in the menu bar. In System Settings, under Keyboard, then Keyboard Shortcuts, App Shortcuts lets anyone give a menu command a shortcut of their own, so a clash someone cares about can be fixed on their Mac too.
What each result means
| Mark | What it means |
|---|---|
| Fix | macOS takes this shortcut first, or two of your actions share it. |
| Look | It works, but people expect it to do something else, or it gets in the way of typing. |
| Note | Worth knowing, such as a Control or fn shortcut Apple advises against. |
| OK | Nothing on Apple's lists clashes with it. |
Questions
What order do Mac modifier keys go in?
Control, Option, Shift, Command, written ⌃⌥⇧⌘. Apple's Human Interface Guidelines ask apps to always list them in that order, so ⇧⌘K, never ⌘⇧K.
Which shortcuts should a Mac app not use?
The ones macOS takes for itself, like ⌘Space for Spotlight, ⌘Tab for switching apps, ⌥⌘Esc for Force Quit and ⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4 and ⇧⌘5 for screenshots. Standard ones like ⌘H and ⌘Q should keep their usual job.
Why does it warn about Option with a letter?
On a Mac keyboard, Option with a letter, number or symbol types a special character, such as an accent or ©. A shortcut like that gets in the way of typing.
Can people change my app's shortcuts?
Yes. In System Settings, under Keyboard, then Keyboard Shortcuts, App Shortcuts lets anyone give a menu command in your app a new shortcut. That is one more reason to put every shortcut in a menu.
Does it know every clash?
No. It knows the system and standard shortcuts on Apple's own lists, read in November 2026. Launchers, window managers and other apps add global shortcuts it cannot see.
Are my shortcuts sent anywhere?
No. They are read on this page and nothing is sent or stored.