Here we’ll share our favorite keyboard shortcuts that have made After Effects animation smoother, faster, and honestly way more fun. Whether you’re a designer stepping into motion for the first time or an illustrator bringing characters to life, these are the cheat codes you’ll wish you’d known sooner.
1. Getting started with After Effects keyboard shortcuts
Why shortcuts matter
Learning After Effects keyboard shortcuts probably isn’t the first thing you’re excited about when opening After Effects. But once you start using After Effects keyboard shortcuts, it’s hard to go back. Shortcuts help you stay in the zone, cut down repetitive clicks, and make animation feel way more intuitive.
Think of them as creative muscle memory. The more you use them, the more naturally they start to flow.
Start with the basics
You don’t need to memorize dozens of After Effects keyboard shortcuts on day one. Instead, focus on the essentials, which are the ones that’ll save you time straight away. Here are a few good ones to start with:
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Duplicate layer |
Ctrl + D
|
Cmd + D
|
| Show all animated properties | U |
U |
| Show Position property | P |
P |
| Show Scale property | S |
S |
| Show Rotation property | R |
R |
| Show Opacity property | T |
T |
| Play/Pause preview | Spacebar |
Spacebar |
Where to find (and customize) shortcuts
If you’re ever unsure, you can view the full list of shortcuts inside After Effects:
- Go to Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts (Windows)
- Or After Effects > Keyboard Shortcuts (Mac)
This opens a searchable layout of every shortcut in the app. You can even customize them and change a few keyboard shortcut keys so that they fit your workflow a bit better!
Panel Shortcuts
You can switch to panel specific shortcuts using the Command drop down menu. The keyboard layout will highlight only the keys relevant to that panel in green. These shortcuts work only when that specific panel is active, and you’ll only see commands that apply to it in the list.
Tips for remembering them
Learning After Effects keyboard shortcuts can be really awkward at first, but it becomes so much smoother with practice. Trust me, your future self will thank you. Here are a few things that will help:
- Use sticky notes or print out a cheat sheet
- Say the shortcut out loud as you use it
- Focus on learning just 2–3 new ones per project
2. Essential everyday shortcuts
These are the shortcuts you can use constantly, whether it’s setting up a new comp, scrubbing through the timeline, or trying to make sense of twenty overlapping layers. They’re perfect for day-to-day tasks and will save you loads of clicking around.
You’ll probably end up using most of these without even thinking once they become second nature. So if you’re just getting started with After Effects, this is a great batch to commit to muscle memory.
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Import files |
Ctrl + I
|
Cmd + I
|
| New composition |
Ctrl + N
|
Cmd + N
|
| New project |
Ctrl + Alt + N
|
Cmd + Opt + N
|
| Save project |
Ctrl + S
|
Cmd + S
|
| Undo / Redo |
Ctrl + Z / Ctrl + Shift + Z
|
Cmd + Z / Cmd + Shift + Z
|
| Maximize or restore active panel |
` (accent grave) |
` (accent grave) |
| Hand tool (for panning around) |
Spacebar (hold) |
Spacebar (hold) |
| Zoom in / out in timeline |
Alt + Scroll Wheel
|
Option + Scroll Wheel
|
| Show/hide rulers |
Ctrl + R
|
Cmd + R
|
| Toggle snapping |
' (apostrophe) |
' (apostrophe) |
| Fit comp to viewer |
Shift + /
|
Shift + /
|
3. Animation & keyframe shortcuts
Keyframes are where the magic happens in After Effects. But they can also turn into a mess fast! These shortcuts will help you stay quick, focused, and way less overwhelmed.
Core animation shortcuts
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Set a keyframe | Click the stopwatch
|
Click the stopwatch
|
| Toggle keyframe with expression |
Alt + Click stopwatch |
Option + Click stopwatch |
| Show all animated properties | U |
U |
| Show only modified properties | UU |
UU |
| Easy Ease | F9 |
F9 |
| Ease In |
Shift + F9
|
Shift + F9
|
| Ease Out |
Ctrl + Shift + F9
|
Cmd + Shift + F9
|
| Go to next keyframe | K |
K |
| Go to previous keyframe | J |
J |
| Nudge keyframe 1 frame |
Alt + ← / →
|
Option + ← / →
|
| Nudge keyframe 10 frames |
Shift + Alt + ← / →
|
Shift + Option + ← / →
|
Property shortcuts for animating
| Command | Windows & Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Position | P |
| Scale | S |
| Rotation | R |
| Opacity | T |
| Anchor Point | A |
These After Effects keyboard shortcuts are the core of almost every animation you create. You’ll use them constantly, especially U to reveal your keyframes and F9 for easing. Once you start using them, you’ll wonder how you ever animated without them.
4. Timeline & layer shortcuts
Once you start stacking up layers and refining your animation, the timeline can go from “neatly organised” to “total chaos” in no time.
These shortcuts will become your go-to tools for staying on top of the madness. Whether you’re trimming clips, splitting layers, or nudging things into place, they will help you move faster and keep everything under control.
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Duplicate selected layer |
Ctrl + D
|
Cmd + D
|
| Split layer at playhead |
Ctrl + Shift + D
|
Cmd + Shift + D
|
| Move layer start to playhead | [ |
[ |
| Move layer end to playhead | ] |
] |
| Trim layer in point to playhead |
Alt + [
|
Option + [
|
| Trim layer out point to playhead |
Alt + ]
|
Option + ]
|
| Pre-compose selected layers |
Ctrl + Shift + C
|
Cmd + Shift + C
|
| Toggle layer visibility |
Ctrl + Shift + V
|
Cmd + Shift + V
|
| Toggle solo for selected layer |
Solo switch (click) |
Solo switch (click) |
| Toggle layer switches/modes columns | F4 |
F4 |
| Zoom into timeline |
= (equals key) |
= (equals key) |
| Zoom out of timeline |
- (minus key) |
- (minus key) |
Learning how to quickly split and trim layers (Ctrl + Shift + D and Alt + [/]) will be a turning point. It’s one of those things that seems small but makes a huge difference once you’re in the zone.
5. Masking, Effects & Visuals
This is the part we really love, getting hands-on with shapes, masks, and effects to bring the visuals to life!
That said, clicking around menus to add masks or dig through effects panels can seriously slow you down. These shortcuts help keep things snappy so you can stay focused on making things look amazing.
Shape and masking tools
| Command | Windows & Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Cycle shape tools (rectangle, ellipse, etc.) | Q |
| Pen tool (for drawing custom masks/paths) | G |
| Show mask path properties | M |
| Show mask feather | F |
| Invert selected mask |
M (then check Invert) |
Effects and visual controls
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Apply effect (via Effects & Presets panel) | Drag & drop manually | Drag & drop manually |
| Remove all effects from selected layer |
Ctrl + Shift + E
|
Cmd + Shift + E
|
| Open layer settings |
Ctrl + Shift + Y
|
Cmd + Shift + Y
|
| Toggle transparency grid in comp panel |
Ctrl + Shift + '
|
Cmd + Shift + '
|
| Take snapshot |
Shift + F5–F8
|
Shift + F5–F8
|
| Show snapshot in viewer |
F5–F8
|
F5–F8
|
When you’re deep in a masking pass or experimenting with glows and distortion effects, these shortcuts will save a ton of time. If you’re working on anything visually heavy, they’re well worth memorising.
6. Expressions & power user tips
Once you get comfortable with the basics, you’ll probably start running into things that are just a little too annoying to keyframe by hand. Things like looping a wiggle, syncing layers, or automating bounces. That’s where expressions come in.
Expressions and advanced animation shortcuts
| Command | Windows Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Add/remove expression to property |
Alt + Click stopwatch
|
Option + Click stopwatch
|
| Show expression field | EE |
EE |
| Expression pick whip (drag to link properties) | Click + drag pick whip
|
Click + drag pick whip
|
| Open Graph Editor |
Shift + F3
|
Shift + F3
|
| Reveal selected layer properties | U |
U |
| Reveal only modified properties | UU |
UU |
That’s a wrap!
After Effects can feel like a lot, but once you’ve got a few shortcuts under your fingers, everything starts to click. You don’t need to learn them all at once (I definitely didn’t). Just pick a handful that match how you like to work and build from there.
The goal isn’t to memorize a manual, it’s to spend less time digging through menus and more time doing what you love, which is creating cool stuff! So stick this cheat sheet somewhere nearby, and next time you’re animating, try reaching for a shortcut or two. Your future self will thank you.