Knowing all the Keyboard Shortcut keys / Hotkeys for Adobe Photoshop can really be a time saver especially if you know your way around the keyboard. In-fact, I personally find myself frustrated with new applications until I master all the Shortcut keys and with Adobe Photoshop, knowing the Photoshop Hotkeys can greatly increase the overall experience and performance for pumping out quality imagery not to mention you’ll look “’pro” in-front of your friends!
Essential Tool Hotkeys For Photoshop
Although this is not the complete list, these are the most commonly used or bang for the buck!
| Keys | Visual Icon | Tool Description |
| M |  |
Current Marquee |
| Shift-M |  |
Switch Marquee mode |
| V |  |
Move |
| W |  |
Magic Wand |
| L |  |
Current Lasso |
| Shift-L |    |
Switch Lasso tool mode |
| N |  |
Crop |
| I |  |
Eye Dropper Tool |
| Shift-I |   |
Switch between Eye Dropper Tools |
| J |  |
Current Health brush or Path or Eye |
| Shift-J |   |
Switch between Health brush / Patch / Eye |
| B |  |
Current Pencil or Brush or Color Replace |
| Shift-B |    |
Switch between Pencil / Brush / Replace |
| S |  |
Current Clone or Pattern Stamp |
| Shift-S |  |
Switch between Clone and Pattern Stamp |
| E |  |
Current Erase tool |
| Shift-E |   |
Switch between Eraser tools |
| G |  |
Current Paint Bucket or Gradient tool |
| Shift-G |  |
Switch between Paint Bucket / Gradient |
| R |  |
Current Blur, Sharpen or Smudge |
| Shift-R |   |
Switch between Blur, Sharpen or Smudge |
| O |  |
Current Dodge, Burn, or Sponge |
| Shift-O |   |
Switch Dodge, Burn, or Sponge |
| P |  |
Current Pen Tool |
| Shift-P |    |
Switch Between Pen Tools |
| T |  |
Current Type Tool |
| Shift-T |    |
Switch between Type Tools |
| U |  |
Current Shape Tool |
| Shift-U |   |
Switch between Shape tools |
| K |  |
3D Distortion Tool |
| N |  |
3D Camera Tool |
| H |  |
Hand Tool |
| Z |  |
Magnifying Glass Tool |
Misc Hotkey Commands For Photoshop
| Ctrl-Alt-Shift-` | Selects the area with light tones (greater than 50%) |
| Ctrl-W | Close current document/image (may prompt save dialog) |
| Ctrl-Shift-Alt-X | Extract |
| Ctrl-F | Repeat Filter |
| Ctrl-A | Select All |
| Ctrl-Shift-S | Save as.. |
| Ctrl-S | Save |
| Ctrl-Shift-Alt-S | Save for Web |
| Ctrl-L | Levels |
| Ctrl-Shift-L | Auto levels |
| Ctrl-Shift-Alt-L | Auto contrast |
| Ctrl-K | Preferences |
| Ctrl-Shift-K | Color Settings |
| Ctrl-’ | Grid |
| Ctrl-J | New layer via copy |
| Ctrl-Alt-J | New layer via copy and rename layer |
| Ctrl-Shift-J | New layer via cut |
| Ctrl-Alt-G | Group layer with the previous one |
| Ctrl-P | Print with preview |
| Ctrl-Alt-P | Print and open printer settings |
| Ctrl-Shift-P | Page setup |
| Ctrl-U | Hue/Saturation |
| Ctrl-Shift-U | Desaturate |
| Ctrl-Alt-U | Hue/Saturation in Color mode |
| Ctrl-Alt-Shift-E | Merge all visible layers into the active one |
| Ctrl-Alt-Shift-` | Selects the area with light tones (greater than 50%) |
| Ctrl-O | Open |
| Ctrl-Alt-O | Open as.. |
| Ctrl-Shift-O | File browser |
| Ctrl-I | Inverse Selection |
| Ctrl-Shift-Alt-P | Direct Print |
| Ctrl-Alt-X | Pattern Maker |
Do you see any groovy Photoshop shortcuts we missed? Post your favorites in the comments below!