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How to Create Custom Keyboard Shortcuts on Windows 11 and macOS

Windows 11 and macOS use different tools for custom shortcuts. Here’s how to remap keys, assign menu commands, and find app-specific editors.
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You can customize shortcuts on both Windows 11 and macOS, but the method depends on what you want the keys to do. On Windows, PowerToys Keyboard Manager remaps one key combination to another. On a Mac, App Shortcuts assigns a combination to an existing menu command. For commands beyond those options, check whether the application has its own keyboard-shortcut editor.

Choose the right method for the shortcut you need

What you want Windows 11 macOS
Make one key combination produce another Use PowerToys Keyboard Manager. The mapping can apply globally or to a selected app, and PowerToys must be running. Use built-in shortcut settings to change an existing system shortcut; this is not a general-purpose key-remapping workflow.
Assign keys to an existing menu command Check whether the app provides a shortcut editor. Word for Windows has a Customize Keyboard dialog. Use System Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts > App Shortcuts, entering the menu title exactly.
Bind an app-specific command Check the app’s own shortcut editor; available commands vary by app. Check the app’s own shortcut editor, or use App Shortcuts when the command appears in a menu.
Make a shortcut open an app The Windows desktop-shortcut hotkey workflow is not covered here because its current steps are not established by the sources cited below. App Shortcuts cannot create a general-purpose action such as opening an app.

Remap a shortcut in Windows 11 with PowerToys

PowerToys Keyboard Manager is for translating a key combination into another combination. For example, you can make one shortcut send a different shortcut. It does not create a new command; the resulting combination still needs to perform an action in Windows or the active app.

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  1. Open PowerToys Settings and select Keyboard Manager.
  2. Choose Remap a shortcut.
  3. Set the source shortcut—the combination you will press—and the target shortcut it should produce.
  4. If the remap should work only in a particular application, specify that app as its target. Leave the app target unspecified for a global remap across Windows.
  5. Apply the mapping and keep PowerToys running while you use it.

Microsoft’s PowerToys Keyboard Manager documentation describes the remapping, application targeting, and runtime requirement. If the remap stops working, first check that PowerToys is running and that the selected app scope matches where you are testing it.

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Assign a menu-command shortcut on macOS

App Shortcuts let you assign a key combination to an existing command in an app’s menu. They do not create a new command or act as a general-purpose app launcher.

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  1. Open Apple menu > System Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts.
  2. Select App Shortcuts, then click the add button.
  3. Choose the specific app, or choose All Applications if the same menu command exists in multiple apps.
  4. In Menu title, type the command exactly as it appears in the app’s menu, including punctuation. For nested menu paths, Apple’s examples use ->; include ellipses when they appear in the command title.
  5. Click the keyboard-shortcut field, press the combination you want, and click Done.

Apple explains the exact-title requirement and the limits of App Shortcuts in its guide to creating keyboard shortcuts for apps on Mac. If the assignment does not work, check for another command using the same combination. Apple also notes that some apps may not allow menu shortcuts.

Change a built-in macOS shortcut

To change a shortcut already provided by macOS, use its category in Keyboard Shortcuts rather than adding an App Shortcut.

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  1. Open Apple menu > System Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts.
  2. Choose the relevant shortcut category and select the shortcut you want to change.
  3. Double-click its current key combination and press the replacement combination.

Apple advises quitting and reopening affected apps for changes to take effect. If the keys still do something unexpected, inspect the app’s menus and the active keyboard layout or input source. Apple’s macOS keyboard-shortcut guide covers shortcut settings, conflicts, and keyboard-layout considerations.

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Check the app’s own shortcut editor

An operating-system shortcut setting may not expose every action in a particular app. Look in the app’s menus or official help for a command such as Customize Keyboard or Keyboard Shortcuts.

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  • Office for Mac: Microsoft documents an in-app Customize Keyboard editor for supported apps and commands. For other listed Office apps, its instructions direct readers to macOS App Shortcuts. See Microsoft’s Office for Mac shortcut guidance.
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Prevent conflicts and make changes easy to undo

Before assigning a combination, check whether the operating system or app already uses it. A collision can cause the new assignment not to work or leave the old action in place. On macOS, review the affected app’s menus and reopen it after changing a system shortcut. For an existing shortcut you are replacing, note its original combination so you can restore it if needed.

Also consider scope: a global remap can affect more than one app, while an app-specific mapping or menu assignment is narrower. Choose a combination you can remember and test it in the intended app after applying the change.

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