MS Excel: Charts & Shapes Shortcuts Windows, Mac, Web

Visualizing data effectively is one of Excel’s greatest strengths. Charts help bring data to life, while shapes can enhance dashboards, presentations, and worksheets with added clarity and design. Whether you're building interactive reports or visual summaries, using keyboard shortcuts for charts and shapes in Excel can help you work faster and more efficiently.

This article covers all essential keyboard shortcuts for working with Charts and Shapes in Microsoft Excel 2021 across Windows, Mac, and Excel for the Web.

Why Learn Shortcuts for Charts & Shapes?

Creating and formatting visuals manually takes time. Shortcuts empower you to:

• Quickly insert charts.

• Navigate between objects.

• Format and edit charts or shapes without using the ribbon.

• Align and arrange visuals with precision.

Excel Charts & Shapes Shortcuts Table

Action	Windows Shortcut	Mac Shortcut	Web Excel Shortcut
Insert default chart	Alt + F1	Fn + Option + F1	Alt + F1
Insert chart in separate sheet	F11	Fn + F11	F11
Select next object (chart/shape/image)	Ctrl + Alt + 5, then Tab	Ctrl + Option + 5, then Tab	Ctrl + Alt + 5, then Tab
Select previous object	Ctrl + Alt + 5, then Shift + Tab	Ctrl + Option + 5, then Shift + Tab	Same
Exit object navigation mode	Esc	Esc	Esc
Move selected shape/chart by 1 pixel	Arrow Keys	Arrow Keys	Arrow Keys
Move selected shape/chart by 10 pixels	Ctrl + Arrow Keys	⌘ + Arrow Keys	Ctrl + Arrow Keys
Resize shape/chart (1 pixel)	Shift + Arrow Keys	Shift + Arrow Keys	Shift + Arrow Keys
Resize shape/chart (10 pixels)	Ctrl + Shift + Arrow Keys	⌘ + Shift + Arrow Keys	Ctrl + Shift + Arrow Keys
Group selected objects	Ctrl + G	⌘ + G	Ctrl + G
Ungroup selected objects	Ctrl + Shift + G	⌘ + Shift + G	Ctrl + Shift + G
Bring object forward	Ctrl + Shift + ]	⌘ + Shift + ]	Ctrl + Shift + ]
Send object backward	Ctrl + Shift + [	⌘ + Shift + [	Ctrl + Shift + [
Align selected objects (opens align options)	Alt + J D, A	N/A	Alt + J D, A
Format selected chart/shape	Ctrl + 1	⌘ + 1	Ctrl + 1
Edit text in shape	Select shape, press F2	Select shape, press Fn + F2	F2

Tips for Working with Charts & Shapes

• Use Alt + F1 to insert a chart instantly using your selected data—no need to go through the Insert tab.

• For dashboards, group and align objects with keyboard commands for a polished look.

• Combine object navigation mode (Ctrl + Alt + 5) with arrow keys to jump between charts, shapes, and images without using your mouse.

Conclusion

Mastering Excel Charts and Shapes shortcuts enables you to create professional, well-designed reports faster and with greater precision. Whether you're working on financial dashboards or academic reports, these shortcuts give you full control over your visual elements—right from your keyboard.

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