Skip to main content
Participating Frequently
August 14, 2023
Answered

Keyboard shortcut for moving between tabs?

  • August 14, 2023
  • 5 replies
  • 13264 views

Certainly there must be a simple way to move between adjacent tabs in Photoshop without having to click the tab with the cursor, right?

Correct answer Stephen Marsh

You can install a script, then assign a custom keyboard shortcut to the script:

 

// Select Previous Doc
selectDoc(-1);

function selectDoc(theValue) {
	function s2t(s) {
		return app.stringIDToTypeID(s);
	}
	var descriptor = new ActionDescriptor();
	var reference = new ActionReference();
	reference.putOffset( s2t( "document" ), theValue );
	descriptor.putReference( s2t( "null" ), reference );
	descriptor.putInteger( s2t( "documentID" ), 862 );
	executeAction( s2t( "select" ), descriptor, DialogModes.NO );
}

 

Or:

 

// Select Next Doc
selectDoc(+1);

function selectDoc(theValue) {
	function s2t(s) {
		return app.stringIDToTypeID(s);
	}
	var descriptor = new ActionDescriptor();
	var reference = new ActionReference();
	reference.putOffset( s2t( "document" ), theValue );
	descriptor.putReference( s2t( "null" ), reference );
	descriptor.putInteger( s2t( "documentID" ), 862 );
	executeAction( s2t( "select" ), descriptor, DialogModes.NO );
}

 

https://prepression.blogspot.com/2017/11/downloading-and-installing-adobe-scripts.html

5 replies

Participant
March 26, 2025

Ive tried Stephens script and it works good but is a bit slower than Control + Tab.
I like the speed ofControl + Tab but would just like to use a diferent keybortd shortcut for it. My question is why is this function not available to change shortcut combination for? This option is available for Illustrator under keyboard shortcuts so why is it not in photoshop...

Participant
March 26, 2025

Used the script Stephen posted in this thread and that works as fast as Control + Tab. THANK YOU!
Still the question remains why you cant just change this in keboard shortcuts. Am i just missing it?

Participant
April 25, 2024

For tabs that exceed the width of the screen, this has been such a work-flow bottleneck, super annoying. It should auto scroll or auto-reveal if you hold your mouse there for a few seconds. Even Ctrl+Tab while dragging would be a nice addition. Please fix this Adobe, some of us always have 20 tabs open.

Participant
February 25, 2024

Still you are facing this probelm? Have you tried with ctrl+cmd

John Waller
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 14, 2023

Ctrl+Tab works too (Mac/Win).

 

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/default-keyboard-shortcuts.html

Result

Windows

macOS

Cycle through open documents

Control + Tab

Control + Tab

Switch to previous document

Shift + Control + Tab

Shift + Command + `(grave accent)

phidlerAuthor
Participating Frequently
August 14, 2023

Thanks, John and Stephen! I had looked at that chart and was so focused on the phrase "next tab" that I overlooked it.

I now find that pressing either cmd-Tab or ctrl-~ (I'm running MacOS 13.4) advance to the next open document, and adding the shift key moves to the previous one (i.e. the adjacent tab on the left, not necessarily the previously viewed one).

 

Followup question: is it possible to create a Keyboard Shortcut to assign a different key combination to this action? I don't see it in PS Keyboard Shortcuts and Menus (which doesn't appear to have a search feature), and MacOS System Preferences' Keyboard Shortcuts tool tells me "You cannot add keyboard shortcuts for the application Adobe Photoshop 2023." I'm not sure why that functionality would be disabled.

 

adriawo
Participating Frequently
December 19, 2023

I've done it just changing the keyboard layout. 

By default, my keyboard is Brazilian and I change to English ABC

 

 

Now, cmd + ` is working to change tabs in photoshop too

Stephen Marsh
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 14, 2023

Sure use CTRL/CMD + ` (often called the tilde key: ~)

 

(upper left before the 1 key, adding SHIFT cycles back)