tmux Keyboard Shortcuts
Complete tmux keyboard shortcuts reference — 73 shortcuts across 7 categories. Quick reference cheat sheet for Windows & Mac.
Sessions (8)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, D | Detach client |
| Ctrl + B, $ | Rename session |
| Ctrl + B, S | Choose session |
| Ctrl + B, ( | Previous session |
| Ctrl + B, ) | Next session |
| Ctrl + B, Shift + L | Last session |
| Ctrl + B, Shift + D | Choose client to detach |
| Ctrl + B, Ctrl + Z | Suspend client |
Windows (14)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, C | New window |
| Ctrl + B, & | Kill window |
| Ctrl + B, , | Rename window |
| Ctrl + B, N | Next window |
| Ctrl + B, P | Previous window |
| Ctrl + B, L | Last window |
| Ctrl + B, 0-9 | Select window by number |
| Ctrl + B, ' | Select window by index |
| Ctrl + B, W | Choose window |
| Ctrl + B, . | Move window |
| Ctrl + B, F | Find window |
| Ctrl + B, I | Window info |
| Ctrl + B, Alt + N | Next window with activity |
| Ctrl + B, Alt + P | Previous window with activity |
Panes (17)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, % | Split left and right |
| Ctrl + B, " | Split top and bottom |
| Ctrl + B, X | Kill pane |
| Ctrl + B, O | Next pane |
| Ctrl + B, ; | Last pane |
| Ctrl + B, ↑/↓/←/→ | Select pane by direction |
| Ctrl + B, Q | Show pane numbers |
| Ctrl + B, Z | Zoom pane |
| Ctrl + B, { | Swap with previous pane |
| Ctrl + B, } | Swap with next pane |
| Ctrl + B, Ctrl + O | Rotate panes forwards |
| Ctrl + B, Alt + O | Rotate panes backwards |
| Ctrl + B, ! | Break pane to window |
| Ctrl + B, M | Mark pane |
| Ctrl + B, Shift + M | Clear marked pane |
| Ctrl + B, Space | Next layout |
| Ctrl + B, Alt + 1-7 | Preset layouts |
Resizing Panes (2)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, Ctrl + ↑/↓/←/→ | Resize pane by one cell |
| Ctrl + B, Alt + ↑/↓/←/→ | Resize pane by five cells |
Copy Mode & Buffers (6)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, [ | Enter copy mode |
| Ctrl + B, ] | Paste buffer |
| Ctrl + B, Page Up | Copy mode and scroll up |
| Ctrl + B, # | List paste buffers |
| Ctrl + B, = | Choose buffer to paste |
| Ctrl + B, - | Delete buffer |
Copy Mode Navigation (vi keys) (20)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Q | Exit copy mode |
| Space | Begin selection |
| Enter | Copy selection and exit |
| V | Rectangle selection |
| Shift + V | Select line |
| / | Search forward |
| ? | Search backward |
| N | Repeat search |
| Shift + N | Repeat search reversed |
| G | Top of history |
| Shift + G | Bottom of history |
| Ctrl + U | Half page up |
| Ctrl + D | Half page down |
| Ctrl + B | Page up |
| Ctrl + F | Page down |
| 0 | Start of line |
| $ | End of line |
| W | Next word |
| B | Previous word |
| % | Matching bracket |
Prompt & Help (6)
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|
| Ctrl + B, : | Command prompt |
| Ctrl + B, ? | List key bindings |
| Ctrl + B, T | Show clock |
| Ctrl + B, R | Redraw client |
| Ctrl + B, ~ | Show messages |
| Ctrl + B, Ctrl + B | Send prefix |
📜 Every shortcut on this page is taken from the official tmux documentation —
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