Power BI Desktop has a keyboard shortcut for a lot of what you click every day. Here are 42 that work on Windows, grouped by what you’re trying to do.
We checked every one against Microsoft Learn: Keyboard shortcuts in Power BI Desktop on October 21, 2026.
General
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Shift + ? | Show the keyboard shortcuts list |
| Alt | Show key tips to pick ribbon buttons by keyboard |
| Ctrl + F6 | Move focus between sections |
| Tab | Move focus forward within a section |
| Shift + Tab | Move focus backward within a section |
| Enter | Select or clear the focused object |
| Ctrl + Space | Select more than one object |
| Shift + F10 | Open the context (right-click) menu |
Visuals
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Alt + Shift + F10 | Move focus to the visual’s menu |
| Alt + Shift + F11 | Show the data behind the visual |
| Ctrl + Right Arrow | Enter a visual |
| Esc | Exit a layer or visual |
| Ctrl + Shift + C | Clear the selection |
| Ctrl + H | Show or hide the tooltip |
| Ctrl + G | Group the selected visuals (editing mode) |
| Shift + Right Arrow | Move the visual a bigger step (any arrow key, editing mode) |
Canvas
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + Plus | Zoom in |
| Ctrl + Minus | Zoom out |
| Page Up | Scroll the canvas up |
| Page Down | Scroll the canvas down |
| Alt + Page Up | Scroll the canvas left |
| Alt + Page Down | Scroll the canvas right |
Panes
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| F6 | Activate the Selection pane |
| Ctrl + Shift + F | Move an object up in the layer order (Selection pane) |
| Ctrl + Shift + B | Move an object down in the layer order (Selection pane) |
| Ctrl + Shift + S | Hide or show an object (Selection pane) |
| Alt + Shift + 1 | Collapse all tables in the Data pane |
| Alt + Shift + 9 | Expand all tables in the Data pane |
Tables and Matrices
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + Home | Go to the first cell of the table |
| Ctrl + End | Go to the last cell of the table |
| Shift + Right Arrow | Expand a matrix row |
| Shift + Left Arrow | Collapse a matrix row |
| Ctrl + Alt + O | Open a URL link in a table cell |
DAX Formula Bar
| Shortcut | What it does |
|---|---|
| Enter | Submit the formula |
| Shift + Enter | Insert a new line |
| Ctrl + Space | Show suggestions |
| Ctrl + / | Comment or uncomment the line |
| Ctrl + G | Go to a line number |
| Alt + Up Arrow | Move the line up |
| Ctrl + D | Select the next match of the current selection |
| Ctrl + J | Expand or collapse the formula bar |
| Esc | Close suggestions or the formula bar |
Good to know: This list is for Power BI Desktop. Press Shift + ? inside the app to see the full list.
Get the Excel and PDF Version
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If you’d rather have it on your desk, the download below is a sortable Excel file plus a printable one-page PDF of all 42 shortcuts, for $0.99.
Want One Key to Do More?
Built-in shortcuts only work while Power BI Desktop is the active window, and you can’t add new ones. These tools let you pick your own hotkeys:
- Prompt Assistant: paste a DAX measure you reuse, like Total Sales = SUM(Sales[Amount]), into the formula bar with a hotkey you pick
- Data Analyst Tools: more of our picks for people who build reports and dashboards
- Second Keyboard Manager: put the Power BI shortcuts you use most on a number keypad, one key each
