QuickBooks Keyboard Shortcuts: A Comprehensive Guide

QuickBooks, like any accounting software, is only as good as the information you put into it. When you’re short on time to enter data, the quality of that data can be compromised.

Fortunately, QuickBooks has implemented a system of shortcuts designed to save you time so you can enter information as quickly and accurately as possible. Here are some of the most useful keyboard shortcuts that you may need for your company.

It’s important to note that some of these shortcuts only work when a form is on the screen. You can print up this comprehensive guide and keep it as a reference until you begin to memorize the short cut keys that you use the most.

When you want to get to a page quickly….

Customer’s page	CTRL + ALT + C
Vendor’s page	CTRL + ALT + V
List’s page	CTRL + ALT + L
Chart of Account’s page	CTRL + ALT + A
Search transactions screen	CTRL + ALT + F
Help window	CTRL + ALT + H

When you want to work on a form…..

Start a new invoice	CTRL + ALT + I
Start a new check	CTRL + ALT + W
Start a new estimate	CTRL + ALT + E
Start a new expense	CTRL + ALT + X
Receive a payment	CTRL + ALT + R
Save a current form and open a new one	CTRL + ALT + S
Save current form and send it	CTRL + ALT + M

When you need to move between fields…..

Move from one field to the next	Tab
Move backwards through the fields	Shift + Tab

When you want to enter dates in a field…..

To change the date to…
Next day	+
Previous day	–
Today	T
First day of the week	W
Last day of the week	K
First day of the month	M
Last day of the month	H
First day of the year	Y
Last day of the year	R

When you want to calculate a rate or amount…..

You can enter a calculation into the amount or rate field and QuickBooks will calculate the amount for you.

Add	+
Subtract	–
Multiply	*
Divide	/
Group	( )

When you want to choose items in a drop-down list…..

To reach a field	Tab
To open the list	Alt + down arrow
To move through the items in the list	Up arrow or down arrow
Select the item and move to next field	Tab
To scroll through the list without opening the list	CTRL + down arrow or CTRL + up arrow

When you want to enter transactions in the register…..

To add a transaction	CTRL + ALT + N
To select the transaction type field	In a new transaction row, press Shift + Tab
Open the list	ALT + down arrow
Move through the list	Up arrow or down arrow or type the first letter of the transaction you want If there are two that start with the same letter, hit the letter twice
Increase a reference number	+
Decrease a reference number	–
Enter “To Print” in the reference field	T
Save selected transaction	Shift + ALT + S or CTRL + S
Edit a saved transaction	Shift + ALT + E or CTRL E
Move between transactions within the register and selecting the date field along the way	Up arrow to select the transaction above Down arrow to select the transaction below