What Does the Tab Key Do?
Tab jumps forward. In a document it pushes the cursor to the next tab stop (an indent). On a web page or form, it jumps to the next box, link or button.
Filling in a form? Press Tab to hop to the next box. No mouse needed!
Where is the Tab key?
The highlighted key is the Tab key on a typical Windows laptop keyboard. Keyboards vary a little by brand.
What the Tab key does
- Indent a paragraph: press Tab at the start of the line.
- Fill in a form fast: type your answer, press Tab to jump to the next box. Shift + Tab jumps back.
- Switch between open apps: hold Alt and press Tab (Windows and Chromebook) or hold Command and press Tab (Mac).
- Switch browser tabs: Ctrl + Tab goes to the next tab.
Using Tab instead of the mouse is also how many people with disabilities get around web pages, so good websites make sure Tab goes to everything in a sensible order.
Windows, Mac and Chromebook
Windows
Alt + Tab switches between windows. Windows + Tab shows all your windows and desktops.
Mac
Command + Tab switches between apps. The key is labeled tab or ⇥.
Chromebook
Alt + Tab switches windows, and Ctrl + Tab moves to the next browser tab.
Which finger presses it?
Use your left pinky. Reach up and a little left from the A key.
Fun fact
Tab is short for "tabulator". Typewriter users pressed it to line up numbers in neat columns, which is how tables got made before computers.
Keep learning
- Practice the reach in Lesson 12: Pinky Power: Q and P.
- More keys: Caps Lock, Shift key, Alt key, Enter key.
- See every keyboard key explained.
- Names of all the symbols: Keyboard Characters and Meanings.
Quick drill: find the Tab key
Press the key on your keyboard, or click or tap it below, when Rocky asks. Wrong key? We will tell you what it was.
Tab key FAQ
What does Shift + Tab do?
It moves backward, to the previous box, link or tab stop.
Which finger presses Tab?
The left pinky.
What is Alt + Tab?
Hold Alt and tap Tab to switch between open windows on Windows and Chromebook. On a Mac use Command + Tab.