By Marlo Anderson – The Tech Ranch
Too many windows open and you’re hunting through the taskbar for the right one? Hold Alt and tap Tab. Every open window lines up, and you can pick the one you want without touching the mouse.
The Shortcut
- Hold Alt and tap Tab to move through your windows
- Let go of Alt to switch
- Alt + Shift + Tab moves backward
- Works on Windows 10 and Windows 11
Quick Tap to Flip Back
Press Alt + Tab once and let go right away. You jump straight back to the window you were just using. It’s perfect for copying between two windows.
Bonus Tip: See Everything with Win + Tab
Press Windows key + Tab to open Task View. Every open window shows up side by side, and you can click the one you want. The bottom row lets you add a new virtual desktop, too.
On a Mac?
Use ⌘ + Tab to switch between apps.
More Keyboard Shortcuts, Explained
This is part of my Keyboard Shortcuts Explained series: quick, plain-English tips that make everyday computer work faster. Watch the whole series on YouTube and subscribe to The Tech Ranch so you don’t miss the next one. Short on time? Here’s the quick Short version.
Found this helpful? Give the video a thumbs up on YouTube. Got a shortcut you can’t live without? Tell me in the YouTube comments and it might show up in a future video.
