Have you ever thought how cool it would be if you could get your work done even faster and more efficiently with Affinity Publisher? That's where the magic of keyboard shortcuts comes in! Imagine being able to do all your routine tasks with a few quick keystrokes instead of navigating through menus every time. That sounds great, doesn't it?
Mastering keyboard shortcuts in Affinity Publisher is like learning a secret language that gives you superpowers in your workflow. Whether you're designing layouts, editing text or customizing graphics, the right shortcuts will not only make you faster, but also more productive. And the best thing about it? You have more time for the creative part of your work because you leave the boring click routines behind.
So, let's dive into the world of keyboard shortcuts and discover how they can revolutionize your work with Affinity Publisher!
Table of contents
Shortcuts for work steps
Action
Key
Selecting multiple objects
Shift-click
Select the overlapped object
Alt-click
Reset selection box
.
Change the opacity of the selected layer
Numeric keys (4 = 40 %, 43 = 43 %, etc.)
Switch between the color selectors for outline and fill (in the "Color" and "Color fields" panels)
X
Swap color selectors for contour/fill
Shift + X
Set color selectors for outline/fill to "None"
/ (only for international and selected keyboards)
Change the attribute displayed in a panel or dialog box
Drag on the text label of the attribute
Switch magnetic alignment on/off
;
Action (drawing curves)
button
Edit line contours while drawing
Ctrl
Create an acute node (sharp corners)
Alt-drag the handle
Align the handle of a line in 45° increments
Shift-drag the handle
Create a straight line segment while you are drawing
Drag + right-click
Action (curve editing with the node tool)
button
Convert to smooth node
Right-click
Convert to point node
Alt-click
Select the next node of a curve
]
Select the previous node of a curve
[
Action (Transform)
button
Restricted shifting in the horizontal, vertical or diagonal direction
Shift-drag from inside the object bounding box
Rotate in steps of 15 degrees
Shift-dragging the rotation/corner handle
Rotate around the opposite corner
Drag the corner handle and hold the right mouse button.
Cancel scaling, moving or creating content
ESC
Scaling vector objects without changing the aspect ratio
Shift-drag from a corner handle
Change the object size from its center point
Ctrl-drag from a corner handle
Mirrored tilting
Ctrl-drag
Move step by step
Arrow keys
Move step by step (by the modified distance)
Shift + arrow keys
Shortcuts for files
Action
key
New document
Ctrl + N
Open document
Ctrl + O
Close document/close program (if no document is open)
Ctrl + W
Change document/view
Ctrl + Tab
Save document
Ctrl + S
Save as
Ctrl + Shift + S
Place image
Ctrl + Shift + M
Export
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + S
Set up the layout page
Ctrl + Shift + P
Print
Ctrl + P
Shortcuts for tools
Action (General and Designer Persona)
key
The "Move" tool
V
Node tool
A
Switch between the "Graphic text", "Frame text" and "Table" tools
T
Drawing pen
P
Switch between the "Rectangle", "Ellipse" and "Rounded rectangle" tools
M
Switch between the "Rectangular picture frame" and "Elliptical picture frame" tools
F
Fill tool
G
Transparency tool
Y
Color pipette
I
Viewing tool
H
Zoom tool
Z
Shortcuts for editing
Action
button
Undo
Ctrl + Z
Redo
Ctrl + Y
Transfer style
Ctrl + Shift + V
Transfer effect
Alt + Shift + V
Paste without format
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + V
Keyboard shortcuts for working with pages
Action
key
Add page
Ctrl + Shift + [key]
Previous page
Ctrl + [key]
Next page
Ctrl + [key]
Shortcuts for working with objects
Action
key
Group
Ctrl + G
Ungroup objects
Ctrl + Shift + G
All the way to the front
Ctrl + Shift + ]
One forward
Ctrl + ]
One to the back
Ctrl + [
All the way back
Ctrl + Shift + [
Duplicate
Ctrl + J
Show all
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + H
Protect
Ctrl + L
Unprotect
Ctrl + Shift + L
Unprotect all
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + L
Edit detached
Ctrl + Shift + D
Shortcuts for text
Action
key
Open "Character" panel
Ctrl + T
Open "Typography" panel
Ctrl + Shift + T
Spelling options
Ctrl + Shift + ;
Action (navigation)
key
Moves the insertion point one character to the left
Left arrow key
Moves the insertion point one character to the right
Right arrow key
Moves the insertion point to the beginning of the word
Ctrl + Left arrow key
Moves the insertion point to the end of the word
Ctrl + Right arrow key
Moves the insertion point to the beginning of the line
Pos1
Moves the insertion point to the end of the line
End
Moves the insertion point to the beginning of the text frame
Ctrl + Pos1
Moves the insertion point to the end of the text frame
Ctrl + End
Moves the insertion point to the beginning of the current paragraph
Ctrl + Up arrow key
Moves the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph
Ctrl + down arrow key
Find
Ctrl + F
Action (formatting)
key
Larger text
Ctrl + >
Smaller text
Ctrl + <
Enlarge text precisely
Ctrl + Alt + >
Reduce text precisely
Ctrl + Alt + <
Bold
Ctrl + B
Italicize
Ctrl + I
Underline
Ctrl + U
Superscript
Ctrl + Shift + =
Subscript
Ctrl + Alt + -
Increase level
Alt + Shift + ]
Decrease level
Alt + Shift + [
Align left
Ctrl + Alt + L
Center
Ctrl + Alt + C
Align right
Ctrl + Alt + R
Justify left
Ctrl + Alt + |
Action (Typography)
key
Narrower (tracking / kerning; steps of 10 ‰)
Alt + Left arrow key
Next (width/undercut; steps of 10 ‰)
Alt + Right arrow key
Even narrower (width/undercut; steps of 50 ‰)
Alt + Shift + Left arrow key
Even wider (width/undercut; steps of 50 ‰)
Alt + Shift + Right arrow key
Raise baseline
Alt + Shift + Up arrow key
Lower baseline
Alt + Shift + Down arrow key
Raise baseline precisely
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + up arrow key
Lower baseline precisely
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + down arrow key
Increase paragraph indent
Alt + down arrow key
Decrease paragraph indent
Alt + up arrow key
Increase paragraph indent precisely
Ctrl + Alt + down arrow key
Decrease paragraph indent precisely
Ctrl + Alt + up arrow key
Action (special characters)
key
Line break
Shift + Enter
Protected space
Alt + Space
Protected separator
Alt + Ctrl -
Tab stop for the right indent
Shift + Tab
Bisector
Alt + -
Square indent
Alt + Shift + -
Switch Unicode on/off
Alt + U
Insert index marker
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + [
Shortcuts for the view
Action
key
Rotate the document view
Alt-scroll
Rotate around the center of the document view
Shift + Alt-scroll
Rotate document view faster
Ctrl-scroll
Zoom in
Ctrl + =
Zoom out
Ctrl + -
Zoom to fit
Ctrl + 0
Zoom to selection
Ctrl + Alt + 0
Zoom to document
Ctrl + Alt + Shift + 0
Zoom to 100%
Ctrl + 1
Zoom to 200
Ctrl + 2
Zoom to 400
Ctrl + 3
Zoom to 800
Ctrl + 4
Zoom to print size
Ctrl + 8
Zoom to pixel size
Ctrl + 9
Zoom by shortcut
Space + Ctrl-drag
Zoom in with shortcut
Space + Ctrl-click
Zoom out via shortcut
Space bar + Alt-click
Zoom in with shortcut (selection frame)
Space bar + Alt-drag
Pan with shortcut
Space bar
Scroll vertically
Mouse wheel
Scroll horizontally
Shift + mouse wheel
Switch to next view
`
Show guides
Ctrl + ;
Show grid
Ctrl + '
Show rulers
Ctrl + R
Switch between projection planes of a grid
'
Limit on the canvas
\
Isolate an object
Alt-click on the thumbnail of the "Layers" panel
Shortcuts for selection
Action
button
Select all
Ctrl + A
Deselect
Ctrl + D
Select next
Ctrl + Alt + ]
Select previous
Ctrl + Alt + [
Shortcuts for the workspace
Action
key
Preview mode
Ctrl + Shift + W
Show/hide studio
Ctrl + Shift + H
Show/hide toolbar
Ctrl + Alt + T
Show/hide program interface (no selection available)
Tab
Various shortcuts
Action
Key
Program settings
Ctrl + ,
10 useful tips and tricks for Affinity Publisher
Use master pages : Use master pages to apply recurring layout elements such as page numbers, headers and footers to multiple pages. This saves time and ensures consistency throughout the document.
Text styles for consistent design : Define text styles for headings, paragraphs and other text elements. This ensures a uniform appearance and makes it easier to change the design across the entire document.
Use of layers : Organize your content into layers to simplify editing and maintain control over complex layouts.
Linked and embedded graphics : Understand the difference between linked and embedded graphics. Links are useful for keeping file sizes small, while embedded graphics ensure that everything is contained in one file.
Grids and guides for precise layout : Use grids and guides to precisely align elements and create a balanced, professional layout.
Dynamic content : Use dynamic content features like text variables for things like the current date or page number to save time and avoid errors.
Tables for structured data : Use tables to present data in a clear and appealing way. Affinity Publisher offers flexible table editing functions.
Optimize export options : Understand the different export options to export your documents in the best possible quality and format for your final destination.
Switch persons for advanced editing : Switch between the different persons (layout, text, photo) in Affinity Publisher to access advanced editing features for different aspects of your document.
Use baseline grids for text : Use baseline grids to align your text across the page and ensure a clean, professional layout.
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Shortcuts for Affinity Publisher - Keyboard shortcuts at a glance
Together with his brother Matthias, Stefan Petri runs the popular specialist forum PSD-Tutorials.de and the e-learning platform TutKit.com, which focuses on the training and further education of digital professional skills.
