Keyboard shortcuts for working with PDFs on Mac
Verso uses the shortcuts your Mac already uses. Here are the ones worth the muscle memory.
A Mac app should not invent its own keyboard. Verso uses the shortcuts you already know from every other document app, which means most of this page is a reminder rather than a lesson.
Documents
| Shortcut | Does |
|---|---|
| ⌘+O | Open a document |
| ⌘+S | Save |
| ⌘+⇧+S | Save a copy under a new name |
| ⌘+P | |
| ⌘+W | Close the current tab |
| ⌘+⇧+] | Next tab |
| ⌘+⇧+[ | Previous tab |
Reading and moving around
| Shortcut | Does |
|---|---|
| ⌘+F | Find in the document |
| ⌘+G | Next match |
| ⌘+⇧+G | Previous match |
| ↑ / ↓ | Scroll a little |
| ⌥+↑ / ⌥+↓ | Previous or next page |
| ⌘++ / ⌘+− | Zoom in or out |
| ⌘+0 | Fit the page to the window |
| ⌘+1 | Show or hide the sidebar |
Editing and marking up
| Shortcut | Does |
|---|---|
| ⌘+Z | Undo |
| ⌘+⇧+Z | Redo |
| ⌘+A | Select all — text on the page, or every page in Organize Pages |
| ⌘+C | Copy the selection |
| ⌫ | Delete the selected annotation, or the selected pages |
| ⎋ | Put the current tool down and go back to the pointer |
With the reading ruler on, the up and down arrows nudge the clear band line by line, so you can read a dense contract without touching the trackpad. Clicking the page underneath still works normally.
Finding the rest
Every command in the app lives in the menu bar, and every shortcut is printed next to its command there. If you are looking for something not listed above, the menu is the fastest place to find both the command and its key.
macOS also lets you assign your own shortcut to any menu command, from System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ App Shortcuts, if there is something you use constantly that has no key of its own.
Frequently asked questions
What is the shortcut to search inside a PDF on a Mac?
⌘+F opens find, ⌘+G steps to the next match and ⌘+⇧+G steps back.
How do I switch between open documents?
⌘+⇧+] and ⌘+⇧+[ move between tabs, the same as in every other tabbed Mac app.
Can I change the shortcuts?
macOS lets you assign a key to any menu command, from System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ App Shortcuts. Every Verso command appears in the menu bar, so anything can be given a key.
Is there a shortcut to hide the sidebar?
⌘+1 shows and hides it, which is worth knowing when you want the page as wide as the window will allow.
Does Escape do anything useful?
It puts the current tool down and returns you to the pointer, which is the fastest way out of a markup tool you no longer want.