Audacity keyboard shortcuts

Audacity is the most widely used free, open-source audio editor and recorder, a staple for podcasts, voiceovers and quick audio cleanup. Editing audio is repetitive by nature (select, cut, silence, export), so the default shortcuts below pay for themselves within a single episode. This cheat sheet covers 60 default shortcuts for Windows and Mac.

File & Project

New project	`Ctrl`+`NCmd`+`N`
Open project or audio	`Ctrl`+`OCmd`+`O`
Close project	`Ctrl`+`WCmd`+`W`
Save project	`Ctrl`+`SCmd`+`S`
Export audio	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`ECmd`+`Shift`+`E`
Import audio	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`ICmd`+`Shift`+`I`
Preferences	`Ctrl`+`PCmd`+`Comma`

Transport

Play / stop	`SpaceSpace`
Play / stop and set cursor	`XX`
Loop playback	`Shift`+`SpaceShift`+`Space`
Pause	`PP`
Record	`RR`
Record on new track	`Shift`+`RShift`+`R`
Skip to project start	`HomeHome`
Skip to project end	`EndEnd`
Seek short step back / forward	`Left / Right ArrowLeft / Right Arrow`
Seek long step back / forward	`Shift`+`Left / Shift`+`Right ArrowShift`+`Left / Shift`+`Right Arrow`
Play one second around cursor	`11`

Editing

Undo	`Ctrl`+`ZCmd`+`Z`
Redo	`Ctrl`+`YCmd`+`Shift`+`Z`
Cut	`Ctrl`+`XCmd`+`X`
Copy	`Ctrl`+`CCmd`+`C`
Paste	`Ctrl`+`VCmd`+`V`
Duplicate selection to new track	`Ctrl`+`DCmd`+`D`
Delete selection	`Ctrl`+`KCmd`+`K`
Silence selection	`Ctrl`+`LCmd`+`L`
Trim audio outside selection	`Ctrl`+`TCmd`+`T`
Split clip at cursor	`Ctrl`+`ICmd`+`I`
Split and move to new track	`Ctrl`+`Alt`+`ICmd`+`Option`+`I`
Split cut	`Ctrl`+`Alt`+`XCmd`+`Option`+`X`
Split delete	`Ctrl`+`Alt`+`KCmd`+`Option`+`K`
Join clips	`Ctrl`+`JCmd`+`J`
Detach at silences	`Ctrl`+`Alt`+`JCmd`+`Option`+`J`
Repeat last effect	`Ctrl`+`RCmd`+`R`

Selection

Select all	`Ctrl`+`ACmd`+`A`
Select none	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`ACmd`+`Shift`+`A`
Extend selection to project start	`Shift`+`HomeShift`+`Home`
Extend selection to project end	`Shift`+`EndShift`+`End`
Extend selection left / right	`Shift`+`Left / Shift`+`Right ArrowShift`+`Left / Shift`+`Right Arrow`
Select track start to cursor	`Shift`+`JShift`+`J`
Select cursor to track end	`Shift`+`KShift`+`K`
Snap selection to zero crossings	`ZZ`

View & Zoom

Zoom in	`Ctrl`+`1Cmd`+`1`
Zoom to normal level	`Ctrl`+`2Cmd`+`2`
Zoom out	`Ctrl`+`3Cmd`+`3`
Zoom to selection	`Ctrl`+`ECmd`+`E`
Fit project in window	`Ctrl`+`FCmd`+`F`
Fit tracks vertically	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`FCmd`+`Shift`+`F`

Tracks

New mono track	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`NCmd`+`Shift`+`N`
Mute all tracks	`Ctrl`+`UCmd`+`U`
Unmute all tracks	`Ctrl`+`Shift`+`UCmd`+`Shift`+`U`
Move focus to previous / next track	`Up / Down ArrowUp / Down Arrow`
Toggle selection of focused track	`EnterReturn`
Open dropdown menu of focused track	`Shift`+`MShift`+`M`

Labels

Add label at selection	`Ctrl`+`BCmd`+`B`
Add label at playback position	`Ctrl`+`MCmd`+`M`

Tools

Selection tool	`F1F1`
Envelope tool	`F2F2`
Draw tool	`F3F3`
Multi-tool	`F6F6`

Put your top Audacity shortcuts on real keys

The five Audacity actions most worth binding to a physical macropad key:

XX Play / stop and set cursor The core audition key when scrubbing through takes; better than Space because the cursor stays where you stopped.

Ctrl+KCmd+K Delete selection Podcast cleanup is hundreds of select-and-delete moves per episode.

Ctrl+LCmd+L Silence selection Kills breaths, clicks and background noise between phrases in one press.

Ctrl+RCmd+R Repeat last effect Re-applies noise reduction or normalization instantly across many selections.

Ctrl+Shift+ECmd+Shift+E Export audio Every session ends with an export; one key replaces a menu dive.

I hand-build small-batch programmable macropads (QMK/VIA) in Barcelona. One press, any shortcut, any app.

See the macropads

Audacity shortcut FAQs

How do I change keyboard shortcuts in Audacity?

Open Preferences (Ctrl+P on Windows, Cmd+Comma on Mac) and go to the Keyboard section. You can search every command, set new bindings and export the whole map as an XML file.

What is the difference between Delete and Split Delete in Audacity?

Ctrl+K deletes the selection and shifts the following audio left to close the gap. Split Delete (Ctrl+Alt+K) removes the audio but leaves a gap, keeping everything after it in place.

How do I quickly silence part of a recording in Audacity?

Select the region with the Selection tool and press Ctrl+L (Cmd+L on Mac). The selection is replaced with absolute silence without changing the track length.

Why should I press Z before cutting in Audacity?

Z snaps the selection edges to the nearest zero crossings, points where the waveform crosses silence. Cutting at zero crossings avoids the audible clicks and pops you get when splicing mid-wave.

How do I repeat the last effect in Audacity?

Press Ctrl+R (Cmd+R on Mac) to apply the most recent effect again with the same settings. This is a huge time saver when applying noise reduction or normalization to many selections.