VoiceOver navigation commands on Mac
Use these commands to perform actions such as moving around the screen, moving inside windows and web pages, and controlling cursor tracking. VO represents the VoiceOver modifier (see Use the VoiceOver modifier).
Note: When VoiceOver is on, you can enter VoiceOver commands by using the Fn and number keys with the VoiceOver modifier, as an alternative to using the function keys (F1 to F12). For example, to open VoiceOver Utility you can press Control-Option-Fn-8 (instead of Control-Option-F8).
If you use the function keys (F1 through F12), you may need to press and hold the Fn key, depending on how you set the behaviour of function keys in Keyboard preferences.
Action | Command |
|---|---|
Move the VoiceOver cursor up | VO-Up Arrow |
Move the VoiceOver cursor down | VO-Down Arrow |
Move the VoiceOver cursor to the left | VO-Left Arrow |
Move the VoiceOver cursor to the right | VO-Right Arrow |
Move to the top of the visible area (such as a window or text area) where the VoiceOver cursor is located | VO-Shift-Home On some keyboards, press VO-Fn-Left Arrow. |
Move to the bottom of the visible area (such as a window or text area) where the VoiceOver cursor is located | VO-Shift-End On some keyboards, press VO-Fn-Right Arrow. |
Move to the top of the area (such as a window or text area) where the VoiceOver cursor is located, scrolling if necessary | VO-Home On some keyboards, press VO-Shift-Fn-Left Arrow. |
Move to the bottom of the area (such as a window or text area) where the VoiceOver cursor is located, scrolling if necessary | VO-End On some keyboards, press VO-Shift-Fn-Right Arrow. |
Move to the top of a window, the first item in the Dock, or the first item on your desktop, depending on your location | VO-Command-Home On some keyboards, press VO-Command-Fn-Left Arrow. |
Move to the lower-right corner of a window, the last item in the Dock, or the last item on your desktop, depending on your location | VO-Command-End On some keyboards, press VO-Command-Fn-Right Arrow. |
Move the window containing the VoiceOver cursor to the front, making it the active window | VO-Shift-F2 |
Open the Item Chooser | VO-I |
Open the VoiceOver rotor | VO-U |
Move to the Dock | VO-D |
Move to the desktop | VO-Shift-D |
Move to the menu bar | VO-M |
Move to the status menus in the menu bar | VO-M-M |
Open or close Notification Centre | VO-O |
Open a shortcut menu | VO-Shift-M |
Jump to a linked item (for example, from a message in the Mail messages list to the message preview) | VO-J |
Temporarily turn the cursor tracking options selected in VoiceOver Utility on or off. The command doesn’t change the settings in VoiceOver Utility. | VO-Shift-F3 |
Move the VoiceOver cursor to the keyboard focus | VO-Shift-F4 |
Move the keyboard focus to the VoiceOver cursor | VO-Command-F4 |
Move the VoiceOver cursor to the mouse pointer | VO-Shift-F5 |
Move the mouse pointer to the VoiceOver cursor | VO-Command-F5 |
Jump from the current location to any displayed input method or auto correction panel, and then jump back to the original location | VO-Shift-J |
Find Next | VO-F |
While finding text, cycle through search item history | VO-Up Arrow or Down Arrow |
Move the VoiceOver cursor in the given direction, wrapping when necessary | VO-Command-Shift-arrow keys |
Set or remove a hot spot | VO-Shift-[hot spot number] |
Jump to a hot spot | VO-[hot spot number] |
Hear a description of a hot spot | VO-Command-[hot spot number] |
Toggles watching a hot spot for changes | VO-Command-Shift-[hot spot number] |
Open the Hot Spot Chooser | VO-Shift-X |
Move to the next hot spot | VO-] |
Move to the previous hot spot | VO-[ |
Jump back to a parent folder | VO-Command-\ |
Jump to the sort button in a column header in a table | VO-| If the table also contains a row header, VoiceOver displays a menu where you choose a column or row header. Press VO-Right Arrow until you hear the header you want, then press the Space bar. |