![Most Popular And Useful Visual Studio Shortcut Keys]()
As a developer, we use IDE almost the whole day and write code. We write several codes and complete the requirements of the application or small module of it. Besides coding, we do several other activities which are also part of development. Apart from writing code, we spend time building code, debugging, editing, formatting, refactoring, adding files, folders, projects, etc. These activities associated with writing code are also time-consuming and some take huge time which ultimately affects the productivity of Developers.
If a developer saves a small fraction of time in each of these activities, then it can improve productivity significantly. Using shortcut keys and commands can help to save time and result in considerable improvement as well as productivity.
![Most Popular And Useful Visual Studio Shortcut Keys]()
In this article, I will share the most useful and trendy shortcut keys for visual studio which apply globally if it is not specified or altered. These shortcut keys are available for general or every profile for visual studio installed.
We can categorize these shortcut keys based on activities like to build, debug, Code Editor, File, Project, refactor, tools, and so on.
This article will discuss the shortcut keys to Visual Studio on Windows.
Debugging
One of the most common and time-consuming activities during coding and development is debugging. Using the below shortcut keys can improve productivity and save huge time for developers.
| Action/Task/Command |
Shortcut Keys |
| Start Debugging |
F5 |
| Stop Debugging |
Shift + F5 |
| Restart Debugging |
Ctrl + Shift + F5 |
| Start without Debugging |
Ctrl + F5 |
| Break at Function |
Ctrl + B |
| Break All |
Ctrl + Alt + B |
| Toggle Breakpoint |
F9 |
| Run to Cursor |
Ctrl + F10 |
| Disable Breakpoint |
Ctrl + F9 |
| Delete All Break Points |
Ctrl + Shift + F9 |
| Step Over (during Debug) |
F10 |
| Step Into |
F11 |
| Step Out |
Shift + F11 |
| Run to Cursor |
Ctrl + F10 |
| Quick watch |
Ctrl + Alt + Q or Shift + F9 |
| Exceptions |
Ctrl + Alt + E |
| Attach to process |
Ctrl + Alt + P |
| Immediate window |
Ctrl + Alt + I |
| Immediate window command mode |
Type > |
| Immediate window – clear buffer |
Type cls |
| Immediate window – print value |
Type ? varname |
Building
The below are the popular building shortcut keys.
| Action/Task/Command |
Shortcut Keys |
| Build Solution |
Ctrl + Shift + B |
| Cancel |
Ctrl + Break |
| Compile |
Ctrl + F7 |
| Run Code analysis on Solution |
Alt + F11 |
Code Editor
This is another area where developers or programmers spend most of their time writing code. And using shortcut keys can improve productivity and speed up the writing code. Some of the most common shortcut keys are listed below.
| Action/Task/Command |
Shortcut Keys |
| Go To All |
Ctrl + T |
| Go To Recent Files |
Ctrl + T, R |
| Search/Find |
Ctrl + F |
| Find in Files |
Ctrl + Shift + F |
| Find Next |
F3 |
| Find Next Selected |
Ctrl + F3 |
| Format Document |
Ctrl + K, Ctrl + D |
| Format Selection |
Ctrl + K, Ctrl + F |
| IntelliSence Suggestion Mode |
Ctrl + Alt + Space (toggle) |
| Go to Line Number |
Ctrl + G |
| Go To Definition |
F12 |
| Go To Declaration |
Ctrl + F12 |
| Peek Definition |
Alt + F12 |
| Copy Line |
Ctrl + D |
| Insert snippet (insert code) |
Ctrl + K, Ctrl + X |
| Close Peek Definition Window |
Esc |
| Undo |
Ctrl + Z |
| Redo |
Ctrl + Y |
| Select Current Word |
Ctrl + W |
| Cancel Selection |
Esc |
| Delete word from Current curser to End |
Ctrl + Delete |
| Delete word from Current curser to Start |
Ctrl + Backspace |
| List Members |
Ctrl + J |
| Save file |
Ctrl + S |
| Save All Files |
Ctrl + Shift + S |
| Toggle All Outline |
Ctrl + M, Ctrl + L |
| Toggle Outlining Expansion |
Ctrl + M, Ctrl + M |
| Comment Selection |
Ctrl + M, Ctrl + C |
| Uncomment Selection |
Ctrl + K, Ctrl + U |
| Quick Replace |
Ctrl + H |
| Refactoring Shortcut Keys |
| Extract Method |
Ctrl + R, Ctrl + M |
File
Some popular shortcut keys for file actions are given below:
| Action/Task/Command |
Shortcut Keys |
| New File |
Ctrl + N |
| Open File |
Ctrl + O |
| New Project |
Ctrl + Shift + N |
| Open Project |
Ctrl + Shift + O |
| Rename |
F2 |
| View in Browser |
Ctrl + Shift + W |
| Save file |
Ctrl + S |
| Save All Files |
Ctrl + Shift + S |
| View in Browser |
Ctrl + Shift + W |
| Project Related Shortcut Keys |
| Adding existing item |
Shift + Alt + A |
| Adding New Item |
Ctrl + Shift + A |
View
Some popular keys related to viewing are listed below.
| Action/Task/Command |
Shortcut Keys |
| Class view |
Ctrl + Shift + C |
| Error List |
Ctrl + \, E |
| Navigate backward |
Ctrl + – |
| Navigate forward |
Ctrl + Shift + – |
| Object Browser |
Ctrl + Alt + J |
| Properties window |
F4 |
| Server Explorer |
Ctrl + Shift + S |
| Solution Explorer |
Ctrl + Alt + L |
| Output window |
Ctrl + Alt + O |
| TFS Explorer |
Ctrl + \, Ctrl + M |
| Toolbox |
Ctrl + Alt + X |
Above are the most popular and useful shortcut keys that can boost the productivity of developers or programmers significantly in visual studios.
Conclusion
In this article, I have shared some of the most popular and useful visual studio shortcut keys. Using shortcut keys save huge time while writing code and boost productivity overall. Additionally, I have shared those shortcut keys based on categories that are mostly used in debugging and building, code editor, file, and viewing.
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